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Welcome back to HotToks, where we explain 'the why' behind each viral TikTok trend, tap into key cultural moments, cover app updates, and share how to plan your TikTok marketing strategy. This time around we cover NYFW as available to the masses, TikTok Now as a quest to BeReal, and the rise of Aritzia thanks to Gen Z on TikTok.
Here we gooo!
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TikTok made fashion week more accessible to us commoners this New York Fashion Week. Staying true to the notorious anti-gatekeeping culture of TikTok, TikTokers shared the best tips and hacks to land you a spot among the NYFW crowds. After all, NYFW is a pretty big deal (probably an even bigger deal to everyone not based here), and it’s pretty sick that it all went down right in our backyards.
Of course TikTok wouldn’t be TikTok if it wasn’t spawning with hacks to “scam your way into NYFW.” In as early as August, videos were already circulating about “how to get invited to NYFW.”
One of the videos, by TikTok creator, Tiffany Baira, walks users through a step-by-step guide of how to request a media pass to get into an NYFW event, and the video now has over 370K views and 56K likes.
While TikTok users are glad that anti-gatekeeping culture is going strong on the app, saying that there’s nothing wrong with “helping each other out, and more so, helping other women” (Sydney Bernhardt), publicists like Lindsey Solomon (of Lindsey Media) and Gia Kuan (of Gia Kuan Consulting) had enough. With inboxes up to four times fuller than usual, according to Lindsey, he “felt doxxed,” wondering how people were even able to get their hands on his email address.
Bernhardt, a content creator, on the other hand, argues that there’s nothing wrong with sharing publicists’ emails with your friends, especially if your friends are content creators, because “a lot of times, brands are looking for content creators.” But after seeing far more than the expected 2,000 people who showed up at the Marc Jacobs Heaven afterparty event because of a flier leaked on TikTok, Gia Kuan said: “I also don’t like gatekeeping fashion. I think it is something that’s for everyone, but there’s a time and a place for that.”
What do you think? Should TikTok keep some gates closed?
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ICYMI: TikTok is trying to BeReal. If you were waiting for your sign to finally get in on the newest viral social media app, BeReal, the good(?) news is you can get a little taste of it on TikTok—with the new TikTok Now feature.
We are “making Instagram casual again” (and have been for a while) and thanks to TikTok (and Gen Z), the days of posting whatever you like on Instagram (no filters, no edits, the real deal) are slowly coming back. But is this transition happening too slowly? Enter BeReal. BeReal first launched in 2020, and it’s practically a reaction against the aesthetic reputation that Instagram has been notorious for over the years. It’s everything casual Instagram wants to be, and that’s why it’s so popular. The goal is to be real by posting what you’re doing (with the front and rear facing camera) at a random time each day, and share with the people close to you. No edits, no filters, no feed planning. Just realness.
In July, BeReal hit 20M downloads, becoming a pretty serious competitor in the social media space, competing with big dogs like TikTok and Instagram. That’s been all fine and dandy, until now. TikTok is trying to up its game by launching a ‘new’ feature called TikTok Now. Spoiler alert: it’s practically a clone of BeReal.
According to the social media giant itself, “TikTok Now is the newest way to be entertained and connect with others on TikTok - a daily photo and video experience to share your most authentic moments with the people who matter the most.”
TBH, I can see a world in which TikTok Now aligns with TikTok’s brand of being more real and unfiltered, but I’m not so sure about parodying BeReal’s entire concept.
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All the cool kids wear Aritzia. Neutral tones, elevated loungewear (in style and price), luxe basics, and a capsule wardrobe. These are every minimalist’s dream. So how did Aritzia break $1B in sales this year and win the hearts of Gen Z? TLDR: TikTok.
Vogue Business shares that the rise of Aritzia is in part thanks to the aesthetic minimalism trend that’s been hot with Gen Z. The style of Aritzia’s capsule-esque line of clothes feeds perfectly into the aspirational minimalist lifestyle frequently seen on and promoted by the platform. And there have been several different Aritzia pieces taking the TikTok (and non-TikTok) world by storm, one of them being the “Melina Pant.” So much so that my friend’s date asked her if she had bought the Melinas yet. Not sure if that’s a red flag or if his algorithm is just working overtime...
See, Aritzia’s not new to the fashion world, but in its 38 years of business, only in these last two years has it seen an unprecedented amount of growth. Before TikTok, it really blended in with its competitors. But now, #aritzia has over 1B views on TikTok, where creators are showing which pieces are worth it, how to style Aritzia pieces, and hauls. All of this TikTok popularity has also increased foot traffic into Aritzia stores, generating more awareness and overall interest in the big fashion brand.
And as if Aritzia hasn’t already won the hearts of Gen Z, they recently threw in a collab with the queen of Gen Z herself, Emma Chamberlain, and I’m pretty sure that solidifies Aritzia as a Gen Z-first brand. I mean, as the HRC Retail Advisory President Farla Efros put it, “they know what they’re good at.”
Thanks for reading! Catch you on the flip.- Viv
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