5 Celebrity Style Influencers Designers Are Watching
A 13-year-old starlet. A musician-turned-actress. A fan favorite. All three have captured the spotlight with their fashion picks on the red carpet this season.
Newcomer Millie Bobby Brown has become a household name nearly overnight, while musician Janelle Monáe took her talents from the stage to the big screen for the first time, and Emma Stone is getting more attention than ever. These three, among others, are clicking with designers in this age of digital dominance.
“Social media has changed [the power of the celebrity],” said Stuart Weitzman. “It reaches so many more people than ever before.”
Other big names, including Sophia Webster and Giuseppe Zanotti, said styles worn on the awards circuit are prompting solid increases at retail.
“The red carpet offers great exposure for my brand,” Webster said. “A powerful image of the right shoe on the right woman at the right moment is everlasting.”
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Footwear News takes a closer look at these fashion influencers on the rise.
Millie Bobby Brown
Brown, who stars in the Netflix series “Stranger Things,” is capturing the hearts of television fans, brands and designers alike. Currently the face of Converse’s new “Forever Chuck” campaign, Brown has also been known to trade in her kicks for a pair of heels. The actress wowed at the Golden Globe Awards in January, wearing Sophia Webster shoes and a Jenny Packham sequined dress.
“Millie Bobby Brown looked so cute in my Lilico Sandals [at the Golden Globes]. This lower heel height was perfect for her tea-length dress,” said Webster. “She’s a style star to be reckoned with.”
Besides donning custom Armani gowns and Kate Spade ensembles, what makes Brown a budding fashion star is her grasp of how to dress her age. The 13-year-old often rocks a small block heel or flats on the red carpet.
She’s also become a fashion week regular and most recently attended Calvin Klein’s show at New York Fashion Week.
Emma Stone
The 2017 awards-season darling has already won the Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild best-actress awards. Though Stone is no stranger to a red carpet or style stardom, her singing and dancing in the award-winning musical “La La Land” has upped the fashion ante.
As she navigates constant press appearances, Stone typically chooses red-carpet shoe staple Jimmy Choo to pair with dresses from designers such as Prada, Valentino, Erdem and Roland Mouret.
“Emma wore us over 15 times in [January] alone, which is a huge compliment,” said Jimmy Choo creative director Sandra Choi. “Emma knows which styles work for her, and she repeatedly [wears] the elegant and minimal Lucy and Minny [styles].”
Choi mentioned Stone’s SAG Awards ensemble — the actress paired Choo’s Minny sandals with an Alexander McQueen dress — as her favorite moment so far.
Keep an eye out for Stone as she is slated to star as posh villain Cruella de Vil in Disney’s live-action remake of “101 Dalmatians” and
as tennis icon Billie Jean King in “Battle of the Sexes.”
Mandy Moore
The actress and singer has come a long way since the 1999 release of her debut hit, “Candy.” Moore stars in the NBC series “This Is Us,” for which she garnered a Golden Globe nomination for her role as Rebecca Pearson.
The comeback of sorts has given the actress a platform to show her fashion evolution, which has gone from sweet bohemian styles to sexy and streamlined ensembles.
“We’re trying to show people how versatile she is,” said Moore’s stylist, Erica Cloud. “It’s a nice correlation for the show because ‘This Is Us’ goes through so many decades and so many style transitions. In a way, it’s also reflective of what we’ve been doing so far.”
Standout looks recently have included the Ferragamo suit and Nicholas Kirkwood pumps Moore wore at the Directors Guild of America Awards, as well as her Naeem Khan and Kurt Geiger pairing at the Golden Globes.
“She’s a veteran. She knows what she is doing on the red carpet,” noted Cloud, despite Moore being off the scene for some time.
Other shoe brands the celebrity stylist leans toward are Stuart Weitzman and Choo.
Janelle Monáe
Monáe, known for her powerful singing voice, is now a central figure on the big screen. The newly minted actress stars in “Hidden Figures” and “Moonlight,” two Oscar-nominated films.
She is known to only wear black and white, with the occasional pop of red and shades of gray, which she describes as her uniform. This statement is meant to honor Monáe’s mother and grandmother, who were part of the working class and wore uniforms for their jobs.
Memorable looks from Monáe this season came at the Golden Globes and SAG Awards. She showed off her shoes at both events, opting for a glamorous pair of Giuseppe Zanotti Harmony crystal sandals at the Globes.
“Her custom Armani gown was so special, and it was short in the front, allowing for an amazing shoe moment,” said Zanotti, who has worked closely with Monáe’s stylist, Maeve Reilly.
He added, “Janelle has a lot of fun with fashion and likes to wear interesting accessories and shoes that add a special touch to her look. She likes a bit of sparkle and embellishment, which is part of my DNA and something I love.”
At the SAGs, she chose Stuart Weitzman to go with her Chanel Métiers d’Art collection gown that landed her on both the best-and worst-dressed lists, proving her distinct look will keep her relevant in terms of the red-carpet style race.
Naomie Harris
The actress has been on an intense promo tour for “Moonlight,” showing off many different shoe looks in the process.
Harris seems to have no brand allegiance, having worn Christian Louboutin, Kurt Geiger, Aquazurra, René Caovilla, Francesco Russo, Nicholas Kirkwood and Sophia Webster.
She also has experimented with her apparel ensembles, wearing diverse looks such as a Gucci mini-dress, a Lanvin pantsuit, a custom Armani strapless dress and a colorful Thom Browne frock.
She recently chose Kurt Geiger’s London Bond shoes for the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, pairing the heels with a Proenza Schouler spring ’17 dress.
“It’s quite uncommon to see a style on the red carpet you can actually buy, especially on the British high street. We’re glad we are carving out a niche for this,” said Rebecca Farrar-Hockley, Kurt Geiger’s creative and brand director.
Harris next will join actor Dwayne Johnson in the action film “Rampage,” set for a 2018 release.
