Transcript - Morgan Siskind
Joshua Williams: Welcome to our special Retail Revolution podcast summer series, "Independent Thinkers: The Rise of Generation Z." Each short episode is produced and hosted by Parsons School of Design Fashion Management graduate students, Miloni Kothari and Caitlin Forbes. Each interview features six key questions that will help fashion and retail brands understand the needs, wants, and desires of the rising Gen-Z customer.
Listen to full episodes of Retail Revolution with host Christopher Lacy every Tuesday. Follow us on Instagram @retailrevolutionpodcast and visit RetailRevolutionPodcast.com for more information. Retail Revolution is produced by Joshua Williams.
Caitlin Forbes: Hello, and welcome to another episode of the Retail Revolution podcast, our special summer series, "Independent Thinkers: The Rise of Generation Z". I'm your host today, Caitlin Forbes. And today our guest is Morgan Siskind. Please welcome to the show, Morgan.
Morgan, tell us a little bit about yourself.
Morgan Siskind: Hi, my name is Morgan. I'm 23. I graduated from the University of Michigan in 2019. I'm based in Los Angeles now. I work for United Talent Agency and their television talent group. And I am very passionate about storytelling, narratives and equality. And I'm addicted shopping, so...
Caitlin Forbes: We are so excited to talk to you today. So, I want to start off looking at the fashion retail landscape. What brands are doing right now that are really amazing and are authentic and genuine. So, can you tell me what brand would you want to contribute your talents to? What brand stands out right now?
Morgan Siskind: I think that's a hard question for me, because I feel like I'm recently so disappointed by so many brands that I have been engaging with. So, I feel like I'm almost in this like crossroads of figuring out how to be more of a conscious consumer and a conscious spender. So, I think that there are a bunch of brands that are really advocating for the Black Lives Matter movement, which I think is important. Like I just ordered like a shirt from Kid Super. And so I like brands like that, that are trying to give back to the community and also elevating their own art. I'm also very into brands that are pretty genderfluid. So, I don't know if I have a specific brand to answer that at this moment, but I have a list of brands I'm no longer going to spend money on.
Caitlin Forbes: That's really interesting you say that, because I think that we're as a generation, part of this kind of cancel culture now, and when a brand doesn't live up to our expectations, or we feel disappointed by them, we don't want to shop from them anymore. We kind of want them out of our lives.
So, can you talk a little bit more about the specific aspects of what brands are doing right? And how does their marketing come off as genuine and authentic compared to those who are trying to put off the image that they're supporting social issues right now, but are really just tone deaf to what's going on?
Morgan Siskind: I think that's a hard question. Going off of the cancel culture thing. I think that I'm totally, that I subscribe to this whole, like, I’m going to cancel something the second it pisses me off. And this has been a nice wake up call to maybe take a step back and give people and companies the chance to redeem themselves.
But then I think it then feeds into this whole, there's a fakeness to it. There's a going through the motions of trying to be an ally, but not actually. Almost prioritizing capital over social issues as, a corporation. I think that what's most important is transparency. We have all of the means to watch a production line. You know what I mean? Like there's so much social media. There's so much exposure out there that all of these brands need to be more forward about where their money goes, how they're sourcing their product, how they're employing people, how they're choosing models, how they're compensating models. All of these things need to be public information, in my opinion. So, we can all just be informed decision makers. I don't have an example of like a company that I think is doing it so well, because I feel like this is a new again, like I'm going through, like, I'm trying to be more conscious now more than ever.
Caitlin Forbes: And what have some brand recently done to piss you off, or to make you cancel them?
Morgan Siskind: Yeah. So, Reformation is my big example. But I think that it speaks to larger things. I was such a fan and I was such a loyal consumer of Reformation. And I guess I was just under this facade that sustainability just means that it aligns with everything about me, all of my nuanced ideas and policies. And I was like, it's a blanket statement. So, like, in my head, I was like, I'm contributing to this really progressive, earth-forward company. And in my head, it just canceled out any other information. I never looked, he didn't know who they were employing or who they're having model. I never even thought about it. And it's interesting because I know that the CEO came out with a whole thing, basically saying I failed you, and that Reformation is going to basically flip around its business development, but I do think that at least that particular example, it's going to take me a very long time to ever buy anything from them again.
