For Dallas Designers, Fashion and Fame Aren't Always in Seam

We live in a time when success, as envisioned on the front end, often goes hand in hand with fame. While career goals might not be as blatant as a YouTube channel monetized to nine figures, many (so very many) current answers to the question “Hey kid, what do you want to be when you grow up?” have a viral component.

Fashion is no exception. In fact, in many ways, it defines the symbiotic link between celebrity and success.

Today’s industry hopefuls came up watching competitions like Project Runway and streaming glamorized depictions of decadent designers like Versace and Valentino. Ewan McGregor’s run in Halston, for example, was surrounded by orchids and coke as he draped fabric onto the famous frame of Liza Minelli, then headed out to Studio 54 to party his way to bigger fame and fortune than many of his most notable muses. It all seems pretty easy after you connect with that first big celebrity, right?

Well, the short answer is “no.” The long answer is a bit more complicated.

Opportunity Knocks

Dallas designer Brydric Wright has been sketching, sewing and selling for well over a decade. After earning degrees from Wade College in 2011 and 2023, the Sulphur Springs native launched his brand, Five Eleven Collection. While holding down a full-time corporate job, he’d work 40 hours each week behind a desk and juggle another 40-plus hours after work, overnight and on weekends.


Wright found a breakthrough in 2023 when he won the title of Texas Fashion Designer of the Year. The culmination was the product of an exhausting year of saying “yes,” in which he accepted just about every invitation to show his bohemian-chic men’s and women’s collections across the region.

The exposure seemed to pay off a few months later when he received a DM from an assistant to Molly Rogers, costume designer for HBO Max’s And Just Like That..., a Sex and the City spinoff. Needless to say, he was floored that one of the most celebrated franchises in fashion, known for setting trends through its stars, including Sarah Jessica Parker, Kristin Davis and Nicole Ari Parker, wanted to show off his clothes. So, when the assistant provided a list of clothing they wanted to pull from his collection, void of praise and without offer of payment, Wright chose not to overanalyze.

“When they presented this opportunity to me, I went in with no expectations. The fact that they reached out to me was enough,” the designer says. “It's just like, ‘This is your moment — go for it.’”

A contract was signed, ten looks were shipped, and then it was time to wait. This was in May 2024, and shooting was anticipated to run through October. Fast-forward five months, and Wright’s pieces were returned, but the new season debut was still months away.

Fast forward another eight months, and after meticulously tracking every digital breadcrumb from And Just Like That..., he finally caught a glimpse of his free-flowing blue striped tunic in episode three of the show's third season this past June.

“I saw my garment, and thought, ‘Oh, wow! There it is, right there in the scene,’” Wright recalls.

Wasting no time on celebration, he jumped into action, adding the high-value credit to his digital profiles and portfolio, posting videos and stills, and hashtagging as fast as his thumbs could fly.

The Reality Check

So, to recap: A hugely influential streaming series tapped an independent local designer for looks, a testament to his skill and style. However, no money changed hands, and Wright’s name is missing from the credits. Nobody told him when or where to look, and after waiting over a year, it was on him to spot his clothes in the show and capitalize on the moment.

Perhaps no one can speak better to the reality of gaining celebrity exposure for an emerging designer than Venny Etienne. He’s among Dallas‘ most successful designers, having appeared on Season 17 of Project Runway, and dressing A-listers like Cardi B, Michelle Williams and Beyoncé in striking, architectural creations. But his rise wasn’t without turbulence.

Platinum-selling singer Keyshia Cole was Etienne’s first brush with celebrity back in 2013. The placement, a look for an event Cole was attending, was arranged through a stylist. It was exciting, but Etienne quickly learned that he’d be keeping his day job. And that celebrity was a double-edged sword.

“I realized that it translates in two ways,” he says. “It is a pinnacle — it's a goal that you want to reach, yet you realize that after the high is gone, you're still in reality.”

So, rather than chasing one celebrity high after another and suffering through the inevitable crashes, he shifted his focus to steadily building his brand, Levenity. His work now emphasizes the importance of “emotional clarity” and mental health awareness.

Today, Etienne prioritizes the confidence and business-building benefits of dressing big-name clients, rather than the spotlight that follows them.

“People respond to your emails. People pick up the phone; it helps you charge more,” he says. “But it's not the foundation, and if you don't have a solid foundation as to why you're doing it, each moment will feel like it's burning you out more and more, when really, each moment should fuel you.”

Making It Work

Which brings us back to Wright. Through quick action and a marketer’s mentality (that’s his day job, by the way), the opportunity from And Just Like That... still paid off for him in several ways.

He has achieved increased brand visibility, net-new fans, and established a connection with a prominent costume designer in the process. So, the payoff wasn’t literal, but Wright’s smart money is put on knowing the value of exposure while setting expectations accordingly.

“At some point, I had to realize that what I wanted to be successful for my brand was not fame, was not fortune,” he says. “The goal was to scale up.”

Now, Wright is feeling reassured as he looks ahead to his 2026 collection, which will be based on a theme of sustainability.

“This has shown that my brand has quality and significance to the point that it made it onto a legendary show,” he says. “They saw my garments, my creations and they wanted to work with me. That speaks volumes.”