Morgan Stewart McGraw is bringing her fledging fashion brand Renggli to New York Fashion Week for the first time, hosting a cocktail party Friday to celebrate her first foray into wholesale with Fwrd and the new, expanded fall collection.
The fashion tastemaker and social media personality — who likes to say she’s “influential, not an influencer” — has a devoted following for her sophisticated but approachable style, which is heavy on The Row, Jil Sander, colorful Hermès bags, the latest sold-out Chanel tweed mary janes and the occasionally flashy piece, such as the Gucci allover crystal logo blush minidress she rocked last month while cruising on a private boat around Saint-Tropez — and posted on Instagram, of course.
“The only thing about the boat was that it wasn’t longer,” she said during a recent end-of-summer Zoom from her Beverly Hills home, where her office is adjacent to her closet with a glass display of said Hermès bags in the frame behind her.
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The boat wasn’t longer or the trip?
“Oh. I make sure it’s long, very long, before I co-sign onto anything,” she deadpanned.
McGraw also happens to be a lot of damn fun, originally charming fans of the 2014 E! reality series “Rich Kids of Beverly Hills,” before moving into a hosting gig on E!. All the while, she gained social media traction by documenting her comings and goings, from St. Barths to the Paris front rows, linking up with L’Oréal, Stuart Weitzman and other brands as yes, an influencer.
But it’s the posts to her 2 million followers about her daily looks — which she mostly buys, not borrows — that have really resonated, making her a “powerful booster of luxury brands,” according to The Wall Street Journal.
“I wore a dress for my birthday and the salesperson at Neiman Marcus told me Valentino called because it just sold out. And that was an expensive dress,” said McGraw, who has a roster of personal shoppers at her disposal, of her power to move luxury products.
“I have always presented an authentic version of myself. It’s not like when I first started on ‘Rich Kids of Beverly Hills,’ I was wearing a sequined pink miniskirt and now all of a sudden I’m doing quiet luxury because I’ve evolved into this mature, sophisticated person…I was wearing that when I was 14 and 15…and now everyone else has caught up.”
She launched her brand last September direct-to-consumer, with everyday pieces perfected, including Carhaart-inspired work pants and utility miniskirts, T-shirts and shackets. (Renggli is her middle name, and her mom Susan’s maiden name. And when McGraw and her singer-songwriter husband, Jordan McGraw, the son of TV host Phil McGraw, welcomed their first child, a girl, in 2021, they named her Row Renggli McGraw.)
The original drop sold out within the first hour without any promotion other than her own social channels. And Renggli posted seven figures in sales within the first six months, with an 89 percent sell-through rate, relying mostly on the introduction of new colors — and with zero discounting, promos or affiliate support, according to the founder/creative director, who spent just $3,250 on performance marketing.
The fall Renggli collection dropping Thursday on RenggliStudio.com and Monday on Fwrd, which McGraw previewed for WWD, is more expansive, with denim, leather pants, suede skirts and jackets, corduroys, button-down shirts, ribbed pointelle knits, cashmere silk crewneck sweaters and more of the best-selling work pants, all priced $95 to $790.
“It’s not about fitting into peoples’ wardrobes, it is peoples’ wardrobes, and what you pull from your closet that you don’t have enough of and don’t want to keep buying.”
In a fall season when almost every brand has cords, including The Row, what makes hers a “chef’s kiss,” as she calls them?
“I feel like people source cords by fabric, and then the shape is not necessarily there. Every cord that I’ve tried on in the last five years, it’s always like a sack…They just felt too frumpy. So mine have a really feminine, sexy fit,” she said, cluing into her R&D as a world-class shopper.
The denim has a high rise and a slim fit. “It’s a bit more streamlined,” she says of the jeans styles, which come in indigo or a cream workpant style.
Silk cashmere sweaters are “my night T-shirts,” she explained of the refined look, adding that she is also offering polos with a blousy fit and horn buttons. “I spent six months choosing the buttons.”
Renggli’s price range puts it in the contemporary category, which is once again gaining market share amid the luxury slowdown. “Pricing has gotten so out of hand, it’s borderline unethical….Not every piece of clothing can be $5,600. It’s not fun to spend that,” she said.
McGraw has been a Revolve influencer and Fwrd shopper since the website’s inception, so the partnership with the e-commerce site came naturally.
“We’ve worked with Morgan for years and are thrilled to introduce Renggli, a brand that perfectly reflects Fwrd’s commitment to supporting emerging designers,” said Raissa Gerona, chief brand officer of Revolve Group, in an email. “Morgan’s vision and dedication to quality shine through in every piece, and we take pride in introducing our customers to new brands that resonate with their style.”
“A lot of the stuff I’m seeing now is a little try-hard or it’s formulaic,” said McGraw of the direction fashion is going. “People have followed me for a really long time, and I have a very specific sense of style and taste and a standard that doesn’t waver. This is what I think is chic now.”
