Welcome to the blog babes,

This has been a highly requested topic, so I’ve gathered all of my tips & tricks when it comes to going to your first NEW YORK FASHION WEEK! Here’s everything I learned when I went for the first time in 2019.

YOU LEARN AS YOU GO - No one is an expert the first time they go & honestly it’s just such a fun overall experience, so don’t stress.

• First step is to literally BUY A TICKET to NYC + book a hotel 

  • People ask “how do I go?” - You just do it! Simple as that.

• Download GPS Radar

  • An app where brands can invite you to shows and / or you can request shows

  • Essential! How we got into all of our shows

• Put it in your bio so brands can see

  • Ex. Next: NYFW

• Email brands who have roots in NY (PR brands, large brands) to see if they’ll be hosting any type of activations during the week 

  • email your contacts and see who might be hosting events / activations during the week

• Post on your stories / dm girls to find a group to go with

  • A lot of girls have started asking us

• There's no right way to do it

  • Everyone’s experience is so different

• It’s okay to have down time and it’s okay to not go to shows 

  • Biggest takeaway from NYFW is really showing face, establishing yourself in the industry/networking, meeting NYC brands, going to showrooms, events, etc. 

• Learning experience

  • Give yourself enough time to get to shows

    • plan for transportation delays

  • Once the door is shut, they won’t let you in

• Studios

  • Mainly at Pier 59 & Spring studios

  • Go to any shows you’re invited to, it’s all a learning experience + sometimes these brands/PR reps/etc ask if you’ve been and want to see previous year blogs/footage (this happened to me twice) 

• Presentations

  • Not necessarily a show but you go, walk around etc

Budget:

• Set a budget for yourself

• For 2021, here’s what were currently spending:

  • Hotel: $377/per girl (4) for 4 nights

  • Flight: $351 for the flight

  • Food: $25/per lunch, $50/per dinner estimate

  • Other expenses: Shopping, coffee, ubers, subway ticket

• Some people try to get hotel collabs, but the year we went, no one really seemed to get a collab so we’d rather pick our specific hotel

  • Things we look for:

    • Price, location, close to a subway, safety etc.

Some of my best memories:

• Running around NYC with friends

• Meeting bloggers from across the country or even out of the country

  • Forms stronger bonds 

• Stumbling upon TAYLOR SWIFTS HOUSE on Cornelia St.

• Eating yummy food

• Enjoying the city in general

• Change of scenery from SD

Things to learn from:

• LOTS of walking. Wear comfortable shoes OR pack them

  • This is not a joke. You will regret not being comfortable and the last thing you want to do is rub blisters and be miserable the whole time.

• Bring a tote

  • It’s not the cutest, but if you’re carrying around different outfits / shoes, it’s probably the best way to transport everything

• Bring Water

  • It can get warm especially if you’re doing a lot of walking

• Give yourself time to get places

  • Plan around which area you’re in - you can’t realistically bounce and forth super quickly (ex: showrooms, events, etc.) 

• Don’t take on too many collabs bc you don’t want to stress yourself out so you can’t enjoy it

  • I honestly loved creating my own outfits (those were my favorites)

  • I will only take collabs if they fit into an outfit I’m already planning

Just for fun, here are some of my outfits from the first time I went in 2019! Some I still love, some I wouldn’t wear again but it’s fun to look back on the mems.

You can also watch my 2019 NYFW Vlog to see all the things we did HERE

Hopefully these tips helps give you a place to start! Like I said, you just gotta do it and start planning after you book your flight + hotel. Anyone can go. You don’t have to have a certain amount of following!

That’s all for now! Leave any questions in the comments or dm me on Instagram @fashionablysurfed

Xx, Allysa