In April, Gap's first collaboration with Victoria Beckham sold out before I could snatch the parka jacket and jeans in my sizes. Luckily for me, the "multi-season" partnership promised more collections were coming. Now, seven months after I mourned the loss of a wallet-friendly, Beckham-branded wardrobe, the labels confirmed the second Gap x Victoria Beckham collab will launch this week. Here's my chance.
Over the weekend, Gap started teasing "round two" on social media, but close-ups of the comeback collection remained under lock and key until October 20.
"For this second drop, we wanted to build on the design language we established in the first collection, with a stronger focus on texture, proportion, and layering, while keeping the ease and versatility that feels so intrinsic to Gap,” Beckham revealed in the press release. The 37 pieces were "designed to work as part of a modern wardrobe—refined and considered, but still effortless and made to be worn in many different ways.”
Everything from fitted sweaters and quarter-zips to funnel-neck jackets and dark denim makes up the collection, with prices starting at $28. (That's more affordable than the first collaboration.)
“From the start, we envisioned this partnership in two chapters, allowing us to build on the strong foundation of the first collection and go even further with the second,” said Mark Breitbard, Gap president and CEO, in an official statement. “The strong customer response to the Spring collection reinforced what we believed from the beginning: Victoria Beckham's distinct design perspective brings a fresh lens to Gap's iconic essentials, and this collection builds on that momentum with elevated wardrobe staples designed for everyday wear.”
Gap x Victoria Beckham 2.0 revisits some of the initial launch's signature silhouettes: denim-on-denim, high-collar coats, and Beckham-ified everyday basics. But according to the press release, "knits take center stage." It is the partnership's first Fall/Winter line, after all.
The Victoria Beckham Effect gave timeless turtlenecks a unique, button-down bodice, while quarter-zip collars were tucked beneath ribbed, V-neck sweaters. The knitwear is rounded out with cool-girl coats, available in taupe herringbone wool and chocolate-colored felt.
For the campaign, Mona Tougaard—a longtime Victoria Beckham loyalist, who often walks in the creative director's Paris Fashion Week shows—models a master class in cold-weather layering.
Sure, funnel-neck fashion is all the rage right now (the trending shape was spotted on recent runways from Altuzarra, Khaite, and Victoria Beckham, of course). But Gap x Victoria Beckham was ahead of the curve, offering go-with-everything windbreakers and parkas with structured standing collars back in April. (The silhouette also had a moment last spring: It's "here for both a good and a long time," Marie Claire said at the time.)
This time around, though, the neckbands doubled in size. On the quilted parka, for instance, the collars stretched beyond the model's mouth, giving the infinity scarf-style finish a high-fashion feel.
Part two of the Gap x Victoria Beckham allegiance comes weeks after the retail conglomerate debuted a collaboration with A.P.C. (I swear, the Gap team doesn't sleep.) The 37-piece collection of "essentials" looked fresh from a French girl's fall-winter wardrobe, but now, Gap is shining a spotlight on the London girl look.
That said, Gap x Victoria Beckham is also the latest in a long line of impressive partnerships (with Dôen, Sandy Liang, Awake NY, and more), all of which made buzzy fashion brands more accessible than ever.
Now that shoppers know it's a can't-miss collaboration, the new batch of Gap x Victoria Beckham could sell out even faster than the first. The entire line launches online and in select stores on Oct. 23 at 9 a.m. ET / 6 a.m. PT. Learn from my mistakes and set an alarm, okay?