Fashion journalist. Author of ANNA: The Biography, out 5/3/22. Subscribe: amyodell.substack.com. Email: amyodellbooks@gmail.com.
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Articles by Amy Odell
Stores Have a Snobbery Problem
💌Forwarded this email? Sign up here and if you have tips or story requests, submit them here. 🎙️ New on the Back Row podcast: Financial expert Haley Sacks, who you surely know as @MrsDowJones, joined the podcast to talk about how fashion month keeps us in “a cycle of broke.” The first part is free to watch/listen to on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. Part two, including our discussion on the state of the Birkin, is available to Back Row Premium subscribers on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Did Chanel Set Virginie Viard Up to Fail?
🎙️ New on the Back Row podcast:Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are back in the UK after six years in Montecito, which coincided with their foray into streaming, podcasting, and jam launching. Longtime celebrity journalist and former Us Weekly editor Justin Ravitz, who interviewed Prince Harry and worked with their comms team during the Montecito years, joined me for a deep dive into Meghan Markle and how she and Harry got to this point.
The Soulless Style of Tech Oligarchs
🎙️ New on the Back Row podcast:Most big fashion companies have sworn off fur, but this fashion month, anti-wool protesters have drawn major headlines. PJ Smith, director of fashion policy for Humane World for Animals, joined the podcast to talk about where the animal welfare fight in fashion goes from here. Watch/listen on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
It's Not a Cookie... It's Vogue World Milano!
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast:Fashionphile founder Sarah Davis joined me to talk about how she started her business as an eBay store in 1999. She also revealed the CIA-like techniques she’s developed for spotting fake Chanel and Birkin bags. Watch/listen in YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
Retail Confessions: Neiman Marcus
If you want to get Back Row as a mobile app, tap the link to the all-new community on your mobile phone and follow the instructions. Well here’s a NYFW win: Women made up half of the designers listed on the CFDA's official fashion week calendar this season, reports The Business of Fashion. Metropolitan Museum of Art trustees "are still really pissed" at Anna Wintour over the John Galliano fiasco, per Page Six.
New York Fashion Week Is Cringe. What's Next?
If you haven’t yet, don’t forget to check out Back Row’s brand new community! We have a bunch of chat threads going about the 2027 Met Gala, spring 2027, etc. And if you tap the button on your phone to access the community, you’ll be able to download Back Row as its OWN APP! This is the newsletter you would have gotten yesterday had we not had the insanity of Steven Kolb and PETA protesters at the Cos show.
What Was Steven Kolb Really Protecting at NYFW?
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast: Remember the “vibe shift”? Of course you do, because everyone’s still talking about it! Amazingly, we’ve reached the vibe shift’s five-year anniversary. So I had Sean Monahan, the trend forecaster who coined that term along with “normcore” and “boom boom aesthetic,” on the podcast to talk about it. What did he get right, what did he get wrong, and when will the vibes shift again? Find out in the full episode on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.
New York Fashion Week's Death Spiral
This week, I launched the Back Row community so we can all chat with each other (yay). Pop on over and join the discussions. We have a very interesting suggestion for what the 2027 Costume Institute exhibition and Met Gala theme should be that could be totally brilliant if well executed. Leave your ideas in the thread and if you want to talk about the runway collections, I started a thread on those, too.
Your 5 Favorite Denim Brands, Ranked
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast:New York magazine features writer Rebecca Jennings joined me to talk about her great recent piece on the “Influencer Recession.” Listen/watch in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Last week’s episode, featuring Eugene Rabkin on fashion’s creative collapse, is available in full to paid subscribers. Upgrade now to listen in full. Premium subscribers can access paywalled podcasts through Supporting Cast.
Retail Confessions: Hermès Paris
This is your last chance to take Back Row’s first-ever denim survey! I’d love to know which jeans you love and recommend. I’ll report back the community’s picks in a future issue. Share Back Row — via email, text, social media — and earn complimentary access by referring your friends. Barbie 2 is apparently “in crisis,” per Variety, because Warner Bros. can’t reach a deal with talent. Apparently Greta Gerwig didn’t want language about a sequel in contracts, so there was none, and now Warner Bros.
