The High Priestess of Girlie: How Rebecca Hessel Cohen Built a Floral Empire
LoveShackFancy did not emerge from a corporate brand incubator. It started in 2010 on the front lawn of Cohen’s family home in Bridgehampton, New York, during preparations for her wedding to Todd Cohen. Frustrated by the stiff, conventional bridesmaid dresses on the market, Cohen designed a fluid, halter-neck silk chiffon gown that moved effortlessly across the grass. She dyed the fabrics herself, working alongside a local seamstress to craft pieces that felt weathered yet luxurious.
Guests wanted the dresses. Friends of guests demanded duplicates. Recognizing a commercial void between rigid bridal couture and generic resort wear, Cohen produced an initial run of dresses from the trunk of her car. Her years working as a senior fashion and beauty editor at Cosmopolitan had given her an instinctive grasp of visual storytelling and commercial appeal. She understood that women were not simply buying fabric; they wanted to buy the romantic feeling of an endless summer afternoon.
Todd Cohen joined the operational side, bringing structural business acumen to pair with her boundless visual curation. Together, they bypassed conventional wholesale pathways, choosing instead to seed collections through niche Hamptons pop-ups and intimate trunk shows. The gamble paid off swiftly as early stock sold out within hours of launch.
