Dianna Cohen: Crown Affair Founder and CEO

What does it take to make it as an independent designer today? Is New York Fashion Week dead? This week, Who What Wear Associate Features Editor Ana Escalante breaks down her recent piece for our Spring Issue about the state of the fashion industry—and what it feels like to be an American fashion designer in 2025. She and Editorial Director Lauren Eggertsen discuss why Ana wanted to explore this topic given the current sociopolitical climate, and what she learned from meeting with a half dozen American designers. Plus, Ana shares snippets from her interviews with Business of Fashion senior correspondent Sheena Butler-Young, as well the designers themselves, including Sergio Hudson, Jackson Wiederhoeft, and Allina Liu. They dive into their hopes and fears for the industry, the challenges they’re facing right now, and more.

Ariana Ferwerda and Kiley McKinnon are the co-founders of the women’s ski and activewear brand Halfdays. McKinnon is a former freestyle aerial skier who competed at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics, and Ariana holds degrees in marketing and marketing research from Michigan State University. Despite their different professional backgrounds, when the two met in Denver in 2019, they commiserated over the lack of stylish, mid-range ski apparel options for women. They felt they could do better, and less than a year later, they launched Halfdays, a line of sleek women's skiwear made from nearly 100% recycled materials. Though it was originally a direct-to-consumer company, today, its products are sold in retailers like Nordstrom and Dick’s Sporting Goods. The brand has also expanded into hiking gear, athleisure, and more. Last year, it saw 86% year-on-year growth and triple-digit wholesale growth.

Grace Na is the founder of Pistola, a Los Angeles–based womenswear and denim brand. Since its creation in 2013, Pistola has become a go-to destination for reasonably priced, trendy, high-quality denim styles—including a few viral hits, like the pink denim jumpsuit Greta Gerwig wore while directing the Barbie movie. This week, Grace joins Who What Wear Shopping Director Bobby Schuessler to discuss how she uses data to guide her design process, her best styling tips for different denim silhouettes, and her thoughts on modern skinny jeans.

Anna Harman is the co-founder and CEO of the ear-piercing and earrings brand Studs. She began her career as a mutual fund formation lawyer but soon realized she didn’t have a passion for law. She then spent several years at the asset management firm Bridgewater Associates before moving into business, eventually landing at Store No. 8, Walmart’s brand incubator. One day, while trying to get her ears pierced, she had a hard time finding a clean, reasonably priced, fun place to do it. She realized there was a huge white space in the market for a piercing destination that was more mature than Claire’s and more inviting than the tattoo shop on the corner. Soon after, she and her co-founder, Lisa Bubbers, developed the concept for Studs—a clean, cool ear-piercing store that made ear piercing a desirable, experiential moment. Studs opened its first store in November 2019 and was immediately profitable. It drew praise for the easy piercing experience and innovative offerings, like its trademarked “Earscape” concept. Today, Studs has expanded to over 30 stores, including one in Rockefeller Center, and offers scores of high-quality, affordable jewelry options for every taste.

Violette Serrat is a makeup artist, designer, and founder of the popular makeup brand Violette_FR. She began her career in fine art and makeup artistry (listen to her Second Life episode from 2023 here!) before launching Violette_FR in 2021. This week, she joins Who What Wear Beauty Director Erin Jahns to talk about her brand's recent launch in over 190 Sephora stores across North America and how she’s bringing her democratic approach to French-girl beauty to new customers. Plus, they dive into her gondola design at Sephora, her hero products (like the best-selling Boum-Boum Milk), and what exciting things Violette_FR has coming down the pipeline.