On a late summer evening in Tribeca, a small group of guests steps quietly into the working studio and NYC flagship store of Cynthia Rowley—iconic designer, CFDA award-winner, and one of the rare American fashion figures who has remained both visible and enigmatic over the course of her career. Inside: racks of silks and colorful hand-embellished separates line the walls.
This is the site of Rowley’s new and intimate Airbnb Experience—a private, highly curated event blending styling, photography, and candid conversation. The event begins casually, with chilled wine, mocktails, and plated snacks passed among a small group of guests—no more than a dozen or so. The ease of the atmosphere might be due to the fact that the space is not a showroom, but an active part-studio, part-store where Rowley spends most of her working days collaborating with a tight-knit team she’s worked alongside for over 20 years.
The event doesn’t feel like a presentation or an excuse for any launch. Admittedly, as a homegrown New Yorker, I was wary of a fashion brand’s collaboration as a potential poorly-concealed attempt at selling something, anything. But to my elation, it was a genuine, authentic experience: simply a handful of fashion-forward guests and Rowley herself who guides the evening. With the ease of someone who’s spent decades balancing spontaneity and risk-taking with precision, Rowley opens the event, unrehearsed, generous, and wry.
She explains, almost offhandedly, how the experience came to be: the Airbnb Experience team reached out to coordinate, and she agreed: “Why not?” She shrugs and says she’s used to hearing questions from buyers, stylists, and curious visitors who ask about the shape of a sleeve or a fabric choice. “I’m always happy to stay open about the process,” she says. “If someone wants to know, I’ll tell them.”