NYC Market. Customer Appreciation. Bodega Snack Bar.
Our friends and customers always ask what it's like to attend market in NYC and be shown a preview of the top fashion brands' lines for the following year. It's fun, it's a whirlwind, it's intense and it's exhilarating all at the same time. We don't want to leave, yet we're so happy when we return home. We love picking out the clothes, and we also love the abundant snacks in the showrooms! So here I'm going to share what a full day at market is like, plus add in the snacks at each stop -- which we'll have out for you to enjoy, too, at Customer Appreciation Week.
Annette Ayrapetian; Renée C. Gage Photography
6:15am: Board train at DC Union Station
Most train riders on this particular route between DC and New York appear to be of the businessperson variety. They carry briefcases, wear business-casual clothes and all seem to be answering emails from multiple devices. I personally believe that the number of proficient Excel-users is higher per capita on the Acela during morning and evening rush hours than it could possibly be anywhere else. Just my observations.
“The cafe car is now open” comes over the train’s speakers, words which to coffee addicts such as ourselves sound suspiciously like angelic voices singing. The next couple of hours will be spent going over line sheets for brands we will meet with later that day, number crunching and comparing different types of pumps, skirts and handbags. Elizabeth, her sister Rebecca and I (with varying degrees of proficiency in Excel) are caffeinated and huddled around a screen playing the ultimate game of This or That. Spreadsheets are important, so is knowing what makes certain pants cool. Both talents are needed here and it’s only 7:30am.
8:55am: Exit train, enter Moynihan Train Hall
Later I will wax poetic about the charm and romance of the transient nature of train halls, the comings and goings, but right now we are already running late for our first appointment. TAXI!
9:15ish am: Veronica Beard
We meet with our lovely rep, Sabrina. She shows us the suits, the dresses, the sweaters, etc. “Let’s see this one on a model; you’re going to love it,” she says as a 5’11” woman comes out in a very cool skirt and jacket combo. She’s right; we love it. Coffee is offered to us which of course we accept. The Veronica Beard showroom is what you may imagine if you have ever gone into one of their stores. It’s very sleek with animal print chairs, lots of gold accents, some nods here and there to the Hollywood Regency style. If a power suit was a room, it would be this room. Very on-brand.
10:00am: AGL
At AGL we will sensibly accept bottled water to balance out our massive caffeine consumption, which I can assure you will only continue throughout the day. We have places to be and the pace of the city with which to keep up. As you all know, AGL makes an amazing shoe. I bet in your top 5 favorite shoes, at least two pairs are AGL; they know what they’re doing over there.
11:00am: Xirena
11:30am: Clare V.
12:00pm: Saint Art
12:30pm: Apiece Apart
A fun piece of insight that I did not know a few years ago: Some large brands have their own showrooms while multiple smaller brands may be located under one roof at a multi-brand showroom. At one of our favorite showrooms, they are gracious enough to serve lunch under that roof. This is a food tour, not just a fashion market tour, so hold onto your hat!
It is very important to never (ever) buy beautiful things on an empty stomach. Clare V.? Take a bite of your chicken wrap. Apiece Apart? Hope you packed your Perfect Bar. “Shopping hungry” does not only apply to groceries. The same goes for hydration; if a fashion person is offering you cucumber water, take it. Now that we have eaten and sipped infused water, we are ready to buy the amazing bags and dresses!
1:30pm: Anine Bing
It goes without saying that Anine Bing is a very cool brand. The t-shirts make me want to blare classic rock and the trench coats make me feel tall and polished. These things we know. The other thing that is important to know? The gummies. The Anine Bing showroom is home to our most sought-after snack: SockerBit Gummies. The individual serving bags of Swedish gummies offer flavors and fun shapes that you never knew you needed as a gummy. We love gummy bears, but Haribo could never…
2:30pm: Frank & Eileen
This showroom is a cozy one. Imagine walking into your aunt’s beach house; it has an adorable kitchen, shiplapped walls and immediate offerings of English chocolate. Oh, and there is shirting as far as the eye can see, rooms and rooms of it. Here we will make notes in many color ways, the Silvio, the Eileen, the Joedy, and very importantly, the Cadbury Milk Bar.
3:30pm: Tibi
The Tibi showroom and offices are in a serious-looking building that always seems to have many appointments but is somehow still quiet, stark in contrast to the bustling city streets. It is within these chic, industrial walls that the very best snack bar is located. Set up to look like a little bodega end-cap in the middle of all the Wilt joggers and Liam blazers, the offerings include everything from Pocky to mixed nuts, potato chips to taffy. Quite a few of the snacks are in small, single-serving jars adorned with a tiny Tibi color wheel. To my delight and surprise I found a jar of mini Mallo Cups. The bright yellow packaging, while difficult to miss, does prove tough to find in the real world, as the candy is not stocked everywhere. The Boyer company is Pennsylvanian, as am I, and Mallo Cups were the candy that my dad would buy for me when I was a kid. To this day they remain a family favorite.
4:30pm: Ulla Johnson
The building lobby is quintessential New York. Giant, heavy doors open to a doorman behind whom is a hallway of elevators all framed in Art Deco style brass fixtures. Up we go, many floors and before the doors even slide open the smell of incense burning transports us to some place decidedly warmer and more sunny. If you are caught in the blustery winds of NYC, the Ulla Johnson showroom can make you firmly believe that you are somewhere south of the equator. And just when you finish that thought, some kind soul will present you with a variety of fresh juices from which to choose, the most delicious popcorn, Bjorn Qorn, and of course… more coffee. The dresses, the people, the shoes and the bags, are all beautiful and make you want to move right in. The fresh flowers alone could have their own page in Architectural Digest.
5:00pm: Lizzie Fortunato
Visiting the LFJ showroom always feels like visiting friends. Lizzie and Kathryn are the most gracious people ever and our appointments with them are a nice landing spot in a busy day. When they talk about their dedication to overseeing in-house operations, they truly mean it. You can see the whole room of people making the beautiful pieces that eventually make their way into the store. They will usually share whatever their favorite new up-and-coming brand is while they offer us a La Colombe coffee or San Pellegrino, the most chic of all the waters.
6:00pm: Ann Mashburn
Another visit that feels warm and personal is our Ann Mashburn appointment. We usually see Liz and Stephanie and the entire collection for the season in a hotel suite that feels like a very Artsy (capital A-artsy) living room. Cozying up on a gorgeous sofa by a fireplace is best practice for optimum viewing of shirt dresses and buckle shoes. Espresso is a helpful aid in this process as well.
At this late hour…
By this time of day, Elizabeth, Rebecca and myself are either headed to our hotel rooms (if the trip requires a second day of appointments), or we’re each trying to hail a cab from three different street corners in an effort to make our train home on time! For the sake of one final story, we will say it is the latter scenario.
Upon a miraculous, timely arrival to Moynihan Train Hall we look around for a spot to grab a final bite to eat. Train halls have always fascinated me because every single person who is there is trying to go somewhere else, near or far. They manage to maintain an old-world charm that airports simply do not possess. This particular train hall, most evenings of the week, will have a live orchestra playing. Why? I do not know, but if the reason is purely to be a little glamorous, that is reason enough for me.
We will soon be arriving at DC, Union Station.
Thank you for coming along on a snack journey and as always, thank you for choosing Amtrak!
Customer Appreciation Week Snack Bar at The Hive
While I hope this has been an exciting read, the real news is that for Customer Appreciation Week, beginning May 7, The Hive will have its very own Snack Bar! The complimentary snacks will include many that we receive at Market as well as others, even the fabled SockerBit gummies. We are so looking forward to sharing them with you! Check out a preview below:
