These Emerging Designers Are Keeping New York Fashion Alive

Over the past few years at New York Fashion Week, there’s been chatter in some circles that New York fashion is dead, notably in the wake of some NYFW mainstays (most recently Willy Chavarria) moving their shows overseas. And while it is a loss to no longer see some old favorites on the fashion week calendar, there are so many emerging New York designers showing this upcoming season that have still yet to get their flowers.

Among the heritage houses still regularly showing in New York are Coach, Tory Burch, Luar, Christian Siriano, and Jason Wu. But it’s the fresh talent that’s been causing a stir these past couple of years, including Zoe Gustavia Anna Whalen, who had her first on-calendar debut during the Fall/Winter 2025 season, and Colleen Allen, who hit the scene with her Fall/Winter 2024 collection.

Especially now, as the city’s garment district is battling a recently approved rezoning plan in Midtown, and market instability is forcing even established brands to shutter, supporting New York brands has never been more important. It’s also never been more fun. From frilly frocks and crochet tops to polished tailoring and elevated basics, brands are designing for every aesthetic under the sun, for those who know where to find them.

For your next wardrobe refresh, consider eight of some of the coolest, New York-based brands to shop today and every day, from Diotima and Tanner Fletcher to Zoe Gustavia Anna Whalen and Allina Liu — your closet (and the local community) will thank you.

Tanner Fletcher

In Tanner Fletcher’s designs, there’s no need for gendered labels or arbitrary boxes — it’s simply clothes for people who like them. The duo behind the brand opts for high-quality materials to craft everything from silk gowns and tailored suiting to classic knitwear and quilted jackets, making garments that feel like “future heirlooms” for generations to covet and enjoy. Celebs from Ariana Grande and Bad Bunny to Alan Cumming and Alex Consani have all been spotted wearing various Tanner Fletcher pieces, and the buzzy brand is quickly becoming a staple of New York fashion.

Diotima

Designed between New York and Jamaica, Diotima is the brand on everyone’s lips these days — and for good reason: The label’s gorgeous, signature Jamaican-made crochets ooze sophistication with an edge. Designer and founder Rachel Scott’s Jamaican heritage is infused in every aspect of the brand — the textiles (and where they’re sourced from), the artisans, and the designs themselves — and Diotima’s quiet power challenges the traditional, Eurocentric view of what a luxury brand looks like. Scott was recognized by the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) as the 2024 American Womenswear Designer of the Year for her work at Diotima, and she was also recently named the new creative director of Proenza Schouler.

Zoe Gustavia Anna Whalen

Enter the ethereal, medieval world of Zoe Gustavia Anna Whalen, where each delicately draped handmade garment seeps with otherworldly wisdom and charm. The artist and eponymous designer breathes new life into forgotten and deadstock textiles, like vintage tea cloths and antique linens, creating wearable, sculptural pieces that look like a folkloric storybook come to life. The brand made its official on-calendar NYFW debut during the Fall/Winter 2025 season with a dreamy, candlelit runway production, where models clad in suits of armor lumbered alongside lithe ones in swaths of washed white and neutral-toned cloths. With celebs including Julia Fox, Lorde, and Rosalía donning the clothes, the emerging designer is one to watch in NYC.

Allina Liu

It’s hard not to love Allina Liu’s modern romantic vision of fashion, complete with ruffles, ribbons, and bows to the heart’s content. The brand’s feminine designs, like bubble-hem skirts, puff-sleeve tops, and drop-waist dresses, have a distinctly dark, edgy touch, often featuring shibari-like ties and lace-up closures. By infusing these signature details with narrative storytelling and elements of Liu’s Chinese heritage, the brand creates highly wearable art for the everyday in small, sustainably produced batches. The NYC-based designer was also announced as a finalist for the CFDA and Genesis design and innovation grant, and will be presenting her upcoming spring/summer 2026 collection at New York Fashion Week, catapulting her wondrous world into the spotlight.

Kallmeyer

If you’ve been hunting for the perfect capsule wardrobe, look no further than Kallmeyer for elegant, elevated basics. Constantly balancing masculine and feminine influences, designer Daniella Kallmeyer makes clothes that are all made to pair beautifully with one another for a swappable, modular closet. With crisp tailoring, cozy knits, and (mostly) neutral hues, the impossibly chic brand is quickly becoming a go-to.

Laraque

With dainty corsets, flowery laces, and bold cutouts, emerging New York-based brand Laraque presents a vivacious vision of a wardrobe, filled with ruffled pedal pushers, mini bubble dresses, and peplum tops. Designer Danielle Laraque founded the brand in 2021 after having spent her childhood sketching clothes (a dream come true), and together with creative director Alani Noëlle, the brand makes and manufactures all its clothes in New York City’s own garment district.

Lirika Matoshi

Lirika Matoshi designs clothes for the person who always wished they could wear life-size versions of Polly Pocket’s wardrobe (and now you can). The brand’s signature playful, whimsical designs are easy to spot and hard to forget — boasting bold cutouts, flouncy dresses spotted with dozens of bows, and flowy skirts and snatched corsets patterned in cherries and strawberries. The essence of childhood joy and nostalgia is strong in some garments, where fabric recreations of a vanity and various still-life rooms adorn corseted dresses, coats, and jackets. As a Kosovan native and longtime New York City resident, designer Lirika Matoshi splits manufacturing between the two places but still bases her eponymous brand in New York.

Christine Alcalay

Christine Alcalay believes in the transformative power of fashion, thoughtfully crafting chic separates, dresses, and even homewares for her namesake brand out of her atelier in Brooklyn. Using bold jewel tones, beautifully draped silks, and wool fabrications, the brand delicately balances structure and ease in its garments, making clothes that feel perfectly polished and put-together, yet natural and authentic to their wearer. Alcalay’s personal vision of fashion is tangible through each garment she creates with palpable intentionality and care. The independent designer prioritizes sustainability efforts in her work, often repurposing textile waste in new styles to combat waste, and designs and manufactures all her clothes in small batches in New York City.