Tanner Fletcher Wants You to Dress However You Want — With No Pressure or Labels

When Tanner Richie and Fletcher Kasell joined a freshman Facebook group for the University of Minnesota in 2016, the odds that they would find more than a roommate were low — let alone a partner in life and in business. But that's exactly what happened.

"We've never not lived together," Richie says.

Despite both being from and studying in the Midwest, the two creatives somehow always knew they belonged in New York City. So, halfway through their studies, they transferred to LIM College together, to study merchandising and pursue their (at the time) individual creative goals.

After graduating in 2020, Richie was staging for real estate full-time, while Kasell was searching for jobs post-internships with the likes of Saint Laurent and Barneys. But, like many others entering the workforce during the Covid-19 pandemic, the two ended up moving back home.

"We thought, 'Okay, maybe we should just try and do something on our own just for fun,'" says Richie. "We started doing little tote bags and smaller home accessories — pillows and things like that — as a side gig."

What was intended to essentially be a quarantine hobby soon started turning a profit. And thus, Tanner Fletcher was born. "We had a couple little stores that were buying from us," says Richie. "So we thought, 'We could probably make this a real business.' Then we started actually making ready-to-wear and experimenting."

Richie's love of home decor still plays a large role in their work — for example, the most recent Tanner Fletcher collection has a corset made from deadstock upholstery fabric and embroideries reminiscent of vintage needle-point pillows. This crossover came naturally: "I was always tweaking and fixing things," Richie says. "Some days, my mom would come home from work and I had painted a room in the house without permission."

It also translates into an appreciation for reworking and reconstructing already-beautiful ideas; this underlies the Tanner Fletcher brand.

"Neither of us studied actual fashion design, so we get inspired and learn techniques at the thrift stores and through vintage pieces," Richie says. "It's really how we taught ourselves."

Though now a few collections in, Tanner Fletcher found its first big success in Spring 2023, with its now-recognizable bow suit. Inspired by bow-adorned bed posts in photos of interiors in Sears catalogs from the '70s, it was surprisingly a last-minute addition to the line.

The suit got a lot of attention when Bad Bunny sported the look on the cover of Time last March. "We posted it right away, and we got 4,000 likes that same day — that has not happened to us before," says Richie.

Though he hasn't openly labeled himself in his sexuality or gender identity, Bad Bunny has challenged gender constructs and the heteronormativity of the music industry in his lyrics, clothing and more. "It definitely validated our concept, that you don't have to be labeled. You can wear what you want to express, and that's just really our mission," says Richie.

"I'm a little bit more minimalist, he's more maximalist — It's like the perfect balance," he adds, referring to Kasell, who then finishes the thought: "Same with femininity and masculinity."

Though the duo's undertaking of creating a genderless brand is what drives Tanner Fletcher, it hasn't come without its difficulties — particularly when it comes to convincing department stores to buy the collections.

"In a large department store with gendered sections, we would urge them to make a buy based on their customer. If their men aren't wearing skirts, don't buy skirts. It's as simple as that," Richie says. "We're not trying to say, 'There are no women, there are no men.' It's really just a scale of fluidity."

Each piece is designed with a range of body types and people in mind — of course, some styles are more fitted, others more loose, but they're ultimately made to fit builds beyond the traditional blueprint of men's or women's. 

The co-founders feel that Gen Z understands the brand best, and are counting on them to be the driving force behind Tanner Fletcher. "We're always looking to young people and taking the lead from them," says Richie. "Those are the people who oftentimes determine what's coming next and what's going to be popular."

Richie and Kasell admit the typical price range of Tanner Fletcher — anywhere from $400 to $2,500 — doesn't necessarily match up with the average young person's budget. In an effort to open up the brand to that consumer, it's started selling simpler styles that are less expensive to produce, such as T-shirts with catchphrases like "How dare you assume I am heterosexual" and bow-covered baseball caps that stay within the $75-to-$150 range.

"We want to be able to have pieces that someone who's 20 years old and really wants something from us can buy," says Richie. "If we cater just to one price point, it's going to potentially not be beneficial."

In a world where nepo-baby ambassadors and trust fund-backed brands reign, Tanner Fletcher is fully self-funded, mostly by the duo flipping vintage and antiques, which are available for sale on the site alongside their designs.

"We don't get a ton of pushback on price, but some people — especially from back home — are like, 'What the hell?'" Kassell says. "But I don't think people realize the steps that go into making a garment: how much the raw materials cost, how much the label costs." Richie adds, "There aren't many paths to get out of [high costs] besides patience and slow growth."

Ultimately, Richie and Kasell hope to be part of a greater shift within the fashion industry.

"I think it's starting to get more people like us in it, that don't come from a family with an affluent name in New York or don't have a trust fund," says Kasell. "Our talent and our vision and our personalities will get us there without those resources from the beginning."

In May, Tanner Fletcher was named one of 10 finalists in the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund competition. Shortly after what they hope to be the brand's runway debut in September, Richie and Kasell will be preparing to find out where they placed. (Results are announced Oct. 19.) No matter the outcome, the power duo will undoubtedly continue to push the boundaries of expression in fashion and redefine what it means to succeed in the industry.

"We put our blood, sweat and tears into this," says Richie. "We put in the passion, we go through a lot of struggle, and we really make the most out of it."

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