EXCLUSIVE: Poshmark Wants You to ‘Try Yourself On’ for a Change

Whenever a new season rolls around, we all fancy becoming someone else. But with New York Fashion Week just days away, Poshmark is asking shoppers to “Try Yourself On” for a change.

While paradoxical, according to the social commerce marketplace, the name of its largest integrated brand campaign winks at the sort of irreverent, low-stakes environment for sartorial self-expression it fosters online.

Imagine an “Alice in Wonderland” dream sequence, falling down a rabbit hole into a universe of closets where each door opens up exciting possibilities. To make another classic childhood movie reference, a few stills in the “Try Yourself On” campaign recall Pixar’s magical door conveyor lines from “Monsters, Inc.” 

And Poshmark users only need to follow a pair of Prada’s spring 2012 flame wedges to take them there, thanks to a series of long- and short-form films directed by Léa Esmaili combining live action, animation and CGI. 

Developed in partnership with the Nice&Frank creative agency, the “Try Yourself On” campaign breaks Tuesday, marking a new chapter for Poshmark as it sharpens its fashion image under chief revenue officer Elizabeth von der Goltz. 

Since joining in January, the luxury retail veteran said she’s been seeking the answer to one question: “How do we make the platform feel as exciting to shop as it has always been for the people who love it?”

For von der Goltz, that means investing in out-of-the-box marketing initiatives like this, which highlight Poshmark’s breadth of inventory with over 700,000 new listings added to the site every day.

“Because we’re re-commerce, your budget goes further, so you can experiment with your style more freely and more often than you could shopping only new,” she explained. 

Von der Goltz added that what makes Poshmark “especially powerful” is its millions of registered sellers. “Every closet brings its own point-of-view, which means discovery can take you somewhere unexpected: a past-season piece you missed, something vintage, a hard-to-find designer item or simply something you didn’t know you were looking for until you found it. That’s really at the heart of ‘Try Yourself On.’”

Bringing the campaign to life, Poshmark has tapped an array of personalities across fashion, entertainment, photography and culture to partake in a content series for social media. They include Chloe Fineman, Colleen Allen, Jalil Johnson, Nicky Campbell, Tyler Joe, and even von der Goltz herself. 

“I love that the idea puts our community at the center. Our sellers bring their taste, their closets and these incredible pieces into the market; our buyers bring their own eye and give those pieces new life. ‘Try Yourself On’ celebrates that exchange.” And to underscore it, the tastemakers have curated their own unique product assortments that will be accessible on Poshmark.com and through the Poshmark app.

A highly visible tastemaker in her own right, von der Goltz said she challenged herself by sourcing pieces for her fall wardrobe exclusively on the platform as a way to hack the user experience.

“It’s been so much fun and it’s completely changed the way I shop. I’ve always mixed things: new with vintage, polished with unexpected, womenswear with menswear, and Poshmark is almost made for that kind of wardrobe.”

Von der Goltz unearthed several gems like a rare Karl Lagerfeld for Chloé set from 1981 and a Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche safari jacket. “And most recently, in a very full-circle moment, I bought a men’s Yves Saint Laurent tuxedo that was originally purchased at Bergdorf Goodman where I spent so much of my career, which I plan on wearing as a dress.”

For one day on Sunday right in the thick of NYFW, Poshmark will activate “Try Yourself On” by transforming Jeeves, a fourth-generation dry cleaner in SoHo, into an experiential retail extension of the campaign. 

Von der Goltz said: “There’s something wonderfully aligned about this partnership. Jeeves has spent generations bringing people’s favorite pieces back to life, and Poshmark is also about extending the life of fashion and helping people discover something special in what already exists.”

Visitors to the pop-up will have the opportunity to win designer items donated by von der Goltz and her cadre of tastemakers, including a black Vivienne Westwood top from Allen, plaid High Sport pants from Johnson, and von der Goltz’s Lanvin animal-printed miniskirt by Alber Elbaz.

“Alber was someone I loved and admired deeply and this skirt represents that for me,” she said. “I’ve loved owning it, but I also love the idea that instead of continuing to sit in my closet, it can become someone else’s great find and start a completely new chapter with them.”

With her new chapter, Von der Goltz is homing in on inclusivity, starting with the “Try Yourself On” campaign and the dry cleaner concept.

“Fashion can sometimes feel like something you’re invited to watch from the outside,” she concluded, “but we wanted to create something fun that anyone who loves it can walk into, participate in, and leave with a little piece of Poshmark.”