Rebecca Hessel Cohen (LoveShackFancy) on Building a Multi-Generational Fashion Brand, D2C Versus Retail, and Collaborations That Actually Work

Rebecca Hessel Cohen didn’t set out to build a company, she just wanted better bridesmaid dresses. But that small idea turned into LoveShackFancy, a multi-generational, cult-favorite brand with dozens of stores, hundreds of retail partners, and a fiercely loyal community.

Today, Rebecca joins Sammi to break down the unfiltered reality of building a fashion business from scratch. From leaving her dream job at Cosmopolitan, to launching her first collection the same week she had her first child, to schlepping dresses in her car to early customers— this the unfiltered look at what it means to start a business.

They also get into Rebecca’s viral social media moments (including the most epic bat mitzvah), building a brand that resonates from “babies to eighties,” how she evaluates collaborations from Stanley to Victoria's Secret, and what actually makes a retail store feel magical instead of transactional. 

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Here’s What Sammi Covers with Rebecca:

00:00 The Gwyneth Paltrow Moment That Changed Everything

02:03 Partner Message: Mercury for Personal Banking

03:00 Growing Up in Fashion Closets

06:00 Life as a Fashion Editor at Cosmopolitan

10:30 The Bridesmaid Dress That Started It All

14:00 Turning a Side Hustle Into a Business

18:30 Launching a Brand While Having a Baby

20:53 Partner Message: Mercury for Business Banking

22:07 Partner Message: Mosh Bars

23:42 Why LoveShackFancy Wasn’t an Overnight Success

26:00 Building a Team and Scaling the Business

29:00 Opening Retail Stores During COVID

33:00 Dividing Roles With Her Husband

36:00 Building the Beauty Business and Sephora Strategy

38:30 Where Inspiration Actually Comes From

41:00 Designing for “Babies to Eighties”

43:30 How LoveShackFancy Approaches Collaborations

47:00 What Makes a Partnership Actually Work

49:30 Building a Brand Through Community and Retail

52:00 The Power of Experiential Shopping

55:00 Supporting Female Founders Through Trunk Shows

58:00 The Viral Home Tour and Social Media Strategy

01:02:00 Instagram vs. TikTok: How Rebecca Thinks About Both

01:05:00 What She Shares Online (And What She Doesn’t)



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Mercury: mercury.com

Mosh Bars:  moshlife.com/socialcurrency 


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