The queen of fashion collaborations

For fashion designer and founder Danielle Guizio, the mantra “collaboration over competition” is a key part of her vision.

Launching her eponymous brand in 2014 with just $400 (money she had saved working in retail), Guizio has risen to the top of fashion through courage, authenticity and an innate sense of what Gen Z wants to wear next.

Recognized on Forbes As part of the 2019 30 Under 30 list, Guizio has racked up over 10 high-profile collaborations over his decade-long career (so far), as well as a loyal celebrity following that includes Kylie and Kendall Jenner, Hailey Bieber, Ariana Grande, and the cast of Euphoria (Guizios' creations appeared in the first two seasons of the hit series).

This ten-year milestone for the brand promises to be monumental, with more collaborations to come and the opening of a flagship store in Soho on Greene, a far cry from where his namesake brand launched in his parents' basement in New Jersey.

It all started with a dream to launch a line of graphic T-shirts, which sold out instantly.

When I launched my website, I had a small following on Instagram at the time, Guizio recalls. Seeing sales pour in for the first time, and especially doing something that I truly love, in my heart and soul… I will never forget that feeling in my life.

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Guizio has achieved considerable success as a fashion empire with a multitude of product categories, with the intention of designing pieces that play with femininity and sexuality. Today, the brand has more than a small following on Instagram: the brand has 480,000 followers on Instagram while the founder has nearly 160,000 followers who watch her personal feed.

For Guizio, collaborations with iconic apparel, sports and accessories brands have proven profitable: the brand’s first major partnership was with Reebok in 2021, with a women’s sneaker model (Reebok Club C) that exceeded expectations for both brands. This was followed by the Reebok Hiking Boot in 2023 and the Reebok Zig earlier this year. Guizio also created a collaboration with Spanish footwear brand Toral.

Other partnerships with iconic American brands followed, including Levi’s in 2022 and Champion in 2023. The designer’s signature style has also made waves at female-founded, Gen Z-favorite Frankies Bikinis and phone case purveyor Wildflower. Guizio has made inroads into several product categories, including Australian eyewear brand QUAY, with an ongoing collection of optical glasses.

(Guizio's innate eye for style has also taken a technological route, with a partnership with Camcorder, a logical choice for his audience who appreciate the magic of lo-fi content and nostalgic '90s vibes.)

What's next? A new collaboration with Puma planned for the holidays.

But Guizio and his ability to create and deliver successful collaborations began with a less obvious fashion partner: the New York Fire Department.

In the same way Guizio was able to get her graffiti T-shirts into the hands of celebrities in the early days of the brand, she found the right contact at the FDNY. Pro tip: Sometimes the power of cold emailing and pitching to the right person can pay off.

(As a New Jersey native, working with the FDNY holds a particularly special place in her heart.)

Anytime we do a collaboration, even if it’s a huge brand, I have to really love the brand and have a strong, authentic connection to it. That’s always the priority for me. I never want to put my name on anything, no matter the pay or the opportunity. If it’s not something that touches my heart, or if it’s not something that I’m really passionate about, I don’t do it.

The success of this unlikely partnership with the FDNY served as a proof of concept for potential future partners of the brand. When she approached Reebok, she was armed with a portfolio and a solid track record: Guizio showed she had the skills to design, create and execute a fire collaboration.

But how can a small brand reach the biggest names? Guizio sets a goal, aims for the stars and persists by doing investigative work and research online.

My best advice is to do everything you can to find the contact of the brand that you're targeting and don't give up. Keep searching for names on LinkedIn and Instagram, and try to search and figure out what the person's field is via email. That's how I found collaborations in the beginning, by searching online and seeing who the person is that handles all the global partnerships, for example. Then sending them private messages and really cultivating and building those relationships.

The doors did not immediately open for Guizio, who persisted and hurried to find the key contact in the brands of his dreams, and before finally getting the green light.

The most important thing is not to give up if you feel defeated, if you have been rejected or if you can't find the right contact to contact, because there are thousands of people working in these companies. So that's where the biggest challenge lies.

His advice for someone who has found the collaboration partner of their dreams?

Don't rush the collaboration or creation process, make sure you give it your best shot. I use every collaboration like it's my last opportunity because you have this little window of people's attention. And with collaborations, you expose yourself to a much larger audience. And it's almost like you're on top of a mountain and you look down and you remember: I really need to correct myself. I need to get back up and make high-quality products that people want. Do your best and put everything you can into your work. Because you never want to look back and regret, I wish I had made more effort in this area. I wish I had done this. I wish I had done that.

Also: don't lose your voice in the process.

It's like choosing a business partner and for me it's also about creating things that can give me a better and brighter future for the creations I want to create?