TANNER FLETCHER
MERDE connects with recently announced CFDA / Vogue Fashion Fund Finalist TANNER FLETCHER - a genderless label produced through a nostalgic lens by power couple Tanner & Fletcher. The Brooklyn, New York based ‘fluid luxury’ brand pushes the boundaries between masculinity and femininity by appealing to a post-gender construct customer with their playful yet elevated ready-to-wear, jewelry, handbags, and home goods. MERDE contributor Matt Spratt re-interprets TANNER FLETCHER’s latest Fall / Winter 2023 collection of full looks captured by Sara Bouwman & Shane Reynolds into curated collages to further celebrate boundary pushing fashion.
MERDE: What was the first thing you noticed about each other that drew you to be attracted to one another?
Tanner and I actually met as freshman roommates at the University of Minnesota when we were 18. We met each other in a Facebook group meant to connect with potential roommates for Fall. We immediately connected because we are quite similar, had a similar upbringing and have very similar interests. We got together a few times before summer and were in love before we even moved in together. We moved in the Fall and have lived together ever since. I think one of the first things that brought us together was our creativity. We were creative in different ways but we both had high expectations when it came to the way we wanted to live. We like to romanticize our interior decor, form a collection of things we love and tell stories through creativity. It started with our dorm room, now we're 25 and have a full fledged ready to wear brand because of our connections but it also seeps into every aspect of our lives.
MERDE: What are some ways that you work as a couple that make your creative process more intimate?
We've seemed to form our own creative language that only the two of us understand. It's always evolving and developing but it's very important that Tanner and I are on the same page when it comes to our creative vision since we don't do much sketching or visual designing. We speak our visions into existence and form a final product by talking these visions through until they are fully developed. What we take in also directly stimulates our creative output so we are always exploring and discovering music, art, interior design, past eras and objects that we are inspired by together and channeling it into our designs.
MERDE: How does your vision for the future of Tanner Fletcher as a brand align and also vary?
We usually align very closely but I think the brand is stronger because it is a combination of two similar visions. We like to take the strongest feelings from each side. When combined, the creativity is amplified. I tend to be more maximalist, delusional and dream like in my design process and not take reality into account. I take a lot of time to think and feel every part of the creative vision. Tanner is more realistic and straight forward but also leans more minimalist by nature. Tanner is very decisive and knows what he likes and what he doesn't without a second thought. This goes for the future of the brand as well. We live in a fantasy world of Tanner Fletcher, we like to go there in our imaginations, smell the smells, feel the feelings and see the colors and details that form the distinct and focused brand image.
MERDE: How do you define genderless fashion?
We define genderless fashion as the removal of unnecessary labels. It's not a new category or new type of clothing. It's simply what we already have but without the labels. We like to take our customers out of a box rather than put them in one and the gender binary is too confining for this way of thinking. To us, masculinity and femininity is a feeling that we all experience at different points across a larger spectrum. The clothing itself is inanimate. A dress does not feel feminine. It's the customer that has the feelings. The whole point is for our customers to be able to feel like the most authentic version of themselves which is impossible to do when you have defined and gendered expectations when it comes to wardrobe. Boundaries are difficult to cross so we're making it easier by taking them away.
VICTORIAN MEETS 90S PUNK IS THE VIBE OF OUR FW23 COLLECTION. RICH VELVETS, SILK CHARMEUSE, HAND BEADING, CORSETRY, AND OF COURSE BOWS ARE SOME OF THE RECURRING ELEMENTS. WE ALSO ARE PAYING HOMAGE TO OUR MIDWEST UPBRINGING WITH A DEER SCENE MOTIF AND FAUX FUR AND SHEARLING DETAILS.
MERDE: Where do you find inspiration?
We find inspiration everywhere and in everything. It's just how our minds are wired. Sometimes it's in the most peculiar, bizzare places. We find ourselves finding a lot of inspiration in things that have been defined as unideal or less than perfect. Whether people think something is ugly, outdated, shameful, abrasive, promiscuous, the list goes on, we like to question the judgement, repackage it into something beautiful and force our audience to rethink its existence. We know what it feels like to be looked down upon and I think there's some sort of empathy and relatability that kicks in when we look for inspiration.
MERDE: Have you imagined a brand collaboration? What brand could you imagine Tanner Fletcher collaborating with?
Yes, we're always thinking of creative ways to collaborate with other brands. There's nothing happening soon but for sure in the near future. One unsuspecting brand that we've had creative fantasies about is Fredericks of Hollywood. Some people are familiar with this brand and others aren't. It's a very old lingerie brand for women and was quite popular in the 80's but is still around today. Dolly Parton often wore the brand and even sang about how she wanted to look like the girls in their catalogs. We think it would be fun to reimagine their customer without gender and create a very sexy and queer interpretation.
MERDE: Fuck Marry Kill: Bows, Ruffles, Pleats?
This is a tough one! Fuck the bows, Marry the Ruffles and Kill the pleats.
FW 23 FULL LOOKS:
