Classic Six Featured in Forbes

Tanya Klich, Lifestyle reporter at Forbes, focusing on beauty & style has written a beautiful feature on the future of fashion and Classic Six.

“Our mission is to reduce the overwhelm that a woman feels with the amount of options available to her,” says Diana LoMonaco, founder and designer of Classic Six. “How can we make the shopping experience less overwhelming in an age where options are endless and choice is exhausting?”

LoMonaco says she aims to differentiate Classic Six by empowering the shopper to become her own perennial stylist, as the collection helps customers develop skills in layering and accessorizing. These techniques allow each item to flow through the seasons. “We are endlessly styling each piece to show her exactly how she can make this happen, so that when she checks out, she is not just checking out with an item, she is checking out fueled with the inspiration to get the most out of her purchase,” says LoMonaco. 

For LoMonaco, Classic Six all started with a few simple sketches. She previously worked in advertising for contemporary private labels at Macy’s, and also ran two side hustles: fashion blogging and her own graphic design company.

“My blog was a flop, but in a way it served as a catalyst for Classic Six,” says the New York-based creative. “I was accumulating entirely too much stuff, and I craved the idea of having less…to have a wardrobe like European women whose closets consisted of fewer beautifully made timeless pieces that transcend time and seasons.” She created a capsule wardrobe for herself and turned to her mom, a professional seamstress, to help tailor the prototypes. 

“I had these great pieces that were so easy to style in creative ways and wound up always feeling fresh. I thought I was onto something for sure,” she says.

The pre-sale was a hit, but factory closures in China would bring another snag to her fledgling fashion business. She informed her inaugural customers, who were understanding during the pandemic. Despite the manufacturing freeze, she continued sharing her brand story on Instagram while shoppers were stuck at home.

“We launched before we even had product in stock in April 2020 as an opportunity to get in front of new consumers while they were home scrolling social,” she says. “It worked because by the time production began, people were excited and ready to shop,” she says.

“Right now the only real path to true sustainability is buying less,” says LoMonaco. And dry-cleaning less. Her line is entirely cold-machine washable and has collaborated with The Laundress to contribute to the sustainability dialogue.

Meanwhile, teaching consumers how to internalize the concepts of timeless style also remains core to her mission. In addition to the Twiggy dress, the other five Classic Six pieces are named after other style icons that have inspired the collection: Marilyn, Brigitte, Katharine, Donna, and of course, Jackie.