For its first-ever designer collaboration, Old Navy has teamed up with downtown darling Anna Sui. Together they have created a capsule collection of 24 styles in sizes XS–4X priced from $19.99 to $119.99. “I truly in my heart have always believed that fashion and style should be able to be attained,” said the man behind the project, Zac Posen, the executive vice president and creative director of Gap Inc.
That goal was in the process of being achieved on the blue sky day I met with Posen and Sui in Brooklyn, where simultaneous shoots were taking place. In one studio models were being photographed in the collection; in another PinkPantheress (a.k.a. Victoria Beverley Walker), the face of the collaboration, was in full glam mode. With her long hair down and curly and dressed in a floral-printed ruffled top and midiskirt, the musician’s boho vibe was so spot-on, she looked like she could have walked out of an issue of Diana Vreeland’s Vogue—or off of Sui’s carefully researched mood board.
The designer, who is as well known for her vast fashion knowledge as her love of music, is very much in the spotlight herself these days. She’s just released a new book, Anna Sui x The Nineties, and her brand will soon mark 45 years. Explaining why he reached out to Sui, Posen explained that he had been “thinking about iconic American designers and people that would really resonate with the democratization of our customer and somebody who has an American story.” This is both a smart business decision and an emotional one. As a native New Yorker, Posen and his friends grew up going to the stylish boutique Sui opened on Greene Street in SoHo in 1992—two years prior to the launch of Old Navy.
That shop was decorated in Sui’s preferred purple-and-black color combination, which informed the palette of the Old Navy x Anna Sui collection. During its development, both Sui and Posen gravitated toward ’90s looks, and it includes a remake of a dress from the designer’s grunge collection. “I think it is going to hit many levels,” said Posen, who expects that “the avid collector, the one that wants the vintage” will be one type of customer of the offering. As Old Navy caters to all sizes and ages, this partnership marries fashion and family friendliness. There are reimagined basics like flock-printed tees and sweatshirts and denim, the latter in both a dark wash and a patterned light wash with laser burn-out details.
The collection can be styled in many different ways. Boho is but one option; “it’s kind of grungy too,” noted Sui, “and then we included that whole lingerie touch,” which enters the equation in the form of lace-edged slips that feel substantial rather than flimsy.
The hero piece (the one Sui says everyone in her office wants) is a faux suede coat with faux fur collar and cuffs. “If you want the perfect bohemian dress, get it. If you want the perfect suede or leather with some attitude and swag that is just going to make people take a step back [and] give you that kind of groupie hug, we got it. If you want a lacy top that’s perfect, we brought in the partner that makes the perfect lacy top,” Posen enthused. Much attention has been paid to details: Velvet ribbons thread through trims and jackets have custom buttons. Even the hang tags come in Sui’s signature butterfly shape. It seems certain that this collection will make people smile while it is flying off of shelves. “Old Navy is a brand based around joy,” Posen stated. “And Anna has been an imagineer within the American landscape who brings it.”
Old Navy x Anna Sui launches October 28, 2025.
