Eileen Fisher Now Making Clothes You May Want To Wear (PHOTOS)

On Sunday, the New York Times brought to light a very interesting development in the world of frumpy (sorry!) fashion: Eileen Fisher is now making clothes with a waistline.

To be sure, this is a growing trend among the beloved staples of American shopping: J. Crew has been enormously successful thanks to Creative Director Jenna Lyons and a boost from the first family, and L.L. Bean will get a hipster makeover when it launches its L.L. Bean Signature line in March 2010.

The 58-year-old Ms. Fisher says the style was always there, but the problem was in the marketing:

"About a year ago I was feeling sad," said Ms. Fisher, 58, as she paced her light-filled showroom on lower Fifth Avenue. "I thought we're so much cooler than we appear. We have made the clothes look hipper, but nobody knew that."

So she started highlighting the slimmer-fitting clothes, and using younger models.

But the strategy has its critics:

"The apparel world is littered with companies who ruined their businesses trying to change their image and reach a different customer," said Gerald Barnes, the president of Neiman Marcus Direct. "Her merchandise is not really very different from year to year, and that's one of the good things about Eileen Fisher."

And the prices are still a wee bit high. In the age of American Apparel and H&M, will a younger market spend $198 on a cardigan and $318 on a jacket, cute as they may be?

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Comments

[suejester]

07:43 AM on 10/16/2009

Her clothing is way overpriced and lacks the pop of color.

[mercymercyme]

10:13 AM on 10/15/2009

Expensive schmattes...

[Cecelia .]

04:57 AM on 10/15/2009

wait that's supposed to be LESS frumpy than something else?

[jellyrollq]

11:47 PM on 10/14/2009

I have several EF items of clothing and I love them, but there is a lot of her stuff I can't wear because it is designed with a very flat-chested, non-curvy body type in mind, I have a Marilyn Monroe build and a lot of her waistless linen tunics make me look like I have a potato sack on. I don't think it's really about younger models, it's about designing for more than one body shape--everything EF designs is made to look good on women who look exactly like her--not much of a waistline or bust.

Also if she wants to sell to a younger market she needs to lower her prices. Of course that would compromise the quality of her clothing which is excellent. But most 20-somethings do not have the budget to afford her clothes.

I think designers need to get out of NYC for a while and go look at what most people actually wear, just do a reality check. The fashion world can be such a self-absorbed little bubble.

[CrankyGal]

10:04 PM on 10/13/2009

It isn't the designs that aren't attractive, it's the colors.

The clothes have the same color pallet as dead bodies.

[mmgbizgirl]

06:16 PM on 10/13/2009

Her clothes have always been smart and can be worked into almost any style. Belted or Loose, she has a good eye and fabulous cuts.

[pigeonca]

05:15 PM on 10/13/2009

Her clothes have their place. An entire outfit will appear baggy, but a dress or top or sweater combined with something more fitted can be very chic. Her fabrics are excellent. However, now that I've learned to sew, it's really easy to replicate Fisher designs.

[caroledekamp]

03:56 PM on 10/13/2009

I only can afford her clothes when they are deeply discounted...the store I use to go to in now closed :( it was in the heart of North Hampton, Ma....I was surprised it closed..

[katielady]

11:57 AM on 10/13/2009

Her clothing line is drab, droopy and overpriced...

[persiaa]

10:07 PM on 01/31/2010

katielady-that's my impression also. The fabric and construction seem to be good, but the colors are so meh.

[fcsakes]

11:48 AM on 10/13/2009

$till a wee bit high?

I'd rather shop at Value Village and send the extra $200 to Darfur or anywhere people are hurting or hungry.

Having said that, I do like the style of these clothes.

[itssafetosay]

11:33 AM on 10/13/2009

Have bought some pieces as they went on sale, over the years. Jackets and sweaters; pants and skirts were horrible (at least to me) as they had elastic waists and were way too boxy. But, the quality of the fabrics is/was what I loved. Quality stuff that lasts a long time. I have never been an "outfit" person, wearing the same make/designer head to toe, so some of these tops work well paired with other, things from J crew, donna karan, etc.

After 40, I think it becomes really important to mix things together. Head to toe Eileen Fisher would look sily on anyone. If she adds a few "younger" better cut pieces to her line, that still appeal to her demographic, that's great. If she's trying to get the 20 something crowd, I don;t think it will work. They have too many options already.

[motherofsons]

10:41 AM on 10/13/2009

'm the target market and Eileen Fisher's stuff is dowdy and most of the pieces artfully cover aging bodies. But most of all--it is just way way too expensive. She ought to do what the other designers have successfully done--bring out another lower priced line- like Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Tahari--all offer stylish clothes that are not priced in the stratosphere. She would expand her business and not hurt the higher priced line.

[jaypet]

01:33 AM on 10/13/2009

about time, for awhile there I thought she was stuck in the liz claiborne of the early 90's

[ZellaBee]

01:11 AM on 10/13/2009

Nothing wrong with a waistline it just depends on where it hits you. I'm glad she has made some changes. I like comfort but never bought her clothes because they did look a bit frumpy on the rack.

[PatA]

01:05 AM on 10/13/2009

I have to hand it to Ms. Fisher because she helped me pull a good one on my ex about 20 years ago. We were separated and I was in New Mexico..he was in Oklahoma. He wanted me to come back to Oklahoma and attend a big wedding with him....appearance was everything with that man. Like the entire town didn't know we were separated?
I went shopping....to be exact, I spent something like $1100 for some Eileen Fisher's fashions, $750 at Neiman's for Ferragamo shoes (spelling?)and around $900 on a bit of Donna Karan.....AND I charged it all to HIM!!!! And of course I couldn't wear it all to one wedding but he didn't know that!
The best part? I still have all of those clothes. But my dog ate the shoes...at least to the point that I couldn't recognize them anymore.