Morgan Stewart McGraw has always been an expert shopper. Growing up, she remembered that some of her “fondest and happiest memories were always around shopping.”
“Of course I also went to summer camp and did other fun things,” she laughed. Yet fashion was the place where she found her calling.
This comes as no surprise for fans of the star, who first rose to fame for her infamously named blog ‘Boobs and Loubs’ (inspired by her large breasts and affinity for Louboutins). She then made a name for herself with her role on the popular E! Network show Rich Kids of Beverly Hills, where she amassed a fan base for her quick wit and sensible fashion advice. The show served as a launching pad for her career on network television – she landed a gig with E! as a host of two shoes, Daily Pop and Necessary Realness.
Along the way, she has amassed a fanbase of over 1M+ fans on Instagram and TikTok who follow her every move for style inspiration. While she is known for her love of established brands like The Row and YSL, Stewart is branching off on her own with the launch of her label Renggli.
No stranger to the role of a designer (she previously owned her own sportswear label), the designer’s latest venture is more suited for everyday wardrobe styles. The line consists of a curated selection of t-shirts, carpenter pants, knit pieces, and more that are the foundation of any modern woman’s wardrobe. This month, the brand unveils Collection 3 – an expanded vision of the brand’s core styles that have found success with Stewart’s fanbase.
To celebrate the launch, we caught up with the entrepreneur and fashion star. Read more below.
What was your earliest fashion memory?
It wasn’t my earliest memory, but maybe my most vivid high-fashion memory when I was 12 or 13 in Switzerland with my mom. I got a cropped light denim Dolce & Gabanna bomber jacket with a navy blue cuff. It was and still is the coolest jacket I’ve ever seen. I still have it somewhere, I need to make Row [my daughter] put it on. That was the first time I remember thinking ‘this is who I am in clothes.’
That same trip I got an orange Miu Miu furry bucket hat, which is so Gen Z, which I have also still in storage still. I remember going into the mall and seeing purple velvet ballet flats and begin like I need to own these.
Do you have a whole archive? How often do you get rid of things?
I get rid of things that I know are not going to come back at this point. I rotate stuff out because lately if you have too much, your mind doesn’t know what to do. I have 48,000 pairs of Chanel flats and I’m going to Europe this weekend and somehow I’m like ‘I don’t have a shoe! How do I not have a colored shoe to wear?’. Ballet flats are very LA and California girl thing, most of the country is still wearing sneakers and boots.
What’s your take on LA vs NY fashion?
I’m so happy I get to go to New York every few weeks now because I feel like it’s an opportunity to get dressed. LA is the best city in the world and I standby it no matter what, but it’s painfully casual. You can get dinner at 7 PM at the nicest restaurant in town and somebody will walk in wearing sweatpants and sneakers. There is more of a standard in New York. You’re more inclined to get dressed. You’re not more inclined to put makeup on, but you need to have a look together. In LA, girls have a full face of makeup and wear Nike leggings. It’s like, it’s not that much more effort – just put the pants on.
At the same time, it’s nice to not get bogged down by having to get dressed up everywhere you go. But I try not to fall into that, because then why am I buying all of these things?
What was the genesis of wanting to launch this brand?
It’s so annoying that I don’t have a better answer to this, but Renggli is my middle name and my mom’s maiden name. I didn’t like the name growing up, but I remember always feeling like the name was going to be a brand. I just knew it, and the universe just stepped in and manifested what I wanted. I obviously have a deep love of clothing and I’m obsessed with getting dressed, so I wanted to make clothes that I couldn’t find.
People underestimate how hard it is to find clothing. Clothing that looks good on you, that you like and that you want to wear over and over again. How many pieces of clothing do you actually buy that you think, ‘wow that’s a winner, I’ve worn that so much’? Not that many. I wanted to make easy, great looking clothing that was amazing quality, simple, and not too hard to figure out.
I totally agree! It’s funny because I work in fashion, so people are always surprised to hear me say that I actually hate shopping.
Its horrible. I always want to be the girl in the latest thing because that’s so much more accessible. Even 5 or 10 years ago it was so much easier to find new brands. Shopping is extremely taxing. It really is.
Now being on the design side of things, what has the process been and is there anything that has surprised you?
When you have the opportunity to make whatever you want that’s also difficult because you’re like ‘I need this, but what is everyone else going to want?’ You have to balance taking yourself out of the equation while also still trusting your gut. I think I have a pretty good instinct about what looks good, but I’m also an extremely simple dresser, and not everyone wants to be or can rely on that.
What has the feedback been since launching?
It so funny because with my first sportswear brand every single person would send me a DM complaining about something. I get such little feedback, I’ve only gotten positive messages so far. Its been amazing. I think people[le are really surprised by the quality. It’s not a crappy brand that was thrown together. I mean picking a cotton for a shirt is not a day process. I’m across every single detail. Our HQ where we do everything is in New York, and the amount of shipping back and forth is insane. I’ve confident to say we have been overdelivering in terms of quality and price point.
How would you say your style has evolved over the years?
I don’t think it has very much. I think it’s been pretty consistent. It’s really just the niche jeans that has changed. The more specific stylized jeans that I was wearing 10 years ago on Rich Kids with the red zipper on the side, I’m not wearing those. But otherwise, I haven’t veered too far off. The jackets have always been similar, I’ve always been a see-through sheer blouse girl, and a tailored pant girl before the girls knew what it was. I think most people go towards what is trendy, but I’ve always dressed very similarly. That really goes back to high school. I was always kind that girl.
Has mom life change your style at all?
First of all, yes it changed me. I’m always so exhausted in a way I can’t explain. I try to get dressed for them as well because I’m building their earliest memories and I don’t want to look like a slob everyday. I want them to feel like mommy gets dressed everyday. And trust me, whenI wake up I look like e as cary monster, but when I do get ready for the day I try to look as put together as possible.
But I’m also the mother who can go through a whole dinner and not talk about my children. I think once your whole life becomes about your kids, it’s not a healthy balance. I have very dear friends who I love and I love their children, but I don’t want to talk about their kids all day – and they don’t want to talk about mine. We know, they are saying and doing things they’re adorable, but now I need to mentally detach from that because I was with them all day and Row threw the remote on the floor 6 times. I don’t need to do that while I’m having a glass of wine.
That sounds very healthy, and is probably reassuring for many people to hear.
I think the best pice of advice my father-in-law gave me was ‘the kids are joining your life, they’re not joining yours.’ It’s the ruth! That’s is the dynamic. You might be having a breakdown because your kid threw the remote at the TV, but guess what. You are the one who gets to decide if they watch TV. My parents were the same, they prioritized their relationship and their friends too.
What do you see as the future of the brand?
Sky is the limit! We’re going to start to make all different sorts of clothes, different fabrics. We’re going to get a little more mature, advanced. We’re going to offer some different, cool stuff but without trying to do too much of a thing. If you go online, every brand or leather pants or jean is trying to have an identity. I feel like we can just have a normal skirt because that’s what people want to wear everyday. In reality, we’re all just going to basics usually and then building upon that.
Any good style advice for those that look up to you?
I’m just gong to say this. Be yourself. I don’t want to say that, but that’s what comes to my mind. You have to feel like yourself. I’m happy for my followers to like how I dress and to try to emulate that, especially because I think I’m offering a pretty easy recipe, but find your true style. I’ve said this in the past – you don’t need to buy the same sunglasses or jacket as me to look great. Find out what you like and what is going to bring you happiness in the long run. That’s all it is.
Explore the new collection on Renggli today.
