Hot on the ballet-flat-heels of a blockbuster year, Miu Miu continued its winning streak thanks to another slew of viral products, celebrity-packed runway moments, hyped collaborations with New Balance and Church’s, and buzzy campaigns starring It girl after It girl, from Emma Corrin and Kendall Jenner to Gigi Hadid and Ethel Cain. In its 30th anniversary year, Miuccia Prada’s playful line became Lyst’s Brand of the Year for the second year in a row, with searches increasing 39% year-on-year. In April, just a month after debuting on the FW23 runway and ushering in a new librarian-core fashion era, the label’s logo cashmere cardigan had already reached ‘It’ status, driving a 12% spike in searches for the category. Meanwhile, global demand for its ballet flats have continued to rise, increasing 75% between March and September. 

Following last year’s reign of the micro mini skirt, hemlines continued to shorten in 2023, giving way to the rise of the hot pant — for which searches have increased 133% year-on-year. Already embraced by the likes of Bella Hadid, Rihanna, Hailey Bieber, Blackpink’s Jennie Kim, and Kylie Jenner, the underwear-as-outerwear trend has been seen on the SS24 runways at Tom Ford, Khaite, Chloé, Stella McCartney, Gcds and Coach — and after Emma Corrin walked down the FW23 Miu Miu runway in a pair of gold sequin knickers, searches for the brand spiked 257% in 24 hours. 

Searched every 1.7 minutes on Lyst, the Adidas Samba is the sneaker of the year. A favorite among celebrities and influencers, the classic, 73-year-old shoe has been worn by the likes of Bella Hadid, Kaia Gerber, Hailey Bieber, A$AP Rocky and Harry Styles, with searches increasing 43% on Lyst over the past 4 months alone. A staple of the popular ‘clean girl aesthetic,’ Sambas have evolved from a football sneaker to an all-star fashion shoe through buzzy, limited-edition collaborations with other brands and designers such as Sporty & Rich and Pharrell Williams, generating over 836M views on TikTok. In November, searches skyrocketed 13,227% for the adidas by Wales Bonner ponyskin Samba in the week the sneaker was released. 

Jennie was the most powerful dresser of 2023, consistently influencing fashion searches with her prolific, fashion-forward looks. This year, the Chanel ambassador not only made her acting debut in HBO’s The Idol — which earned her a ticket to the Cannes Film Festival — she also made her very first appearance at the Met Gala, dressed in a vintage Chanel dress from the maison’s F/W 1990 ready-to-wear collection. In May, she dropped a capsule collection for Calvin Klein, for which she reinterpreted the iconic logo in her handwriting; searches for the brand increased 22% on Lyst in the following days. Her Cecilie Bahnsen x Asics Mary-Jane trainers, which she wore in New York in August, caused a 27% spike in pageviews for the Scandi brand in the space of 24 hours.  

From noteworthy red carpet appearances at events like the Golden Globes and the Oscars, to attention-grabbing date-night looks, Rihanna and A$AP Rocky have long been cemented as the best-dressed couple in the music industry, championing brands like Dior, Maximilian, Loewe and Rick Owens. But in the year that saw them welcome their second child — a baby boy named Riot Rose — the duo continued their ascent to become fashion’s most powerful couple. Despite a fashionably late arrival to the Met Gala, Rihanna’s all-white Valentino ensemble became one of the standout looks of the night. Meanwhile, the couple’s newfound penchant for Bottega Veneta has contributed to a 35% rise in demand for the brand since March; searches for the label’s Andiamo bags increased 263% after A$AP Rocky was spotted holding a bubblegum pink version.  

What does it take to create truly thumb-stopping fashion imagery in the feed? 2023’s most innovative fashion creative harnessed the power of imagination, teamed with the magic of virtual reality, to make us stop and take a second look. Jacquemus’ super creative brand storytelling used digital effects to create a slew of impactful digital marketing moments — inspiring brands like Victoria Beckham, Tod’s and Isabel Marant to also jump on the brandwagon. From jumbo Le Bambino bags on wheels traveling down the streets of Paris to a ballerina shoe doubling as a boat, Jacquemus’s viral VR campaigns (created by Ian Padgham) tapped into the power of social media to drive engagement and demand for the brand’s products. It’s a creative risk that has paid off; searches for its Le Bambino bags and ballerina flats increased 30% and 49% on Lyst year-on-year, while searches for the French maison rose 28%. 

2023 was the year Kylie Jenner turned the front row into her own personal runway, starting and ending her streak of noteworthy looks with appearances at Schiaparelli’s Haute Couture and SS24 shows. In January, her lion-head dress went viral on social media and drove over 64 billion views on TikTok; and in September, searches increased 57% for halter neck dresses after she attended the show in a crystal-embroidered halter neck gown. In between the two events, she attended shows including Jean Paul Gaultier, Prada and Acne Studios, for which she went on to become the face of its FW23 denim campaign. 

Long considered a niche, ‘high fashion’ statement purchase, Maison Margiela’s Tabi shoes have become a cornerstone of celebrity style, having been worn by the likes of Dua Lipa, Kylie Jenner and Zendaya. But it was the explosive (and organic) saga of the Tabi Swiper that propelled the cult shoe into fashion lovers’ consciousness this year. On TikTok, over 178M users became invested in the story of @Nextlevellexuss, whose Tabis were stolen by her Tinder date in September. That month, searches for the design skyrocketed 342%, and demand on Lyst has increased 40% year-on-year.  

One of London’s buzziest young brands, Dilara Findikoglu has been growing a large fanbase ever since its debut in 2016. Worn by the likes of Kylie Jenner, Zendaya, Margot Robbie and Emma Corrin, the eponymous label has steadily been making a name for itself in womenswear, earning a nomination for New Establishment womenswear designer at the Fashion Awards despite sitting out Fashion Week in September. On Lyst, year-on-year searches for the brand have increased 89%.