Everlane was once part of a group of retailers that claimed to do things differently — cut out the middlemen by selling only direct to consumer, getting rid of markups. Part of the model meant cutting the role of celebrity brand ambassadors: the expensive deals only ate into margins, and top-quality, best-price clothing didn’t need a celebrity frontman to sell the goods anyway. The products would simply speak for themselves.
That era’s over. For proof, look to Everlane’s new ambassador: Icelandic singer Laufey, who is the face of the brand’s autumn collection. The decision to sign its first celebrity ambassador came as part of a broader brand reboot, led by CEO Alfred Chang, an ex-Pacsun and Fear of God exec who joined last autumn to reignite the spark that Everlane had started to lose in the last few years.