It’s as if the fashion gods heard our desperate pleas and bestowed a gift upon us: dELiA__*__s has returned. For those of you whose memories of the pre-Instagram, early-internet-era skew more Animaniacs than Can’t Hardly Wait, you need to get excited because this occasion is MAJOR. Frankly, it’s the best news since we heard that Tiger Beat is getting a refresh.
“We’re looking to go back to what dELiA__s was about when it first launched,” says Patricia Johnson, dELiAs executive vice president and chief merchandising officer. The re-launch will continue the company’s tradition of giving you and your squad a (virtual) place to shop, hang out, and dish about fashion and all that. Plus, you’ll have a chance to feel those sartorial warm and fuzzies — aided by modern technology (i.e., e-commerce and Instagram) — and the return of that precious monthly catalog. Of course, for immediate gratification, you could just download it, too. But, take it from those of us who lived through it: There’s just something special about receiving a piece of (paper) mail that’s not a bill or spammy credit card offer. Just saying. Plus, similar to back when we’d take that cherished catalog up to our room to peruse it in peace without parental units peeking over our shoulders, dELiA*__s 2.0 will be all about you. Like, it’s not a place for you and your mom to shop. Sorry, Kris Jenner.
After launching in 1993 (like one year before Harry Styles was born), dELiA__s and its iconic catalog were a steady presence in our tween, teen, and early college lives — and it had extra special meaning in those dark days before online shopping and style blogs even existed. For style-starved girls who lived in small towns with middling malls, receiving that dELiAs catalog in the mail was like that VIP entry into fashion, any and all tastes welcome. It didn’t matter if you were a skater girl gurrrl, a broody goth kid, or homecoming queen three years and counting, you could always find your clique on the pages of the dELiA*__s catalog — from baggy JNCO-esque ultra-wide-leg jeans to little black spaghetti strap dresses that we’re pretty sure Buffy Summers would wear, to graphic baby-tees and floor-grazing floral maxi-skirts.
“It’s really a place for every girl to shop,” Patricia promises.
But our dELiA__s obsession wasn’t just about the near-infinite styles of tops, jeans, and dresses that you could flip through and order — by dialing 1-800-DELIA-NY on your touch-tone landline phone — the models were also just so cool. (By the way, we’re being a bit hyperbolic as dELiAs did start offering e-commerce in the late ‘90s.) With emo sideway glances, bratty eye-rolls, intense Blue Steel stares, and awkwardly adorable poses, the models just emanated individuality and personality. Unlike their aspirational, inaccessible, and oft-homogenous counterparts from those other campaigns, the quirky, crazy-cool line-up of dELiAs models were like that girl in English class that you wanted to hang out with, but were a little bit intimidated that she might get you both stuck in detention. But then she’d totally talk the principal out of it because she was that confident and charming. Johnson promises that the next roster of dELiA__s girls will be just as diverse and accessible as we fondly remember.
Speaking of memories, dELiA__*__s is bringing back the sure-fire classic pieces that still make the rounds on eBay and Poshmark: the slouchy, off-the-shoulder Hailey tee, signature, double-button Jayden skinny jeans, loads of graphic T-shirts featuring anything from Nirvana (oh hey, ‘90s) to Fifth Harmony, and all the party dresses paired with Converse kicks. Although, instead of wearing One Stars with a long black maxi-dress and floral baby barrettes, maybe this time around you’ll be coordinating high-top Chucks with a lacy fit-and-flare and a Lily Rose Depp-reminiscent sequined headband. The updated catalog, as well as the website, are easy to shop by theme, like bohemian, ‘80s prep, and, appropriately, ‘90s grunge. “We’ll be looking to do things like crushed velvet baby doll dresses,” Patricia hints, too. It all comes full circle, doesn’t it?
The re-launch of dELiA__s is also bringing back those squad bonding sessions that we used to partake in — poring over the catalog with our BFFs during lunch in the school cafeteria or on a prolonged study break at the student union. But now, the totally pun-intended “Haul-o-Fame,” is an online gathering place where you share Instagram pics of all your dELiA__s swag (or, better yet, a mirror selfie of how you styled the look) on the website. It’ll be a forum for you to show off your new buys, comment on other people’s purchases and have a good old discussion on clothes, fashion, life.
Just make sure you remember this hashtag: #deliasforever because you’ll be using it a lot, we guarantee.
