Aritzia’s mirrorless fitting rooms are beloved, bemoaned and occasionally satirised by the Canadian retailer’s customers.

Veronica Uy, 28, a dental hygienist and part-time content creator, lives close to Aritzia’s hometown flagship in Vancouver, but says she’ll mostly shop online to avoid having to model potential purchases in front of other shoppers at the communal mirrors positioned outside the changing stalls.

“If you feel insecure, you still have to go out there because it’s the only way you can see yourself,” Uy said.

For Laura Hogya, 37, a freelance publicist in Orange County, California, the mirrors — placed under flattering lighting amid lounge seating affectionately known as boyfriend sofas, are a draw.

“It is a little genius, having shoppers validate each other on what they’re trying on. Like, ‘Oh girl, those jeans look great on you,’” Hogya said. “You step out, see other people and you become part of this community.”

On one point Uy and Hogya both agree: Whatever they think of the mirrors, they love, love, love Aritzia’s clothing. Both described the retailer’s wardrobe staples, which include workwear and leggings alike, as high quality and extremely flattering — “snatching,” as Uy put it.

Those controversial mirrors are just one example of how Aritzia’s idiosyncratic approach to retail has ignited a passionate, and rapidly growing, fandom. Founded four decades ago, the company sells what it bills as “everyday luxury,” a category teeming with retailers selling basics at every price point, from H&M to Toteme. Aritzia occupies a space in the less-crowded middle of the market, with $100 dresses and $50 tops priced above Zara or Gap, but at one-half or one-third contemporary labels like Reformation or Ganni.

Unlike most of its competitors, Aritzia rarely goes big with glossy advertisements and seldom taps celebrity ambassadors (though a campaign with Pamela Anderson scored considerable press last year). Instead, the company is focused on growing its network of stores, which chief executive Jennifer Wong told The Business of Fashion she considers the company’s most effective marketing tool, and its wide selection of 10 private brands, each designed to serve a different occasion in the lives of its customers as they transition from teenagers to middle age and beyond.

Taken together, Aritzia’s approach has inspired an unusual degree of evangelism among customers, who post countless try-on haul videos on TikTok, most of which the company said is organic. It’s now counting on that passion as it opens dozens of stores in the US, including giant new flagships in New York and Chicago. Some 100 locations are planned in the coming decade, on top of 124 stores in the US and Canada today.

“Our culture is methodical, structured and organised,” said Wong, who started at Aritzia as a sales associate in 1987 and took the helm in 2022 after founder Brian Hill stepped down after 38 years in the role. “I always say we’ve been on a 40-year continuous improvement track.”

The Price-to-Quality Ratio

A critical ingredient for the retailer’s popularity in recent years is its position in the market as neither fast fashion nor luxury.

It’s a price point that few retailers target, catching both fast-fashion shoppers who see Aritzia as a splurge and customers who perceive it as an affordable, high-quality alternative to premium brands.

“There’s no one that does exactly what we do because we don’t put ourselves in a category or a box,” said Wong.

Ina Yang, 31, said she typically shops from brands like Maje and Acne Studios, as well as on resale platforms for higher-end luxury pieces. Aritzia is the only mass retailer she frequents. Yang owns five pairs of its best-selling Effortless pants and still wears an Aritzia leather jacket she purchased 10 years ago.

Nichelle Laliberte, 27, said Aritzia has been great for building a new capsule wardrobe that’s longer lasting than fast fashion.

“Instead of buying the same product every year because it’s worn out or broken down, I’d rather have something for several years and be able to pass it down to my children,” she said. “I’m in the process of rehabilitating my closet space and it’s one of the main stores I gravitate towards in order to do that.”

That value proposition is at the heart of Aritzia’s brand, Wong said.

“I think of it as two axes. There’s the fashion quotient and then there’s the price quotient,” she said. “I would position us with a high fashion quotient and an attainable price point.”

Quality and consistency are terms that come up again and again in conversation with Aritzia shoppers.

“Aritzia has the best quality pieces that I’ve owned, that I’ll probably keep forever,” said Jules Jacobson, 30, a content creator based in New York. She said she owns 40-odd pieces from the brand, though some were gifted, including different versions of the same styles such as the Effortless pants and sweat sets.

