Fashion Stocks Rise After Tariff Pause, Reformation Accused of Cultural Appropriation

These are the stories making headlines in fashion on Thursday. Donald Trump put a 90-day pause on all the sweeping, country-specific tariffs he imposed last week, except for China, leading to many fashion stocks rising on Wednesday. Instead of the heftier duties Trump originally announced, many of ...Continue reading

Apr 11, 2025 - 12:06 Updated: Apr 11, 2025 - 12:09

Fashion Stocks Rise After Tariff Pause, Reformation Accused of Cultural Appropriation

Following a halt to tariffs on all nations except China, fashion stocks increased.
With the exception of China, Donald Trump paused all of the broad, nation-specific tariffs he imposed last week for 90 days, which caused many fashion stocks to rise on Wednesday. The United States will impose a universal 10% tax on all trading partners, but it will raise charges on China to 125%. This is in contrast to the higher duties that Trump initially announced, many of which hit hardest on nations that manufacture clothing. The stock values of some fashion companies fell sharply last week, but they are already temporarily rising again. Capri's stock increased by almost 30%, while VF Corp, the company that owns Vans and Timberland, had a 28% increase. Nike was up 11%, Ralph Lauren was up 14%, and Levi's was up 20%.

Reformation accused of cultural appropriation
Reformation's new collaboration with Devon Lee Carlson features a three-piece outfit of a baby blue midi skirt, flowy camisole and a long thin scarf that some TikTok users have claimed resembles a South Asian lehenga. In a TikTok video posted by Sai Ananda, she does a side-by-side comparison, showing a still from an early 2000s Bollywood movie in which an actress is wearing a lehenga that, she notes, has "a lot of similarities" to Reformation's outfit. A spokesperson for Reformation said in an emailed statement to The New York Times that the brand respects "the origin of this criticism given South Asian culture's influence on Western style" and said that "no item of clothing or trend can be considered in isolation without broader historical and cultural precedent." {The New York Times/paywalled}

Vivrelle and Revolve collaborate on an AI styling tool.
Revolve and Vivrelle, a membership club for luxury accessories, are collaborating to introduce Complete The Look, an AI-powered styling tool that lets users accessorize Vivrelle products with carefully chosen outfits from FWRD and Revolve. Vivrelle claims that Complete The Look is the first time traditional retail, resale, and rental have come together under one roof. This summer, Ella, an AI concierge that will serve as a customized fashion assistant, will debut the second phase of the collaboration. Ella turns Vivrelle, Revolve, and FWRD requests like "bachelorette weekend outfits" into carefully considered recommendations.