he Shein X program, which incubates young designers and assists in commercializing their creative endeavors. The same incubator enabled the Australian designer to continue to create after she made the tough call to close the Alice McCall business after nearly two decades of operation, during which she opened 20 stores and built a team of over 100 staff. The new Alice McCall confirmed that consumers will soon see a new iteration of her brand: “I am relaunching, so watch this space,” the designer said. This comes after her self-named business was liquidated in February last year. The business previously entered voluntary administration in 2020, which led to the closure of 17 of its 20 bricks-and-mortar stores and a pivot to a strategy focused on e-commerce. “I’m going to be doing something a little bit more high-end and sort of very sexy, sort of very special, unique, some one-offs, almost couture, because why not? Why not?” McCall said at an industry event in Sydney last Thursday. “I can wear a lot of hats and I can do a very commercial design, but also something a bit more sort of elevated, and I never like to pigeonhole myself. I’m a bit of a renegade,” she said. “‘Vanguard’ is a better word, but I’m a renegade, too.” At the same time, McCall remains interested in further collaborations with Shein: “I am relaunching, but I hope there are more opportunities with Shein because it’s been an absolute dream,” she said. Fashion and design are in McCall’s blood. Her mother was the youngest person to be accepted into the London College of Fashion. “I very much learned the craft of design from her, pattern-making, and sewing, and my sister was a designer,” she said. Before launching her eponymous brand in 2004, McCall was a stylist for 10 years. She has been a designer for nearly 30 years. Shein shop Off the back of its rapid growth in the Australian market, Shein opened its latest pop-up at 65 York Street in Sydney this past weekend. The pop-up ran from Friday through Sunday and allowed Shein shoppers to try on clothes from six collections – Vcay, Bae, Musera, Lune, Mod and Alice McCall’s second drop – prior to purchasing them. The concept is the same one that Shein launched at the Ultra Australia festival earlier this year. It allows patrons to shop in person and have their hauls delivered to their preferred address, rather than carrying them out of the store. Consumers can scan a QR code to add an item to their cart and check out online. This closes the gap between the in-store customer experience and the point of purchase. Due to the positive reception and success of McCall’s first collection with Shein – which was available in Australia, New Zealand and the US – her second collection is available globally. The first collection had 30 styles, and they all sold out. “I think there were some styles they reordered three or four times,” McCall said. “It was really successful.” ‘Dopamine dressing’ Intricate details and color feature heavily in McCall’s second collection with Shein. These elements are also central to her concept of ‘dopamine dressing’, which is when consumers use fashion to improve their mood. McCall’s designs embody the ‘look good, feel good’ philosophy and mirror a broader societal shift of dressing and wearing makeup for self-expression as opposed to fitting into mainstream trends. Although Australians are budget-conscious, they are splurging sporadically on products that make them feel good. By collaborating with Shein, McCall is bringing her signature tailoring and feminine prints to a broader audience at an affordable price point. The latest collection includes a shimmery, deep-lilac dress that calls to mind a previous McCall design worn on the Victoria’s Secret pink carpet. “They [Shein] are just a dream to work with, to be honest,” she said, citing “the efficiencies, the technologies” of the Chinese company. “I traveled to China, I got to meet the team and it’s been a joy, to be honest,” she said. Shein uses an on-demand business model for its Alice McCall collaborations, which have been in high demand. This model aims to minimize overproduction and deliver beauty and fashion accessories to a mass market.