| Awesome Nancy Drew Inspired Photo Photography By Hannah Betts |
Cynthia: So I put my Nancy Drew sleuthing skills to work and solved The Mystery of the Double Skirts.
Marcy: So basically you put Freddy to work while you went shopping for shoes.
Cynthia: Marcy! Shhhhh… I’m supposed to be Nancy Drew in this story. And anyway, husbands like figuring stuff out. It makes them feel heroic. Plus, when they are on a Superman high they don’t get cross-eyed when more shoes enter the house.
Marcy: Ah ha! Interior motives. I love it.
Cynthia: Ulterior.
Marcy: Interior. I’m a house cat.
Cynthia: Okay so here’s The Mystery of the Double Skirts … solved.
First Clue: Ryu Collection is a clothing wholesaler.
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| Ryu Collection Spring/Summer 2014 |
Second Clue: They design clothes and sell them to retailers such as Anthropologie and ModCloth.
Third Clue: They’ve got the same quirky, feminine, and vintage aesthetic.
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| Ryu Collection |
Fourth Clue: Consumers cannot buy directly from Ryu. They only sell in large batches. They promote them at retailer trade shows, on their website, and at their Los Angeles showroom.
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| Ryu Collection trade show advertisement |
Guesstimate: My guess is that Anthropologie probably signed an exclusive contract for the skirts that lasted one season. They put the black striped skirt under their “house” brand, Maeve. When the contract was up, the design on the skirt was fair game and then ModCloth purchased the design. The same with the green striped skirt.
Final Deduction: They ARE the same skirt – made by the same manufacturer and NOT a knock off.
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| Left: ModCloth, spring 2014 Right: Anthropologie, summer 2013 |
Cynthia: Mystery solved. Now I want to run down to Ryu’s Los Angeles showroom and scoop up all of their pretty clothes.
Marcy: Don’t do it, Cindy. Nancy Drew would never run screaming into an exclusive showroom to steal pretty clothes.
*Previous Post About The Doppelganger Skirts:
Last Summer’s Anthropologie Skirts … At ModCloth?!
20 Comments
Great sleuthing. I am impressed!
I really like the lacy white dress in the picture.
Oh that one is so beautiful! You would look fantastic in that, Liana!
xo,cynthia
Thank you, Cynthia, for solving that. Or should we thank Freddy? Or Marcy for her for her constant moral support and encouragement. Ha.
The clothes are awfully cute.
Since it's my blog you should thank me, I think. Or is that too selfish? Marcy already got a can of Friskies and really she is no help. Okay okay… fine …thanks should go to Freddy for figuring it out. 🙂
xo,cynthia
Yay! You figured it out! : ). I had wondered. Thank you Freddy. And now, Cynthia, we must get a peek inside of that warehouse! How cool does that place sound? And how cool is Modcloth with their reasonable pricing?! Gosh, I love them! : )
Jenni
Jenni – let's go and raid their showroom! Together! At least if we end up in jail we will be wearing pretty dresses!
xo,cynthia
I love the Nancy Drew reference and the fact that you solved the mystery. I have that Spearmint skirt and when I saw it on the ModCloth website I just assumed it was an innocent knock-off. But I find it so interesting that these clothes are made and then some stores buy them and put their name on it. I don't mind and it may be a great way to obtain items that you missed out on the first time around. So now you have a chance to get the Spearmint skirt.
Now if only J.Crew Factory would remake the Apple skirt from 2012.
Thanks for sharing,
Stacey
Oh my gosh – the Apple skirt! I guess you never know what will show up so there's hope for the Apple skirt.
I think I had Nancy Drew in the back of my head after your comment about wearing gauchos for her costume. Looooove Nancy Drew!
You must wear your Spearmint Skirt on your blog! I am dying to see it on you! And yes – I don't mind this about clothes getting shuffled around like this either. Better than a cheap unauthorized knock off. This way – everyone wins!
xo,cynthia
Excellent work! That is really interesting. What is the price difference between the two retailers?
And does this mean you're coming to Dallas for the next trade show!?!?! 🙂
Oh gosh – I am not sure since I don't remember what Anthro's original prices were. But knowing that Anthro skirts like this start at $88 and go to $128 it is at least a $40 difference. Up to an $80 difference. ModCloth being cheaper.
A field trip to Dallas sounds like a great idea!
xo,cynthia
Cynthia, do you ever go downtown to the Sample Sales on the last Friday of the month? Here's a link: https://www.californiamarketcenter.com/faq/samplesale.php
Would be fun to meet you and Jenni there one of these Fridays. Angela
That sounds like an awesome plan, Angela!! I had no idea that this was happening every month. How fun! Let's get Jenni and figure out the best time and go go go! Email me your email address at marcyverymuch@gmail.com when you get a chance! woo hoo!
xo,cynthia
lol. Problem solved! I JUST commented on your last post about this matter and started to get curious. And BAM. Seconds later, I have my answer! That's what I get for going back to older posts and working my way towards the most current ones. It kept the mystery alive for me for a few minutes. haha
<3 Liz
http://www.withwonderandwhimsy.com
Oh no! Thank you so much for commenting on all of them. LOL! Jenni just did a post on the Colima Skirt which they also have now at ModCloth. I like that we get a second chance at the same clothing and for much much less! woo hoo!
xo,cynthia
Good job Nancy Drew! 🙂 And I love Hanna's photography…it's like Nancy Drew meets Vally of the Dolls. 🙂
Thank you, Merrie! That was a fun discovery!
xo,cynthia
This is really interesting… I always did wonder about stuff like this! That explains why there is so much variation within some of the "clothing lines" at Anthro, for one thing! Well done, Nancy Drew! …I do wish that you could buy directly from people like Ryu, but I suppose they survive by selling the license, rather than the clothes. I know the Peanuts company works like that (as in Charles M Schulz), and sell licenses to use Peanuts characters on T-shirts etc to companies like UniQlo… Same with Hello Kitty, I think…
Did you see Jenni's post on the Colima skirt that is now at half the price at ModCloth? It's so interesting, isn't it? Snoopy and Hello Kitty are on everything! Hey Gwen – maybe your comic characters and Marcy will someday be soooo popular that we will have licensing contracts too?! Goals goals goals! Because you never know!
xo,cynthia
What if Penelope gets a licensing contract before Marcy does? O_O THE HORROR! 😉
GASP! It would be mayhem! For them. For me – I'd sell out on either of them! Yes. Yes. I would!