Welcome to the annual edition of Brand Rank, a data-driven index of the top trending fashion brands surging in real time across the retail world and on Magasin platforms. See past Brand Rank reports here.
What were the most shoppable brands of 2024? Within Magasin’s vast ocean of data from the past year lies a quantifiable answer.
I can tell you that the most-clicked product link was for, of all things, these Miu Miu-esque barefoot sandals. Some pre-owned Chanel loafers were second. The single item that drove the most orders: an $11 pair of jersey underwear from Gap. (Runner up was a tie between Skims’ cotton fleece hoodie and a sold-out pair of The Row pants on TRR.) The brand landing page that inspired the most orders was Zoran on The RealReal.
The SSENSE sale was the most visited retailer page. The RealReal was the most talked about.
Every one of these data points, and literally millions more, came together to paint of picture of 20 industry titans, the names that win over the thoughts and dollars of shoppers more than any other brand. Keep reading to find out who they are, and how they came to dominate this side of retail.
To learn more about how Brand Rank gets built, you can find a full explainer here. In short, we assess every instance of brand engagement. Our weighted system determines—out of the 5,000+ brands that ranked—which 20 are most in-demand among Magasin’s tens of thousands of subscribers.
Across the entirety of 2024, 1,484 brands were mentioned in the chat 10,830 times. Magasin itself wrote about 1,065 brands in 6,787 instances. 12,976 orders over the year spanned 612 brands. And 541 brands were responsible for driving 2,308,060 clicks. Did you catch that? That’s over two million clicks.
1. COS
In March of 2024, we dubbed COS “the people’s princess” when it capped the then-monthly Brand Rank, beating out second runner-up The Row by a 25% lead. It seems the title has stuck.
A few things that contributed: global fashion shows held in Rome and New York featuring consumer-first, see-now-buy-now collections; honest-to-god viral products that transcend generations of wearers; and affordable leather bags desirable enough to have sold out and earned their place in the resale ecosystem (as with the Fold, the Eastside, the Mini Sling).
As you’ll see, the instances of collaborations from brands all the way down this list—from both luxury and mass—is high, but COS’ reluctance to hitch its name onto any wagon but its own (the exception being eyewear with Linda Farrow, akin to Khaite’s relationship with Oliver Peoples) has been hugely effective in situating it in its current top spot. Though part of the H&M umbrella, COS slithers past categorization as fast fashion, and has rather claimed brow-agnostic status. Thoughtful and lasting enough to round out an expensive and high-maintenance wardrobe, elevated it its own regard to lend a sophisticated sheen to an otherwise limited one.
Key products: Oversized Quilted Crossboody Bag, $135 / Clean Cut Regular T-Shirt, $45 / Partywear Edit
2. J. Crew
It wasn’t that long ago that we were all speculating which of the mall brand comebacks were going to win. Now several heavyweight collaborations deep—MNZ, CJR, Holiday, Araks, Barbour, Asics, the New Yorker, even Olympia Le-Tan (which I hadn’t heard about until visiting the site today)—it’s hard to imagine it not being J.Crew.
There was some skepticism, particularly from loyalists, that Olympia Gayot could ever fill Jenna Lyons’ loafers helming womenswear at the brand (Brendon Babenzien continues successfully whipping up men’s). I don’t think anyone could look at Olympia’s track record in her brief time there with any remaining doubt.
Key products: Berkeley Bucket Bag in Leather, $198 / Edie Bucket Bag in Italian Leather, $189 $268 / J.Crew x Maryam Nassir Zadeh / Cotton Poplin Pajama Pant Set, $69 $118
3. The Row
The Row is the metric by which we measure all other brands. On the high end, we weigh our purchases by what that dollar figure could fetch us at The Row. And on the low end, we scoff when a brand veers too closely into The Row’s aesthetic orbit (and then buy downmarket versions of its products).
Many are anticipating, are even morbidly eager about, the moment when The Row isn’t leading the charge anymore. Even I’ve had the thought it can’t hold its streak much longer. But with every new collection, The Row finds novel ways to get under our skin and show us that, actually, we don’t ‘get the schtick’ just yet.
Key products: Burgundy Dalia Baguette Bag, $1,990 / Mara Rubber Mesh Ballerina Flats, $890 / Alexia Leather Tote Bag, $5,970 / Patti Jersey Top, $1,190
4. Gap
Can a pair of underwear determine the fate of an entire brand? On this list…kind of. Gap’s Breathe Brief and Thong featured prominently on an intimates deep dive in the first half of 2024, and consistent circulation of the guide has propped the brand up during an era of agreeable public perception.
Recommendations for Gap make their way into every query in the chat—trench coats, low-rise jeans, High Sport dupes, bras, button-downs, etc. It seems there’s an inclination to share these “discoveries,” as though Gap is each person’s secret source for affordable basics to turn others onto.
Where comparable brands with a place in our middle-school hearts have inserted themselves aggressively into the present, Gap resisted the urge to modernize and has held onto its shoppers by keeping pretty decent and as low-cost as it we remember it.
Key products: Breathe Bikini, $11 $12 / Breathe Thong, $11 $12 / Organic Cotton '90s Loose Jeans, $71 $79 / Modern Rib Halter Tank Top, $9 $29 /
5. Uniqlo
It might already seem like forever ago, but in the past year, Uniqlo put out capsules with J.W.Anderson, Lemaire (under Uniqlo U), Marimekko, and Clare Waight Keller, whom it subsequently brought on as Creative Director in an admirable investment in talent. All of that, and it released a bag up to COS-viral standards.
Key products: Round Mini Shoulder Bag, $19 / Cotton Wide Pants, $15 / Uniqlo:C
6. Lemaire
When I launched this newsletter, Lemaire was still a signifier of a kind of off-center, anti-brand shopper. The Croissant was a dog-whistle It bag designed to register only to the rare fellow IYKYK dresser in your midst. But over the last couple of years, crescendoing at this most recent Paris Men’s Week, it’s become obvious that Lemaire’s particular breed of utopian style has collided with the post-Quiet Luxury, elevated Normcore that’s gripping fashion today. To be clear: it’s not that, but it’s certainly benefitting from that.
Key products: Asymmetrical Bathrobe Coat, $1,951 $2,295 / Off-White Piped Slippers, $384 $620 / Men's Calfskin Chelsea Ankle Boots, $1,095 / Linoleum Basic Laced Up Sneakers, $495 $550
7. Toteme
Inside me, there are two wolves: One of them says Toteme is “just clothes,” and the other snarls back, “they’re the clothes I really wear though.” These are fashion wolves, and don’t worry, I’m abandoning the metaphor.
Like The Row, like many successful brands before it, really, Toteme has managed to make just clothes that are a touch better made, a hair more interesting, at prices that graze the edge of expensive but pass inspection when surveying the market. In concert, you begin to see how rare it is to find everything in one package, over and over again, from one product to the next.
Key products: Knitted Ballet Flats, $600 / Pleated Straight Trousers, $620 / Brown Minimalist Coat, $720 $1,800
8. Skims
On the coattails of the NikeSkims announcement is as good a mode of transportation as any to tour the successes that landed the Kardashian-Grede brand on this list: a NYC flagship designed by Rafael de Cárdenas, exceptional loungewear that filled an implausible gap, a door-busting Black Friday sale, collaborations with Charli XCX and Team USA, and intimates that—as promised—fit everybody.
In a years’ worth of product, Skims rendered competitors in no less than three categories moot.
Key products: Classic Hoodie, $80 / Classic Jogger, $74
9. Khaite
A luxury brand of a certain standing can generally be assumed to be resting on the laurels of its accessory department (or at least running the rest of its metiérs in its service). Khaite—one of New York’s last standing luxury labels—is actually making clothes women buy and wear.
If you ask the chat, and I did, Khaite’s boots are hugely front of mind, the kind people will budget for at the expense of three other pairs, and the bags have their fandom no doubt. But they don’t stop there. Jeans, leathers, event attire, and of course KNITS, like, several-thousand-dollar knits, win over shoppers’ coin as titillating category case-closers they can trust to make them look great.
Key products: Saphra Coat, $3,800 / The Yenza Maxi Dress, $828 $1,380 / The Medium Olivia Bag, $1,350
10. Baserange
This year, Baserange took us inside its production in France, and the context proved hugely useful in understanding and appreciating the brand. If you’ve ever wondered who made your clothes, and how, it’s comforting to be able to recall the utterly specific whir of a knitting machine inside a factory next to a field of donkeys.
Of course, Baserange’s presence on this lineup is on the strength of its products themselves, and leading the data were the Kolla Pants, newly restocked.
Key products: Kolla Pants, $160 (on sale for $58 in striped here) / Omato Turtleneck, $120
11. Leset
Not at all to discredit Leset, but when I consider the brand, I see a lot of psychological consideration in its pricing strategy. Leset is known for reinventing, maybe even perfecting, the ($78) t-shirt. But that decision to make pricey basics allowed the brand to plausibly extend into categories like $1,000+ Japanese satin coats and $500 made-in-LA cotton anoraks, with constitutions worthy of those figures.
I can appreciate its end game, which seems to be to assume the huge market opportunity for middle-priced brands, from an atypical angle: not from below, by inflating its prices, or from above, by compromising them, but as a true staples brand somewhere off to the side.
Key products: The Margo, $78 / Barb Wide Leg Pant, $260 / Madewell x Leset Pointelle Perfect Tee & Pant Set, $189 / Margo Tapered Pocket Pant, $160
12. Studio Nicholson
It was the year of the Studio Nicholson hero piece, where shoppers collected the brand’s products on a first-name basis, an approach otherwise mostly reserved for The Row. The Awe pant—arguably the biggest runway hit on this entire list—captured the balloon-leg wave just as it was cresting. The Denali trench stepped in during an awkward lull for the category. The launch of leather bags brought in three more names to dutifully remember: Doublet, Shiboru, and Fortuna.
Key products: Awe Trousers, $220 $550 / Denali Coat, $1,200 / leather bags
13. Lauren Manoogian
Lauren Manoogian’s longstanding appeal in New York was cemented, institutionalized even, by the opening of the brand’s first-ever brick and mortar—it’s situated just off of peak Soho in a triangle that, between the store, the showroom, and owners Lauren and Chris’ new residence, is becoming a mini Manoogian district.
Now that people are trying things on more and have the chance to pinch the Peruvian knits with their own fingers, suffice to say that the brand’s shoppability is going up. Next, watch what happens when the brand’s men’s line hits store exclusively in the fall.
Key products: Double Knit Trench, $450 $890 / Baby Alpaca Midi Length Dress (my birthday dress in black…OOS everywhere but here), $364
14. Prada
Conversationally—in published posts and the chat—attention to Prada leans heavily vintage, while behaviorally—clicks and orders—shoppers show a roughly 60/40 split favoring resale. That one’s archive alone could likely land a brand among the 20 most-shoppable, as it has for Prada in previously published Brand Ranks, is pretty remarkable. But an increase in desirability for new Prada is closing the gap between eras and inching it further toward the top.
Key products: Brushed Leather Loafers, $1,200 / Black Platform Wedge Thong Sandal, $600 / Draped Panel Satin Mini Skirt, $1,463
15. Maryam Nassir Zadeh
Maryam lent her name to much bigger operations this year. In quick succession, there was J.Crew, BA&SH (and then, I guess you could say, The Cut). By the numbers, the collaboration with J.Crew sold more than even mainline MNZ—the prices were right, the styles recognizable, the merchandising on point all around. Rightfully, almost nothing remains but a couple sizes left of the braided sandal and a hair clip
Unsurprisingly, outside of collab chatter, MNZ accessories dominated the conversation. The shoes, bags, and belts are evergreen recommendations in both published content and the chat.
Key products: J.Crew x Maryam Nassir Zadeh / Olympia Heeled Sandals, $495 / Dance Pants, $315 / Serafina Ballerina Flats, $365
16. Alex Mill
People like Alex Mill because it’s fun. It is not serious fashion, the kind that asks you to worship process at he expense of wearability—but it is flattering and high-quality, simply because that’s the kind of product the team knows how to make. Now in its 13th year (if you can believe it) the brand is hitting its stride with the confidence of that earned standing. The best way I can think to describe it is like Madewell 10 years ago, a decade after its founding. (More on how they’re doing now, below.)
