When Denise Incandela, now evp of fashion at Walmart, joined the company in 2017, its fashion department was literally sticking to the basics. “We were mostly in the socks and underwear business,” Incandela said. “There was a lot of effort that was needed to make it a legit, credible [player].” In the years since, Walmart has progressed with building a new wardrobe, Incandela shared in an on-stage interview at the National Retail Federation’s Big Show last week. Since 2020, Walmart has launched or relaunched 10 private apparel brands, including Scoop, Joyspun, Free Assembly, No Boundaries, Love & Sports, Sofía Jeans by Sofía Vergara and Weekend Academy. Its latest fashion line — Mills, by actress Millie Bobby Brown — debuted in 750 Walmart stores and on Walmart.com this month. Last year, Walmart began carrying thousands of pre-owned luxury handbags, jewelry and watches through a partnership with the resale platform Rebag. Walmart, whose tagline is “Save money, live better,” is typically known for groceries, gadgets and household essentials. But the company is trying to be a more trend-focused fashion player as it looks to compete with national brands, Amazon and department stores. In addition to hiring Incandela — who once launched Saks Fifth Avenue’s website and assumed her current role in 2021 — Walmart brought on celebrity fashion designer Brandon Maxwell as the creative director of Scoop and Free Assembly in 2021. All the while, Walmart has built brands with higher prices, partnered with influencers like Athena Roberts and Lori & Leslie…

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When Denise Incandela, now evp of fashion at Walmart, joined the company in 2017, its fashion department was literally sticking to the basics. “We were mostly in the socks and underwear business,” Incandela said. “There was a lot of effort that was needed to make it a legit, credible [player].” In the years since, Walmart has progressed with building a new wardrobe, Incandela shared in an on-stage interview at the National Retail Federation’s Big Show last week. Since 2020, Walmart has launched or relaunched 10 private apparel brands, including Scoop, Joyspun, Free Assembly, No Boundaries, Love & Sports, Sofía Jeans by Sofía Vergara and Weekend Academy. Its latest fashion line — Mills, by actress Millie Bobby Brown — debuted in 750 Walmart stores and on Walmart.com this month. Last year, Walmart began carrying thousands of pre-owned luxury handbags, jewelry and watches through a partnership with the resale platform Rebag. Walmart, whose tagline is “Save money, live better,” is typically known for groceries, gadgets and household essentials. But the company is trying to be a more trend-focused fashion player as it looks to compete with national brands, Amazon and department stores. In addition to hiring Incandela — who once launched Saks Fifth Avenue’s website and assumed her current role in 2021 — Walmart brought on celebrity fashion designer Brandon Maxwell as the creative director of Scoop and Free Assembly in 2021. All the while, Walmart has built brands with higher prices, partnered with influencers like Athena Roberts and Lori & Leslie…

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