AN UNFORGETTABLE SUMMER

(About a 4-minute read)

Hi!

Diana here!

It feels like forever since I’ve sat down to write an update! WHAT A SUMMER…one I will never forget for so many reasons. Life, as I am sure you can agree, has been anything but normal. May 1st was the last time I wrote to you with news and since then it feels like time is just flying by in one continuous stream where weeks don’t have days, and days don’t have hours. Anyone else feeling this way too? We have been working tirelessly over here at Classic Six and have so many exciting things in store!

At my last update, we had FINALLY gone into production and were about a month and a half shy of delivering your pre-sale orders to you. On June 24th, after what felt like infinite delays, the shipping Gods answered my prayers. Our inventory arrived at our warehouse wrapped as beautifully as I had hoped and we were ready to send out.

The feedback since has been more than I could have dreamt up. After all pre-sale orders were delivered, positive messages about the quality and fit filled my inbox. That same feeling of gratitude from our original pre-sale response back in December consumed every ounce of me. I try to bottle those moments up. Every note, or DM or email means more to me than you can even imagine.

Things have been a bit nutty since that week I now label “The best week of the most confusing summer possible.” Up until early last month, I had been operating as a team of ONE managing every part of this business myself, which as you can imagine is a recipe for a panic attack. I am excited to share that we now have 2 people on board to help our operation, along with a fully-equipped fulfillment center, and it feels like I just hopped on one of those moving walkways at the airport.

Back in April, when I hastily decided to launch the brand at the peak of what we can now unfortunately call a global pandemic of catastrophic proportions, I had no idea what was in store for the future of Classic Six.

Would I be able to sell anything from the collection whilst a good portion of the country was home lounging and working in their sweats? Would people be shopping when there was (and still is) so much more to worry about than what we are putting on our bodies in the morning?

With appreciation that envelops me, we were able to raise a lovely bit of money for Covid-19 relief efforts by donating a portion of our proceeds—Not nearly what I had dreamed we would raise, but it was something. Your kindness in purchasing from Classic Six in an effort to help this cause was inspiring.

With our “pandemic launch” behind us, but the actual pandemic still very much in front of us, life and business feels dubious. How will our communities adapt? How will small businesses adapt? How will FASHION adapt?

I have spent a good part of the summer working on strategy and budgets to make sure I can fully see my visions for Classic Six at a 360 lens. At a time when uncertainty is in some ways paralyzing, taking these moments to build out a detailed plan felt incredibly grounding.

On a more positive note, I think the fashion industry is on the brink of change for the better. This disruption to our daily grind has allowed us to take a step back and reevaluate our needs and wants. From a fashion perspective, we are more than ever looking towards versatility, tailored comfort, and a timelessness to our clothing that for years had been masked in the overwhelm of excess. Do we need collections with hundreds of pieces? Do we need more and more and more? Or do we need fewer but better?

I think right now there is a space that is slowly opening up for this ideology, and it is my mission to fill that space-To take a stance on quality over quantity and a less is more mentality...and not just quality in construction, but quality and thoughtfulness in design. Is it versatile? Is it functional. Is it chic? Will it stand the test of time? Can you style it to create endless looks? And at the most granular level, will you love it for more than just a fleeting moment?

I whole-heartedly believe this is the future of fashion, and hopefully; fingers crossed; say a prayer; knock on wood, there is room for us to make a little dent in what is to be.

XO,

D