The Row Brand is Going through Difficult Times

Photo credit: Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images

The Olsen sisters' The Row brand is in dire financial straits as reported by WWD. According to the publication, The Row has cut half of the staff, and also took away the menswear line. The revenue of the brand was affected by the coronavirus situation, but the cuts began at The Row back in 2019, as a result of which the brand president David Schulte left the company. In 2020, Schulte sued the Olsen sisters and the parent company Dualstar Entertainment. The management of the brand had to lay off part of the team due to debts - during the bankruptcy proceedings of Barneys, the court found out that The Row owed the department store $ 3.7 million. The Row's representatives stated that the company supports a diverse and inclusive workplace and refused to comment on other topics about the brand.

The Row Fall 2020 show/Getty Images

Now the brand is not taking any actions to increase sales - and, in particular, is not developing e-commerce. Ashley Olsen is currently the CEO and Mary-Kate is the creative director of The Row. The brand is preparing several collections, but now a team of only 10-12 people is working on them, and not 30, as it was before the pandemic. Also, The Row has been repeatedly accused of the lack of racial diversity in the company - the brand does not have black specialists, and also very few employees from Asian communities.

Nevertheless, The Row gets a lot of credibility in the fashion community. For example, the CFDA nominated Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen for the 2020 Fashion Awards in the American Womenswear Designer category.