Caitlin Forbes: And do you think there's steps that they can take to gain back your trust?
Morgan Siskind: Yes, but I don't know if that's possible with any of the same founding people. And I think that’s also, that's again very harsh and I subscribed to this cancel culture thing that I really need to think about. But you know, it's hard to decide if like you should give someone a second chance or not. But I just don't see myself wanting to ever buy from them again if the same names are attached, which is maybe unfair of me.
I feel like I was, it was really easy to win me over before this was the forefront of the conversation. And now I feel like I need to be more investigative and need to be more critical and harsher. But I think that the overarching message for me is like, I've always been someone who thinks that fashion is so a part of my identity and it's such a source of expression. And if I really think it it's an expression of who I am, then why wouldn't it align the way I feel inside? So, I feel like it's more about just really thinking about clothing that way. And really thinking about, but it's more than that. And I've always felt like it's more than that. It makes you feel a certain way and this and that. And it's like my purchase behavior has to be more intertwined with that feeling.
Caitlin Forbes: Yeah, that's amazing. I think our body is a canvas to show what we express and what we believe in. And we have to be more critical about what we put on our body.
I want to know in what ways will your shopping behavior change as a result of COVID-19?
Morgan Siskind: Well first COVID taught me that I'm such an in-person shopper. I don't like to buy things online. I mean, maybe like small things here and there, but clothing, I don't like to do it. I don't like to buy shoes online, anything. So, I feel like when hopefully we find this cure, I think that I will always prefer and give my money and time to locally owned businesses as opposed to ordering them online. But I also think that COVID has given me and the Black Lives Matter movement, opportunity to realize how much money I'm putting into places that I'm not fully thinking about. It's a habit to just purchase things. So, I think COVID has definitely changed how often I'm going to purchase things on the internet and where I'm going to purchase them from.
Caitlin Forbes: How have you been shopping now during this pandemic? Have you been shopping online? Have you been buying clothes now or are you still not buying clothes, not buying shoes, only buying necessities? Or have you been as things start to open up, have you been going to pick things up at shops?
Morgan Siskind: Yeah, So I feel like the first part of COVID, I was so excited to wear pajamas for the first time in so long every day, that I had no interest in clothing or making myself look good. And now that things have started to open up, I have been shopping and I feel like I have been really dedicated to like planning out where I'm shopping. So, I don't know. I would definitely say my purchase behaviors are in my normal life are much more frequent. I'm purchasing more. But I haven't been shopping the way that I used to because the opportunity isn't there. Again, I really just think that I'm a experiential shopper.
Caitlin Forbes: Amazing. So last question I want to get to. I want to talk a little bit about technology and if you could tell me a little bit about how you engage with brands on social media? Do you buy? Do you shop on Instagram?
Morgan Siskind: I'm obsessed with my Instagram ads. My Instagram knows me better than I know myself and better than my mom knows me. I consistently make purchases off of Instagram. And this actually goes back to your last question. I literally forgot I did this. Have you heard of Showfields?
Caitlin Forbes: Yeah.
Morgan Siskind: So, I went to a Showfields for the first time in New York. It was like on Lafayette. And it was amazing. It was so many brands that I'd seen on Instagram and these like little booths. And that's perfect for me because again I am someone who wants to go in person. But I do like these smaller companies and smaller designers that are only living in the internet, on my Instagram. So, it was like the most incredible thing. And that's what I see the future of fashion being honestly.
Caitlin Forbes: Getting to experience the small niche, online brands that don't necessarily have the money to have a brick and mortar store but can be put in a bigger store and you can experience them and see what they're like before buying them online.
Morgan Siskind: Because they are still small, and they aren't getting money from other people. I think that's the future I want to shop.
Caitlin Forbes: This was an amazing conversation. Thank you for being here today with us, Morgan.
Morgan Siskind: Thank you guys so much for having me. This is awesome.
Joshua Williams: Thank you for listening to this episode of Retail Revolution. A very special thank you to everyone who has helped make this podcast possible, our guests, our students and fellow faculty at Parsons School of Design, especially in such an extraordinary and unprecedented time. Our theme music was composed by Spencer Powell.
Be well and stay tuned for our next episode.