Is Fashion in the Throes of a Total Creative Collapse?
If you haven’t yet, please take two minutes to respond to Back Row’s first-ever denim survey! I would love to know what jeans you recommend. I’ll report your picks in a future issue. Vogue’s September issue cover features Kaia Gerber and fellow nepo baby Homer Gere (son of Richard). (They’re in the Ryan Murphy FX show The Shards together.) They both wear Chanel and frolic in front of a gray backdrop. The reaction seems to be one of underwhelm.
The OpenAI Influencer Trip Worked Exactly as Planned
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast: John Galliano’s biographer Dana Thomas came back on the show to talk about the Met’s stunning decision to mount a retrospective of his work in 2027. We revisit the incidents that led to his firing from Dior, the toxic behavior that long predated it, and the apologies Galliano never made. This episode is available in full to paid subscribers in Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Upgrade your subscription to listen.
Anna Wintour Got Her Way. At What Cost?
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast: Novelist and journalist Jo Piazza, author of The Parisian Heist, joined me to discuss the latest developments in the Louvre heist, which has gripped the world since thieves attempted to make off with $102M worth of French crown jewels in broad daylight. Are the suspects now telling authorities the truth? Piazza studied art heists to write her book and has answers. Listen to/watch this free episode in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.
The Birkin Is Embarrassing. But What About Chanel Bags?
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast: Tech journalist Taylor Lorenz and I collaborated on an episode about how Meta turned smart glasses into “hot surveillance summer.” Check it out in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Premium subscribers get access to all paywalled podcasts, like the Olsens deep dive (in Apple Podcasts and Spotify). Premium subscribers can access paywalled podcasts through Supporting Cast.
Bernard Arnault ‘Has No Friends’
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast: A free episode this week featuring Caroline Hallemann, author of The Kennedys and the Windsors: The Story of Two Dynasties, One Born, One Made. Check it out in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Premium subscribers get access to all paywalled podcasts, like the Olsens deep dive (in Apple Podcasts and Spotify). Premium subscribers can access paywalled podcasts through Supporting Cast.
The Rise of Fashion Slop
There is nothing more human than good taste, since there’s no way to define it. It’s mysterious. But you know it when you see it. You probably won’t find it at the clothing company Edikted, a hit among teenagers. Edikted relies on algorithms to design its products: It monitors customers’ social media activity and internet searches, factors in Hailey Bieber’s latest outfits and spits out 300 styles a month made cheaply in China.
23 Thoughts on Taylor Swift's Inescapable Wedding
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast:Love Story seems like a lock for Emmy nominations, which drop Wednesday. I invited JFK Jr.’s biographers RoseMarie Terenzio (his former assistant at George magazine) and Liz McNeil (a longtime correspondent for People) to come back on the pod to revisit the phenom and talk about what the second half of the series got right and wrong. Check out the free first half in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.
Facelift Confessions, Part 1: The Brutal Realities Of Getting Work Done
Chanel is acquiring Charvet. “Now we have a name, Chanel, for women, and a name for men, Charvet,” Chanel president of fashion Bruno Pavlovsky told the New York Times, adding this could be “the beginning of haute couture for men.” Designer Matthieu Blazy collaborated with Charvet on shirts that became part of Chanel Mania, so maybe that was kind of a test run. There have been lots of news items about how the Olsen twins made a “rare public appearance” at their brother Trent’s wedding.
8 More Fashion Predictions for 2026
You still have time to submit your swimwear recs! The recent Anti-It Bag roundup was such a hit that I would love to hear from you all about your favorite swimwear. I feel like finding good swimwear has never been harder. (Is it just me or does everything seem to be a diaper or a thong, with little in between?) But we can get through this together. Please take a minute to reply to this email to submit a response, or you can do so anonymously here.
They Bought Birkins. Now They Find Them Embarrassing.
