*OK* So Can We Talk About…Parke Sweatshirts.
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PART TWO:
FULL TRANSCRIPT
Victoria: OK, so can we talk about Parke sweatshirts? Founded by just this cute hot girl from Jersey - Chelsea Kramer, I think is her name, but Parke is her middle name. So she made these sweatshirts. They’re cute. Little mock-neck, preppy, “Parke” on the front, and the Gen Z girls are like, they’re crashing out.
Emilee: They’re crashing out hard.
Victoria: For a sweatshirt that is, I mean, much has been made of the price, but $125 for a sweatshirt is a lot, but it’s not like, crazy.
Emilee: It’s not crazy at all.
Victoria: It’s not outrageous.
Emilee: No and I don’t know if you’ve read, but I’ve read that the quality is pretty good.
Victoria: It looks like a nice sweatshirt. Would you wear it, would you buy it?
Emilee: I don’t think so because I feel like I’m not the primary demographic.
Victoria: Interesting. Do you feel like you’re too old?
Emilee: Yes.
Victoria: I’m older than you and I’m like, I want one.
Emilee: I think… I like the idea of it. I’d probably just go buy a GAP sweater though, you know? It’s like the same thing.
Victoria: OK, but what if someone gave it to you—would you wear it?
Emilee: At home. It is very trend— I mean, I love, look at me wear this jersey, like I love a trend, but I feel like this is too trendy and it’s too like micro-trendy.
Victoria: It’s so fascinating. And it’s a good point— because for me, what I think about with a brand like this, is like: where do you go next Inevitably, the hype will crash. Will it be able to compete and stand the test of time.
Emilee: No I know. I mean this is another interesting thing about it is like I do think the power of the microinfluencer is really forgotten.
Victoria: She only had 10,000 followers when she started.
Emilee: That’s crazy.
Victoria: Truly anyone can do that.
Emilee: And I think of some of the microinfluencers I follow, and I mean, they’re so much more engaged. They have like really active subscriber communities. You just feel like you know them, and I think they probably feel like they understand their audience. The parts she’s been so smart about are knowing that people want monthly drops. I think that makes her so nimble. Oh butter yellow’s trending, let me do something butter yellow real quick.
Victoria: It’s genius. The drop model is the thing right now if you have any kind of clothing or accessory lines. I think the drop model— I think Skims perfected it, doing the preview emails, building hype, and then doing your drop and having it be limited, having it sell out. I think that’s the way to do it for brands of that size for sure.
Emilee: So then I think if you’re tapped into what your people want you’re able to have a pretty quick turnaround, it’s pretty limitless then you know what I mean.
Victoria: I mean I think the other interesting thing about it that I was thinking was: to me it kind of signals Gen Z, they have no clubs, they have no community, they have no third space. So I think there is something about going to a pop-up for that generation, and millennials too, where you feel like you’re amongst your people. You see another girl wearing that sweatshirt, she’s you’re kind of girl. Maybe it makes it easier to strike up a conversation.
I think that so often when we see trends and they become popular we’re like, “oh girls are so silly.” They’re always falling for this stupid stuff. I think it’s actually a way to create community where we don’t really have it anymore.
Emilee: Actually that’s kind of nice when you word it like that.
Victoria: Yeah it’s kind of beautiful. I think that people are like “oh it’s so capitalistic and blah blah blah” and yes it is, to a certain degree. But I also just think that it’s these young girls who are really hungry to feel like they’re a part of something and maybe it helps them connect, and that’s kind of nice.
Emilee: No, that’s really nice.
Victoria: I could totally see, you go to your silly little pilates class or your silly little hot girl walk and you see another girl wearing a Parke sweatshirt and you smile at her and you strike up a conversation. You just never know, I think it’s really sweet.
Emilee: It’s sweet.
Victoria: And that’s why I want one even though I’m too old.
Emilee: You get that sweater.
Victora: Ok I might. Next week I’m like wearing it.
Emilee: Honestly iconic.