Creating the Perfect Shopping Experience

Aritzia’s culture of perfectionism is embodied by the tactful Wong. Even with internal matters, Wong strives for constant improvement. Last week, she delayed a company-wide earnings memo by two days in order to draft a better version.

“We’re always iterating even to the 11th hour,” she said. “There are times where it’s really tough … But it was just reported to me that [the memo] had one of the highest click-through rates. And that’s with internal staff.”

In fact, like Wong, 11 percent of the company’s corporate employees have been with the retailer for 10 years or longer.

Outwardly, Aritzia’s pursuit of excellence has certainly made a difference in customer satisfaction. Shoppers point to the stores’ easy-to-navigate setup, as well as convenient online functions that few other retailers seem to offer.

“What Aritzia does so well is integrating online with offline,” said Leigh Sevin, co-founder of retail marketing platform Endear. “When you go online to locate a store, all the important information is there, including a green tag that tells you, ‘We’re open today until 9 p.m.’”

Each Aritzia store has its own web page with factoids about the location, the services offered there and other attractions in the neighbourhood, such as restaurants and art galleries.

Its superfans also highlight Aritzia’s compelling visual merchandising in-person and online, and straightforward wayfinding inside the stores.

“Their layout of all the clothes is very special,” said Laliberte. “They have sections dedicated to business casual, casual, gymwear and loungewear, and I’ll know exactly where I’m going to find something I need … If I go to other places everything tends to be mixed together.”

Aritzia relishes any customer feedback it receives, according to Wong.

“We’re always striving to get five out of five stars, and from teams in the atelier, at the service counter or on the sales floor, we’re always getting feedback,” she said. “We’re very obsessed with what the customer wants.”

That doesn’t mean Aritzia tries to please everyone, all of the time. The retailer plans to keep the mirrors out of changing rooms in its new stores, though each boutique now has at least one stall with its own mirror.

“While it’s not for everyone, the overwhelming majority of our clients have responded to it, and you can see that in the level of activity, energy and traffic that happen in our stores,” Wong said.

Don’t Say ‘Minimalist’

When quiet luxury dominated the trend cycle last year, Aritzia was at the forefront with bestsellers like the wide-leg crepe Effortless trousers, body-hugging Contour tops and wool-cashmere blend double-breasted coats.

“They just have so many great casual basics and staple pieces,” said Laliberte. “Each one I’ve found to fit me perfectly and it’s always super comfortable.”

Customers today see the retailer as a destination for these pared back minimalist staples, but Wong said she rejects the notion that Aritzia has a specific signature style. Rather, its product strategy is very much rooted in delivering on the trends du jour, albeit through a subdued — or “sophisticated,” as Wong referred to it — lens.

“It might be a minimalist moment in fashion right now, but there was a time when it was a maximalist moment and our brands played that up too,” she said. “If there’s an athleisure moment, we have items that can play to that moment. If suiting is having a moment, we can have items that can play up to that. There’s not one word that can describe our style”

The magic perhaps lies in the styling and easy-to-wear nature of each piece, its shoppers say. “They’re so good at putting outfits together, so if you’re feeling lost in fashion right now but you like Aritzia’s basic style, they’ll show you what to wear with something in particular or multiple ways,” said Jacobson.

Product pages include other items featured in the modelled look; for instance, the Cozy Fleece Mega Sweatpant in grey is paired with an oversized navy blazer and a white T-shirt.

Ultimately, it’s Aritzia’s compelling products that make it irresistible to patrons. Even those who complain about the semi-private fitting rooms can find forgiveness in the face of good, reliable fashion.

“Aritzia clothes just make you hot,” said Uy. “There’s something about the way it fits. Even a T-shirt.”

In September, the industry descended upon the Shangri-La Hotel in Paris to raise a toast to new and existing members of the BoF 500, the definitive index of the people shaping the global fashion industry. Guests at the gala included Kylie Jenner, Victoria Beckham, Simon Porte Jacquemus, Marc Forne and Ashley Graham.

This year, Neft Vodka has partnered with BoF to platform three new members of the BoF 500 to explore how their creative careers and success are evolving in the industry. “At Neft, we want to invoke this sense of excitement, creativity and engagement, and bring exceptional experiences to our audience,” Paul Robinson, chief creative officer at Neft Vodka, told BoF in a recent interview.