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast: Sociologist and branding expert Ana Andjelic joined me for a semi-emergency pod about Gwyneth Paltrow’s latest controversies. Watch/listen in YouTube, Apple, or Spotify. If you like the show, tap subscribe and please leave a rating and a review, which helps other people find this independent show. Vogue’s Head of Editorial Content Chloe Malle sat down with NPR to promote the summer issue that celebrates the 250th anniversary of the US.
Shoppers Lose When the Best Slop Wins
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast: You’ve heard of “clean” beauty — but what about “clean” clothing? Does such a thing exist? Should it, given the chemicals in our clothes? Frances Solá-Santiago, who reviews apparel for the New York Times’s Wirecutter, has reported extensively on this topic. She joined me to talk about what we as consumers need to know — and if it makes sense to swear off polyester. Watch/listen in YouTube, Apple, or Spotify.
What Gwyneth Paltrow's Politics and That Israeli Real Estate Ad Have in Common
Mulberry came up in your responses of Anti-It Bags, however many styles tend to be over $1,000 (my price cut-off). But if you’re willing to inch up your budget, readers really loved these bags. Plus, the brand is having a sale on some styles: the Bayswater, which came recommended by readers, is on sale for $1,200 in deep cherry (the black and other neutrals are $1,700). For a smaller bag, check out the Mini Islington, on sale for $750.
The Very Best Anti-It Bags
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast: Meryl Streep and Lupita Nyong’o’s stylist Micaela Erlanger joined me to talk about how she crafts viral red carpet press tours. She reveals everything that went into dressing Streep to promote The Devil Wears Prada 2 and what she has planned for Nyong’o’s upcoming The Odyssey appearances. Watch/listen in YouTube, Apple, or Spotify. If you like the show, tap subscribe and leave a rating and a review, which helps other people find this independent show.
VIC Bait for the Lauren Sánchez Set
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast: I interviewed Mary Gonsalves Kinney, stylist to tech billionaires, politicians, athletes, and VICs, about what her job is really like — and how the fashion industry has reorganized around catering to the world’s wealthiest shoppers. Watch/listen to the free part in YouTube, Apple, or Spotify. The full episode is available to paid Back Row subscribers in Apple and Spotify.
How Could That Dior Cruise Dress Cost $140,000?
Refer subscribers, earn rewards:If you like the independent journalism you find in Back Row and want to share it with your friends and social media followers, you can earn complimentary Premium access: Refer 5 readers → one free month Refer 15 readers → two free months Refer 25 readers → three free months Just use your unique referral link when you share this publication. Condé Nast paid three journalists $400,000 following a dispute over their firing last fall.
What Are Readers to Make of Belle Burden's 'Strangers' Now?
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast: I unlocked the first half of the First Monday in May rewatch episode. Reality television and documentary expert Kate Casey, host of Reality Life with Kate Casey, joined me to talk about how the Met Gala has changed since 2015, what the film left out, and all the canceled celebs Anna Wintour no longer hangs out with. Watch/listen to the first half in YouTube, Apple, or Spotify. The full episode is available to paid Back Row subscribers in Apple and Spotify.
Gucci’s Looksmaxxed Times Square Slop
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast: Former Us Weekly editor-in-chief and author of the Celebrity Intelligence newsletter Dan Wakeford joined me for a deep dive into how the Olsens built two billion-dollar businesses, in honor of the 20th anniversary of The Row. Listen/watch to part one, covering their story until their NYU years, in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. In part two for paid subscribers, we discuss how they built The Row, one of the most secretive brands in fashion.
Sarah Jessica Parker, Derek Blasberg, and Andy Cohen Walk Into a Primark...
A quick note before today’s issue: Owing to technical difficulties, this email just went out with NO ARTICLE — my sincere apologies for the double send! Also, note that I’m trying out a slightly new format today in order to cover a few more stories than usual. Let me know what you think in the comments or reply to this email with your thoughts. —Amy 🎙️Subscribe to the Back Row podcast onApple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.
Sarah Jessica Parker, Derek Blasberg, and Andy Cohen Walk Into a Primark...
