The business with Taylor Swift

“Projects of this kind always have a great impact on the general public. In the case of Taylor Swift, this is even more evident given her international impact,” says Italian designer Alberta Ferretti, who designed several flowing dresses for the “Folklore”/”Evermore” era. “The creation of the outfits for the Eras Tour has brought us concrete results, both in terms of engagement on social media – the posts dedicated to this project were the most successful this year – and in terms of traffic to the brand’s e-commerce from users in the United States. The US market has gradually become our top-selling market, recording a growth of 34 percent year-on-year, surpassing the Italian market.”

The power of identifiability

And it’s not just Swift’s onstage performances that are driving brand excitement. In addition to the tour, she released an album last year, reissued previous albums (‘1989’ and ‘Speak Now’) and entered into a high-profile romance with Super Bowl champion Travis Kelce.

Unlike pop contemporaries like Charli XCX or Dua Lipa, who embrace fashion and a certain aesthetic, regularly collaborate with cool, young designers or attend fashion weeks, Swift is not necessarily known as a “fashion girl.” However, Swift is seen as more approachable and accessible, and her loyal fan base still drives every label she comes into contact with. And in the numerous discussions and deep dives of Swifties (as her fans are called) on TikTok, X and Instagram, her break from the expertly defined (and often controlled) deals with fashion and beauty brands has made her stand out in a playing field where celebrities are looking to sell big.

“Taylor Swift is determined – her music and the tour are her trademark and her entire focus,” says Perfect magazine Founder and stylist Katie Grand. “While other artists promote their products and brands, Swift focuses primarily on the razor-sharp core of the music.”

According to Launchmetrics, Swift’s red carpet attendance during awards season earlier this year generated a record-breaking MIV of $319.2 million, making her the most mentioned celebrity at all six major ceremonies in 2024 (referring to the Golden Globes, the Critics’ Choice Awards, the Emmys, the Grammys, the SAGs and the Oscars).

At the 2024 Grammys alone, Swift’s custom all-white Schiaparelli dress on the red carpet brought in $6.8 million for the brand (the highest gross of the night). After the 2023 edition, her all-blue glitter Roberto Cavalli look brought in nearly $3 million. During her performance at this year’s Super Bowl in Las Vegas, she sparked a social buzz worth over $180 million in MIV – a whopping 23 percent of the event’s total. Swift was on screen for less than a minute during the entire event.

The Swift Mastermind

Part of Swift’s impact lies in the way it’s integrated into her artistic persona. The singer is known for using fashion as a clever way to communicate with her fans about her next steps. Dubbed “Easter eggs,” each outfit, accessory or visual feature has a meaning tied to the future of her upcoming projects and music. She urges fans to engage with the matter on a microscopic level as she keeps her fan base on their toes. “I love communicating through Easter eggs,” Swift said Weekly entertainment“I think the best messages are cryptic ones.”