EXCLUSIVE: Reese Witherspoon’s Draper James Expands Accessories Offerings
Reese Witherspoon’s Draper James fashion label is looking to give customers a head-to-toe look with its newly expanded accessories collection.
The fashion label is launching its first shoe collection on Thursday, as well as expanding its handbag offerings. The spring collection leverages the brand’s signature gingham and chambray patterns and bright colors for a 37-piece range that offers sandals, ballet flats, espadrilles, kitten heels and more. The handbag collection consists of 16 styles.
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“Reese is a major shoe fan and really has that effortless femininity always present in her footwear choices,” said Kathryn Sukey, head of design at Draper James. “That’s really what the brand is all about: this idea of effortless femininity, as well as color and optimism and this idea of being classic, but still fun. So, it was really easy with these really established aesthetics of the brand to bring it into shoes.”
For its first shoe collection, Draper James looked to 1990s nostalgia by focusing on the ballet flat and espadrilles, which are two styles Witherspoon herself regularly wears. The styles reflect the classic femininity of the Draper James’ aesthetic and paired well with the styles already offered in the brand’s apparel offerings. The pieces range in price from $60 to $120 and will be available at Draper James stores and website, as well as Zappos and Nordstrom.
“Where we really think about the versatility in the classic nature of feminine dressing with ready-to-wear, footwear and handbags, we give ourselves space to play in trend a little bit more,” Sukey continued. “I always think of the brand as relevant and not trendy, but with shoes we wanted to pay attention [to trends] and have a lot of fun, especially with this new concept of a ballet flat espadrille.”
The brand also wanted to offer its customers a complete head-to-toe look, as shoes were the last category of a full look Draper James had yet to enter.
In addition to apparel, Draper James offers handbags, jewelry, sunglasses, hair accessories and face masks. According to Draper James, shoes and handbags are planned to represent less than 10 percent of the total business in 2022, however, they are categories the brand sees huge potential in going forward.
Courtesy of Wini Lao/Draper James
Draper James has previously gone into the shoe category through collaborations with major shoe brands like Keds, M.Gemi and Tretorn, which helped the brand get an idea of what its customers wanted.
Collaborations are an important part of Draper James’ strategy, as it gives the brand an opportunity to reach more customers and experiment with a category they aren’t familiar with, such as Lands’ End, which Draper James first teamed with in 2020 for a swimwear collection.
“Partnerships have just brought so much to our brand,” said Erin Moennich, chief executive officer of Draper James. “We look at each collaboration differently, but they’re wonderful for us in terms of reaching new customers, collaborating with different design teams and how we can fuse both brands into it.”
Moennich explained that partnerships will continue to be a big part of Draper James strategy as it continues to expand and explore other categories.
Sukey and Moennich expect the shoe collection to resonate with the Draper James customer as the styles can fit seamlessly into their wardrobes.
“She is somebody who really doesn’t shy away from expressing herself with outfitting and styling,” Sukey said. “What we do with our line is we really want our girl to be able to express herself through the garments that we create. We want to seamlessly fit into her life and really capture all aspects of her life.”
Courtesy of Wini Lao/Draper James
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