A lot of brands on this list got here in part because of collaborations, but Alex Mill deserves credit for the fact that its collaborators were either cultish and difficult-to-attain brands, offering a huge service to shoppers (thinking of the ecommerce-less Roman shirting store Schostal and perpetually sold-out Maria De La Rosa socks), OR just particularly suited to the Alex Mill culture, like Jimmy Fallon and Becky Malinsky.
Key products: Schostal x Alex Mill / Chiltern Street Jacket, $325
17. Madewell
Madewell is in the midst of an ambitious overhaul like those we’ve seen from COS and J.Crew over the last couple of years. Judging by its peers’ reigning status on this index—and the first-time appearance of Madewell on it at all—shoppers are decidedly down to to be swayed by yassified mall brands of yore. What Madewell was doing the latter half of 2024 seems to be working.
A similar collaboration playbook to J.Crew—albeit with more conservative partners—has helped Madewell elbow its way back into the Millennial heart. Alexa Chung’s fall drop braided nostalgia with ubiquitious-to-the-mid-’20s suede. Leset’s pointelle served girlhood to women at babysitting-paycheck prices.
Key products: Madewell x Leset / Alexa Chung for Madewell Double-Breasted Blazer in Suede, $498 / Low-Slung Baggy Jeans, $99 $148
18. Kallmeyer
Daniella Kallmeyer has had a hell of a year—an inaugural runway show, fixturedom in scene-spanning inner circles, Parisian gossip about her superior stirrup leggings… Once part of a string of names representing New York’s “real clothes” movement, Kallmeyer’s is now breaking out as its own utterance altogether. Its tailoring once defined it, but its Grecian-drapey gowns and tomboyish weekend-wear are cutting the brand a new path. Once everyone gets up to speed on its leather accessories, it’s game over.
Obligatory hat tip to the brand as I’m wearing its Wynn long-sleeve tee as I write this report.
Key products: Clara Stirrup Trouser, $525 / Kenzie T-Shirt, $110 / Remi Cropped Jacket, $2,500 / anything and everything suiting
19. Tibi
If this moment marks the end of quiet luxury as murmurs suggest, Tibi offers a tempting stepping stone towards a weirder breed of dressing. What at first might look like a Vince or Theory cousin reveals itself upon nittier pick to be a costume box of trick clothing, every piece wearable in four, five different ways—some by design and the undiscovered rest encouraged by founder Amy Smilovic, who literally wrote the book on unconventional styling. The chopped-and-screwed Boat and Tote, its runway collab with L.L.Bean that sold out right away, demonstrates as much.
Uncovered in the research of this report was the fact that Tibi’s Black Friday sale, its top-clicked link over the entire year, is technically still running, where $1,000 boots are below $300, Japanese wool-jersey tops are under $100, and runway-viral footwear topples 50% off.
Key products: The Re-imagined Boat and Tote™, $475 (currently sold out) / Power Mesh Skirt, $143 $475
20. Tory Burch
It’s been two years since the New York Times asked, “That’s Tory Burch?” and nearly three since, as the Times cites in its article, Magasin proclaimed Tory “inexplicably yet undeniably cool now.” The Toryssaince is comfortably maturing into the Tory-quo, wherein the brand’s preppy roots and downright ecstasy-addled party clothes co-mingle around the most up-to-date definition of “wearable.”
Tory Burch’s FW25 collection was the strongest shown during NYFW this February, and anecdotally, instances of the brand’s bag and shoe sightings are skyrocketing. I think we can expect this ranking to rise dramatically over the next few quarters.
Key products: Sequined Hoop Dress, $1,822 $2,574 / Flared Knit Pant, $149 $248 / Jessa Loafer, $179 $328 / Pierced Slingback, $358
With contributions from Delia Cai, Kate Curran, and Steven Huynh.
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so one thing i'm pulling from the top spots and others fleshing out this list is that people's budgets may be tight. we can't buy some of the aspirational things laura is posting, but we'll buy the dupes from cos or the diffusion collections from j crew. or a $12 pair of underwear. kind of glad to know that i'm not the only one who needs to stay mindful of how much i'm spending on clothes.
Laura I could have gone on the “2 wolves live inside of me” Tôteme bender for at least a few more paragraphs..🐺 🐺 😘😘