Sam Visser, prominent makeup artist and Dior Beauty Ambassador is among this year’s additions to the list. Renowned for redefining beauty standards with his innovative aesthetic, Visser masterfully blends the high-octane glamour of previous generations with a bold spirit of individual experimentation, making him one of the most influential makeup artists of his generation.

Throughout his career, Visser has worked on high-profile campaigns for brands such as Burberry, Marc Jacobs, MAC Cosmetics, Versace and Balenciaga, as well as magazines including Vogue, W Magazine and The Face. His collaborations with renowned photographers like Inez and Vinoodh, Carlijn Jacobs and Harley Weir have further cemented his reputation as a visionary in the beauty world.

Most recently, his work on campaigns like Marc Jacobs x Stephen Sprouse 2024 and Chanel Eyewear Spring/Summer 2024 have garnered widespread acclaim.

Now, BoF sits down with Visser to understand how his influence on the industry is inspiring a new generation of artists to embrace creativity and experimentation.

How is your creative practice evolving and what is driving that process?

My creative practice evolves by discovering new things constantly — whether that be music, films, art — or even just life experiences and trying to not repeat the way that I go about doing things. Seeing things through different lenses helps me create new ideas and feel new emotions that pushes me forward.

How important do you believe creativity is to connect with consumers, and how is its role in culture evolving?

I think that my only tie to consumers has been through my creativity thus far. It’s the most important element for me, that what I’m putting out there is something that feels right and feels exciting to me. I think that other people will just catch onto that.

Aside from my role in the beauty industry, I’m also a beauty consumer. I love buying makeup, going into the store and seeing and trying makeup. As a makeup artist, when I’m in the store, looking at how products are created, and seeing the creativity in the invention of products, and the science — it’s really intriguing to me.

How do you expand your creative inspiration and expression authentically?

In order to stay true to myself creatively, it’s almost like this exercise of going backwards in my mind. Remembering things from my early childhood or even my teenage years. It doesn’t even necessarily need to be a memory.

It’s a feeling — and then somehow, its outlet is an image, or put into a makeup look, or put into something that feels like it has a correlation with those memories. It’s almost that to move forwards, I have to move backwards a little.

What skills do you believe are most valuable in your profession in today’s market?

As an artist, to stay happy with yourself is the most important thing. The fashion industry can be a place where you can find friends but artistically, it can feel vulnerable to put yourself and your creations out there, which you feel very connected to.

The key to creativity is following your intuition — just to trust and to believe in yourself. In an industry which is constantly telling us what we should and shouldn’t do and how we should and shouldn’t be — it’s important to know and to feel that trust within yourself.

What advice would you give those seeking to enter the beauty industry today?

Stay true to yourself. I think the things about ourselves that we push away to fit in are the things that are the most special about all of us and what connects us.

The key to creativity is following your intuition.

Fashion is a very collaborative industry. The way I found my favourite and best collaborators was by being true to all those things that maybe, when you were 15, you were really insecure about — when that’s actually who we are as people at our core.

What innovations in the industry excite you?

It’s really a pioneering time for beauty. Throughout the last 100 years, we’ve seen innovation with products and in the way we use them, but now, we have a whole different tool involved — which is not human, telling or showing us what is possible.

It’s really cool the way our phones and media and technology have been super involved in starting to shift the way we look at beauty. Whether that be through filtering or talking to AI about products and about what it thinks about beauty. It’s going to shift the way we look at self-confidence and beauty ideals.

I use Facetune or Photoshop to plan makeup sometimes, and that’s only been within the last five years. Before, you couldn’t do that with such ease — you had to sit behind a desktop and create a look. Now, we can do it from the ease of an app that we all can download. And so I think through that, there’s going to be a lot of change in the way we look at skincare and makeup, the way we apply it, and the way we try to make it real.

What does your selection for the BoF 500 mean to you?

I’m honoured because I’m put amongst the names of so many people that I admire, and I’m lucky that I get to call some of them friends. It’s kind of surreal, to be honest — because I’m just here being creative and doing my thing. And so, when this opportunity was brought to me, I was very excited and grateful.

This is a sponsored feature paid for by Neft Vodka as part of a BoF partnership.