🎙️Subscribe to the Back Row podcast onApple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. If you like what you hear, consider leaving a rating and review, which helps other people find this independent show. A quick note before today’s issue: I’m trying out a slightly new format today in order to cover a few more stories than usual. Let me know what you think in the comments or reply to this email with your thoughts.
Retail Confessions: Loewe
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast: MJ Corey joins me to talk about her new book, Dekonstructing the Kardashians, which traces the evolution of media through one of the world’s most famous families. MJ explains why hatred is necessary for not only their fame, but also to have a chance at becoming iconic in today’s fractured media ecosystem. Listen/watch in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.
Arrested At The Met Gala, Chris Smalls Has A Message For Anna Wintour
🎙️New on the Back Row podcast: My Met Gala recap with Heather Cocks of Go Fug Yourself and the Drinks with Broads newsletter. Listen/watch in Apple, Spotify, and YouTube. A Devil Wears Prada 2 review with CNN’s Rachel Tashjian. Listen/watch in Apple, Spotify, and YouTube. Upgrade to a Premium subscription to access all paid newsletters and podcast episodes.
The Met Gala Was All Money, No Soul
🎙️This week on the Back Row podcast: Don’t miss my interview with The Devil Wears Prada 2 writer Aline Brosh McKenna and director David Frankel. Watch/listen in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Subscribe so you don’t miss the Met Gala recap episode dropping tonight. Today’s “Loose Threads” is brought to you by Margaux. If you are in the market for spring sandals that both look nice and are comfortable, allow me to draw your attention to their wrap sandal.
Antes los ricos no lucían así
Si pasas suficiente tiempo cerca de los muy ricos hoy en día, queda claro. La gente no solía verse así porque nadie puede verse así de forma natural. En marzo, en un desfile de la Semana de la Moda de París para la marca de lujo Matières Fécales, las modelos caricaturizaron al 1 por ciento luciendo prótesis que parecían rostros postoperados, con ojeras grotescas, piel estirada en las sienes y labios con un aspecto artificialmente inflado y cosidos por los bordes.
Antes los ricos no lucían así
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. Antes los ricos no lucían así 3 de mayo de 2026 a las 03:30 ET Credit...Lola Dupre Si pasas suficiente tiempo cerca de los muy ricos hoy en día, queda claro. La gente no solía verse así porque nadie puede verse así de forma natural.
Rich People Didn’t Look Like This Before
12 hours ago Drenched in golden California light, Millie Bobby Brown is making waves online in a striking red bikini that feels equal parts effortless and intentional. The 22-year-old actor set social media alight this week as she introduced the newest addition to Florence by Mills, her makeup brand. Millie Bobby …
Rich People Didn’t Look Like This Before Original
Rich People Didn’t Look Like This Before Credit...Lola Dupre If you spend enough time around the very rich these days, it’s clear. People didn’t look like this before because people naturally can’t look like this.
Rich People Didn’t Used to Look Like This
19 hours ago Collagen makes up an astounding 75% of the dry weight of the skin. In layman’s terms, it’s the scaffolding that holds it all firmly in place. As we age, our collagen levels begin to deplete, which causes visible changes within our skin. In fact, once we reach 25, we lose approximately 1% of our …
4 More Fashion Assistants Share Their 'Devil Wears Prada' Stories
Fisher Stephens, who did the Beckham documentary for Netflix, is following Anna Wintour for a Vogue documentary(though this New York Post story suggests he won’t be allowed inside the upcoming Met Gala).We don’t have many details yet, but Fisher has been “shadowing” Anna for a few months.
The Stylist Who Removes Tom Ford Logos for the Ultra-Rich
What is a celebrity skincare line launch without a little backlash, really? Alix Earle’s followers have apparently pointed out that she used prescription products to heal her acne, not her wildly successful new skincare line Reale Actives. According to Puck, which called it “one of the most successful celebrity beauty launches in history,” the brand did $1 million in sales in under five minutes.
Gwyneth. La biografia
Aprile 2013: il mondo, fedele a se stesso, non perde occasione per dimostrarsi imprevedibile. Nel giro di appena otto giorni, una figura simbolo degli anni Novanta, Gwyneth Paltrow, conquista due primati solo in apparenza inconciliabili: prima in cima alla classifica delle celebrità più detestate, poi incoronata come la donna più bella del mondo. Ma allora, si chiedono diversi giornalisti, Gwyneth Paltrow va odiata o amata?
The Protesters Who Want to Embarrass Jeff Bezos at the Met Gala
How many days of the year does Jeff Bezos feel so much as a semblance of humiliation? The activist group Everyone Hates Elon successfully protested his wedding, and wants to make sure the first Monday in May — the day of the Met Gala that he and his wife Lauren Sánchez Bezos are helping fund — is one of them. Everyone Hates Elon’s Venice protest. (Photo: STEFANO RELLANDINI/AFP via Getty Images) “We will aim to embarrass Jeff Bezos — to expose him.
Back Row | Amy Odell | Substack
The twice-weekly fashion and culture newsletter. Insider knowledge. Outsider honesty. Humor included. · Over 67,000 subscribers By subscribing, you agree Substack's Terms of Use, and acknowledge its Information Collection Notice and Privacy Policy. “Scoop about the fashion/publishing industry you won't find anywhere else.”...” “Fashion, culture, business, celebrity--Amy's fascinating newsletter provides windows into all these realms with crisp writing and incisive observations.
Back Row Has Moved
After months of deliberation and research, I have decided to move Back Row off of Substack. Back Row is now hosted on beehiiv with a brand new URL, backrow.net. If you want to subscribe to the newsletter, click here to sign up on my new site. First, some practical information about what this means for you, then, I’ll get into why I migrated. As a free subscriber, you don’t need to do anything. Your email address transfers over to beehiiv and you’ll receive these emails as usual.
Back Row Has Moved
After months of deliberation and research, I have decided to move Back Row off of Substack. Back Row is now hosted on beehiiv with a brand new URL, backrow.net. First, some practical information about what this means for you, then, I’ll get into why I migrated. As a free subscriber, you don’t need to do anything. Your email address transfers over to beehiiv and you’ll receive these emails as usual.
'Emily in Paris,' Season 5: Pop-Tarts and Popped Hearts
More than a thousand companies — including EssilorLuxottica SA, E.l.f. Cosmetics Inc., and J. Crew Group LLC — are suing Trump over his tariffs. Dozens have sued in 2026 already, per Bloomberg. Vogue’s digital cover of Amanda Seyfried I think qualifies as Chloe Malle’s first as Head of Editorial Content and… it’s exactly what I predicted it would be earlier this week: safe.
Fashion Predictions for 2026
Paid episode The full episode is only available to paid subscribers of Back Row
10 Fashion Predictions for 2026
The Jonathan Anderson for Dior ready-to-wear is in stores now and it’s more commercial and wearable than the runway pieces. I’m starting to “get” his Dior aesthetic more, but it’s very specific and sweet and I wonder how big the audience for this is. Thoughts? A $2,300 cotton polo by Dior. Gwyneth Paltrow talked to Ethan Hawke for Vanity Fairabout being a “nepo baby,” a term she called “quite ugly.” Hawke said, “People think it’s about doors being opened for them. That doesn’t matter.
Why French Women Don’t Want 'Instagram Face'
Paid episode The full episode is only available to paid subscribers of Back Row
'Emily in Paris' Vs. Real French Style
This is the audio of part one of the podcast episode with Dana Thomas about Emily in Paris. Paid newsletter subscribers can access part two here.
'Emily in Paris' Vs. Real French Style
This is an edited excerpt of my conversation with Dana Thomas for the Back Row podcast. You can watch or listen to the full episode on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts. Follow the show so you don’t miss a single episode. If you like the pod, please leave a rating and a review, which takes ten seconds and really helps other people find this independent show. If you’re like me, you spent a chunk of your holiday break watching Emily in Paris’s fifth season.
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