Since 6:15 AM a trio of fashion students from Mount Mary College in Milwaukee had been waiting in front of the H&M on Michigan Avenue. Armed with a plaid blanket and printouts of clothes from the retailer’s Web site, they’d road-tripped the night before to be first in line for the November 10 unveiling of the new women’s collection by designer Stella McCartney. By 9:30 the line stretched to the end of the block. “No thanks,” said a woman in oversize sunglasses and a patchwork leather jacket when someone offered her part of a muffin. “I don’t eat before a big sale.”
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These shoppers were taking no chances after last year, when Karl Lagerfeld’s one-off collection for H&M–known for offering trendy wares at Wal-Mart prices–sold out in a few hours. People have muttered that McCartney’s name–her dad’s the Beatle–has more to do with her prominence than her talent; in fact Lagerfeld, whom McCartney replaced as head designer for the French couture house Chloe in 1997, sniped at the time, “I think they should have taken a big name. They did–but in music, not fashion.” Still, McCartney’s designs, which range from rock-chick cool to unapologetically feminine, have a devoted following. McCartney is “our generation’s rock star designer,” said Rebecca Rivich, an antiques dealer who drove in from Whiting, Indiana, with her husband in tow. She was excited at the prospect of owning a piece by a designer she couldn’t normally afford. “I’ve stood in line for lesser things,” she added.
The hottest items turned out to be the trench, which also came in a bronzy green, and a blousy gray zip-up sweater with an oversize collar. Salespeople bearing replenishments were quickly surrounded, and when supplies ran out, bartering ensued, including one complicated transaction involving three parties and various sizes. Bystanders watched like cats waiting to be fed as one of the women laid some of her loot down on a table. “Hold on, I’m looking for my size!” she cried.
