Peloton’s Ally Love, “Pretty Little Things’” Lucy Hale, and former “Saturday Night Live” star Cecily Strong helped Loft celebrate its 25th anniversary Wednesday night at a cocktail party at Zero Bond.
While some guests were admiring the multitiered Bodega Cakes confection, others customized Loft jean jackets with colorful paint or dropped into a photo booth for an old-school selfie. The Tony award winner Patina Miller and “Real Housewives of New York’s” Ubah Hassan also turned up.
Loft is now owned by Sycamore Partners, which bought the company out of bankruptcy with Ann Taylor, Lane Bryant and Lou & Grey brands for $540 million in 2020. Last month, Sycamore created a holding company, the KnitWell Group, to house Ann Taylor and Loft, as well as Talbots, which together are said to generate more than $3 billion in annual sales. KnitWell also continues to provide oversight and shared services to Lane Bryant.
Wednesday’s celebration was “a full-circle moment” for Lizanne Kindler, who worked on what was formerly known as Ann Taylor Loft pretty much from the start. Earlier in her career, Kindler, who is now executive chair and chief executive officer of the KnitWell Group, spent 15 years with Ann Taylor Stores Corp. in various leadership roles. She was instrumental in launching Ann Taylor Loft under the direction of former Ann Inc. president and CEO Kay Krill. The premise was to create a more casual and affordable brand that was known in-house as “Ann’s younger sister.” Less about corporate-friendly dressing, Loft was geared for women who might be teachers, real estate agents or just always-on-the-go, Kindler said.
In the past 25 years, Loft has developed into a more than $1.2 billion annual business with 500-plus freestanding stores.
“Pre-COVID[-19], it was up and down. The DNA for Loft shifted a little bit from year-to-year. One year it might have been a little more boho, then a little more American Eagle-ish, then a little more classic. It wasn’t as clear and customers got a little confused,” Kindler said. “We have nailed the DNA of what we think the customers are looking for. We’ve seen that over the past two years,” she said, adding that athleisure continues to be a strong category.
Like Talbots, Loft has its share of loyalists. To appeal to and expand that community, Loft is planning to introduce in-store events to boost engagement. “We do see a lot of growth for Loft. We’re very focused on making sure we have a breadth of lifestyle — from athleisure to put-together workwear. And we’re going to go into categories of business that will augment different lifestyles.” Kindler said.
With various sportswear and career-friendly companies under one roof, Kindler said that being clear about the essence and purpose of each brand is essential for employees.
Many of the same tenets that Loft was built on still stand, according to Kindler. With a range that covers consumers for weekends and work, the label plays up more of a fun style versus head-to-toe dressing. “A lot of that passion and that fun has stayed with the brand. The style and fashion are relevant today, but the components in how we put it together in many ways are still the same.”