Miaou (Q3367)

Miaou is one of those labels that has all the right ingredients for generating buzz. First, its creator, Alexia Elkaim, is incredibly well connected to a group of downtown It girls. (Paloma Elsesser has worn the label since the beginning.) Celebrities including Bella Hadid and Selena Gomez have given Miaou the street style treatment. But most importantly, Elkaim has a confident vision that resonates with a diverse group of women. Elkaim first came onto the scene in 2016 with her curve-friendly denim jeans that featured a wallet chain and rope belt looped through the waist. They were kicky, a little bit naughty, and, yes, nicely cupped butts. All different types of butts, to be exact. Note: Elkaim makes all of her body-embracing jeans in plus size.Fast forward to her second time presenting a full collection, which she showed at The Standard’s restaurant that she cheekily renamed Miaou Café, and Elkaim is expanding her label beyond denim. The additions were on the pulse of what digital savvy, archive-pursuing women want. Take the noughties knitwear: That came in cute sleeveless crop tops or with shoulder cut-outs. Faux leather was equally cool translated into electric green and fire engine red python print, taking form as an abridged flare pant and teeny jackets.Of course, denim is “still the core part of the label,” according to Elkaim. The jeans were bolder, some dyed in leopard print—something that Elkaim worked hard to perfect—complete with a matching cropped jacket. There was that delicious, very Instagrammable ’90s-era plaid with a leather drawstring looped through two grommets in the front that skirted along the hipbones like an exposed, hiked-up thong, a detail that couldn’t be more on trend. In the mix was a kitschy denim bustier that has either of the Hadids’ names on it.While the clothes will be a hit among the cult of Miaou, perhaps the most important introduction was the logo. Elkaim has created Miaou Sport, a facet that plays off of great sportswear, like Prada Sport (or Escada Sport) and their unforgettable logos. Pieces like easy windbreakers and quippy T-shirts featured Elkaim’sMiaoufront and center. For Elkaim, the sportswear introduction fills a casual gap in her sexed-up label. “There was a disconnect between what I was wearing and feeling and what I was selling,” she said backstage, dressed in sweats and a cropped white tank.