Lowe’s Hits The Runway, Brings High Fashion Home 08/28/2020 – MediaPost Communications

In a collaboration that shows just how much creativefreedom brands are discovering amid COVID-19 disruption, Lowe's is teaming up with New York Fashion Week.

While the big-box retailer may be more associated with drywall and gardening toolsthan hemlines and silhouettes, it intends to bring New York Fashion Week home with dcor "edits," assembled through the design lenses of Jason Wu, Rebecca Minkoff and ChristianSiriano.

"Often, creativity comes from constraints and right now, home and style are intersecting like never before," says Marisa Thalberg, chief brand and marketing officer, in an email toMarketing Daily. "Home has actually become the new epicenter of personal style. We see this partnership as an opportunity for Lowe's to surprise consumers, as well as the fashion world, byputting our brand at the center of one of fashion's biggest moments."

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Thalberg says the effort underscores the brand's commitment to style, attainability and design. "We saw thisfirst-of-its-kind partnership with NYFW as a chance to remind consumers that Lowe's has the affordable style they crave," she says. "If these designers can bring their ultimate runway visions to lifewith products we sell every day at Lowe's, we hope people will be inspired at the possibilities in their own homes."

The Mooresville, North Carolina-based retailer says it intends to revealthe collections at midnight on Tuesday, Sept. 8. All the home items, handpicked by each designer, are set to be shoppable from Lowes.com and streamable on Lowe's Twitter feed.

It's safe to saythat the fashion world -- not to mention Fashion Week -- has never been so disrupted. The New York Times recently reported, for instance, that while clothing sales plunged 79% in April in theU.S., sales of sweatpants soared 80%.

But if fashion is sputtering, Lowe's is flying high in COVID culture, last week posting comparable sales results that jumped 35.1% in the second quarter,compared to the same period a year ago. Digital sales shot up 135%, and its earnings soared 75%.

And as Americans continue to invest heavily in making home more welcoming and inspiring thanever, Lowe's says it makes sense for the company to broaden beyond its DIY appeal, reaching out to the style elite.

"The intersection between home and style has never been more prevalent thanit has this year, and partnering with some of the world's most modern and visionary leaders of fashion to demonstrate how everyone can bring fashion home is very exciting to us," saysMarisa Thalberg, chief brand and marketing officer, in its release. "Our homes can be our greatest form of self-expression."

Meanwhile, New York is preparing itself for a very differentseason. Scheduled for Sept. 13 through 17, New York Fashion Week got the city's greenlight. But indoor events are capped at 50 people, with no spectators. And strict health and safety guidelines arein place.

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Lowe's Hits The Runway, Brings High Fashion Home 08/28/2020 - MediaPost Communications