Instagram Dog Boobie Billie Launches Brand
A new accessories line was developed for people — by a dog.
Instagram-loved fashion pup Boobie Billie is adding “businesswoman” to her dog tag. The dog (and her owners, who wished to remain anonymous) is releasing a line of matching mini purses and silk scarves — a nod to what Boobie’s 250,000 Instagram followers have come to recognize as her signature style.
The Italian greyhound-Chihuahua mix has become popular among the fashion set for the outfits she wears in photos shared to her feed. Boobie’s looks are usually monochromatic and punctuated by matching shoes (always a set of four) and a designer “it bag” — Jacquemus, Prada, Fendi, to name a few — digitally altered to her six-pound size.
Mini bags in particular have become a staple of Boobie’s style — so much so, she created four designs of her own. The bags and scarves will be sold via her web site, Boobie.world. In a virtual interview with WWD via Zoom and email, the fashion dog-fluencer said, by way of her owners, that the line is essentially “the Boobie Starter Pack” for the “bbs” (Internet slang for “babies”) who follow her.
“I don’t wear dog clothes,” Boobie said. “I was never going to start a dog-focused brand because I love the brands everybody loves — Ganni, Saks Potts, Chanel, Jacquemus.
“A lot of influencers release merch. This is my own brand,” she continued. “I reserve the right to put my face on a T-shirt at some point, but this is all about making something more than that. It’s a serious fashion brand — without the serious attitude, of course.”
Boobie’s appeal lies not only in her nebulous relationship to the actor John Slattery, to whom she often pays homage. When asked about the connection, Boobie said that though they were once living together, it simply “wasn’t working” for either of them.
“No hard feelings,” she said diplomatically. “Maybe one day, we’ll both be walking down the streets of New York and say hello.”
WATCH: Boobie Billie Takes Us Through Her Launch Day
Her appeal, rather, stems from the whimsical juxtaposition of a fashion-conscious dog, in whom her followers see themselves reflected and with whom designers show interest in working.
In a statement to WWD, Susan Alexandra designer Susan Korn called Boobie “a dear friend and muse” with whom she is planning future collaborations.
“I am always rooting for the (excuse the pun) underdogs, and when I first encountered Boobie, I knew that she would forever change the standard of beauty in the fashion biz,” Korn said. “She has a keen eye for indie designers and rocks a handbag and kerchief scarf like none other.”
During the coronavirus quarantine, Boobie, who is based in New York City, gained more than 100,000 followers. Her “gorgina angels” (Internet slang for “gorgeous angels”) looked to her for “positivity and light.” And she was there to deliver.
“I knew if I could make people smile, even just for a second, it would help,” she said.
Though she was hesitant to launch her brand during the pandemic, she thought that mini bags and Sixties-style headscarves might offer a pick-me-up to those who have been living in their sweatpants for the past several months.
The handmade bags are just big enough to fit a phone, wallet, lip gloss, hand sanitizer and mask.
“Mini glasses, I hang them off the side,” Boobie said. “Oh, and a sweet potato treat.”
Of her followers, most of whom are based in the States — save for her Brazilian following that came after a surge of posts by Brazilian fashion blogs — Boobie said she hopes that people who visit her page “feel cute and special and sparkly.”
“The whole ‘brand mantra’ is: I want everyone to feel like the gorgina angel bbs that they are. And I really do mean that,” she said. “I want people to see me as this little floating angel on their shoulder, telling them to get out there and own their look and hold their head high because nothing can stop you.”
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