November 6, 2026 |
Some collectors would describe themselves as traditional archivists, staunch custodians of cut, silhouette and design. Some are entrepreneurial in their outlook, building burgeoning businesses with a celeb-studded clientele. Some are tastemakers, drawing in fans who appreciate a style that’s taken years to hone.Today, the scene is messy, vibrant, connected, tense and contradictory, tied together by an unbridled, often obsessive commitment to fashion.
The collectors profiled in this piece are all different. They seek out different things and have different opinions, experiences and approaches that shape the ecosystem in a particular way. The question no longer seems to be whether fashion should be preserved – the emotional, cultural and commercial weight these pieces possess have proved that. Today, the question seems to be what happens when collecting gets thrust into the public eye and how that impacts the ways these collectors can utilise their skill and passion for it. Here, Brenda Weischer shares her insights.
BRENDA WEISCHER
Berlin-based Brenda Weischer started posting her slick ’fits on Instagram in 2016. In the 10 years since, she has slowly built up a staunch following – currently sitting at 265,000 – through her shrewd eye for minimalist, monochromatic garb from Rick Owens, Prada, Celine, The Row and more. Building up a wardrobe consisting entirely of black and white, Weischer first demonstrated her knack of finding second-hand designs through her archive business Disruptive Berlin, which operated as an online shop between 2018 and 2023, with the stock continuing its life in her personal archive since then.
Following this, Weischer was named fashion editor at Berlin’s 032c magazine in 2022, then stepped down from the position in 2024 to focus on content before recently returning as fashion editor-at-large in March of this year. Weischer is a big believer in wearing her pieces, with her considered taste anchoring content that’s otherwise peppered with wry Notes-app fashion takes and curated lifestyle dumps.
Brenda Weischer habitually wears a vintage Celine top and skirt, and a collar by Louis Vuitton x Stephen Sprouse, all from her archive. “People are priced out of luxury retail,” she says. “Second-hand becomes the access point. That appetite is only going to get bigger.”
10: When did you start collecting? And when did your collection become specifically this black and white, highly curated wardrobe you’re known for?
Brenda Weischer: It was the point where I started looking things up on eBay, searching by season, probably around my Central Saint Martins years of 2016, 2017. I remember buying John Galliano-era Dior because it was so cheap. I bought a Dior Columbus bag for something like £200. My friends thought it was the most obvious, dated thing imaginable. Ten years later, those same bags are probably selling for thousands. But that’s also the thing about collecting – I never sold them. That was also around the time I started Disruptive Berlin, which was a resale business back then. It was successful, but eventually I had to either massively scale it up or raise prices so much that it stopped making sense. So, I folded it after six years. Then I started loaning pieces or selling to brands, because suddenly everyone wanted their own archive back.
What drives you to collect fashion?
Part of it is addiction. Let’s be honest. It’s a game. Having saved searches on eBay, Vestiaire Collective, The RealReal, every platform imaginable, trying to find the best deal. It’s fun. I think this whole “fashion as investment” narrative is mostly marketing, because unless you’re actively flipping things, you’re not making money.
It also ties into my work. I’m an influencer. I work in fashion. Showing up dressed in incredible designer clothing positions you in a certain way with clients. One of the first things I do in the morning is check what’s new on Vestiaire. Because there’s nothing better than seeing some blurry listing where the seller clearly has no idea what they’re selling, opening Vogue Runway, finding the exact look and realising you know what it is before they do. That’s thrilling.
Why wear your archive?
Budget, honestly. I’m not buying £50,000 McQueen sequin jackets that belong in museums. My range is maybe £70 to £1,700. I’m buying things I can actually live in. I’m not making some philosophical statement about wearing an archive. It’s practical. And I firmly believe that if you can’t afford to lose it, you shouldn’t own it.
What can you learn from physical garments that you can’t from writing about fashion?
So much. Fashion writing now often comes from people who will never touch or wear the things they’re writing about. But I know what a certain fabric feels like. I know what gives sweat stains. I know what’s flattering. That knowledge comes from wearing clothes. Not just reading press releases.
Dior Columbus bag
How important is community in this world?
Huge. People respond to obsession and genuine passion. I have an Instagram broadcast where I just send links to things that I find but don’t need. Someone usually buys them within minutes. It becomes a kind of collective hunt. And yes, it’s still consumption, I’m aware of that. But it’s also bonding.
Have attitudes towards archival fashion changed?
Definitely. But I’ve also found parts of the archival community vicious. Very gatekeep-y. Very “You don’t know enough”. I detached from that. I think gatekeeping is ridiculous. I find the idea that something is ‘ruined’ because more people like it silly.
Where do you think archival fashion is heading?
Consumers? Growing. Brands? Frustratingly reluctant. Every few months they flirt with second-hand initiatives like authentication, buyback, archive projects. Then leadership kills it because they want to sell the new collection. Archive proves durability, legacy, cultural value. But many brands don’t want to engage with that. Consumers, though? Growing. People are priced out of luxury retail. Second-hand becomes the access point. That appetite is only going to get bigger.
Photography courtesy of Brenda Weischer. Issue 77 of 10 Magazine – FUTURE, LEGACY, HERITAGE – is on newsstands now. Order your copy here.
