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The Right Stripes

A wide-ranging conversation with La Ligne’s Molly Howard about how she and her partners turned the French girl aesthetic into a legit business.

Meredith Melling, Molly Howard, Valerie Boster Macaulay
n the almost 10 years since their launch, La Ligne has evolved beyond its signature Marin stripe sweater (which Anna Wintour wore while W.F.H. during the pandemic), though that remains a bestseller, along with the solid Ben v-neck sweater and multiple fabrications of the Colby pants. Photo: Ben Rosser/BFA.com
Sarah Shapiro
July 22, 2025

When three fashion insiders decided to launch an entire brand around the Breton stripe in 2016, it seemed like a gimmick. Certainly Molly Howard, who worked at Rag & Bone, and Meredith Melling and Valerie Macaulay, both Vogue veterans, had taste, but could the French girl aesthetic—Breton tees, jeans, and a baguette in the bike basket—sustain a direct-to-consumer apparel brand that requires a ton of upfront investment?