FASHION

Bend It like Bandier

A new high-fashion activewear boutique is changing the game.

by Gillian Sagansky

Bandier

After a broken foot landed former music executive Jennifer Bandier on crutches, she found that her clothing options were severely limited. “I was walking around in exercise clothing all over Manhattan, and I didn’t like how I looked. I wanted to step it up a notch, but the only high-end exercise clothing I could find was online,” she explains. Even though Bandier had no experience in retail or fashion, she followed her gut: “I thought, ‘there has to be a store that sells multi-brand luxury activewear, and I’m opening it!’”

Testing her theory, Bandier opened a seasonal boutique in Southampton over the summer of 2014, stocking it with pieces from the more high-end lines she had been wearing for the past year such as Alala, Splits59, and Michi. The store was an immediate success, Bandier says, and amassed a celebrity following that included the Kardashians, Liv Tyler, and Lena Dunham. “We were constantly selling out of everything.” This week, Bandier will re-open her South Hampton seasonal boutique—with an expanded inventory as well as exclusive collaborations with Prismsport, Varley, and Candida Maria.

Photos: Bend It like Bandier

Bandier. Photo courtesy of the brand.

Bandier. Photo courtesy of the brand.

Bandier. Photo courtesy of the brand.

Bandier. Photo courtesy of the brand.

Bandier. Photo courtesy of the brand.

Bandier. Photo courtesy of the brand.

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