Nili Lotan’s inspirations never change: Americana, military fatigues, rock ’n’ roll, and Westernwear all mesh together in a way they never quite have before.
But now, more than 20 years into her career, Lotan has taken a new approach to her design process. In recent seasons, she has expanded her offering to include footwear, namely a city slicker’s idea of a cowboy boot—pointy-toed and sleek, but finished with Western motifs. For spring 2027, Lotan quite literally started from the ground up, basing her designs around the footwear.
“There are a lot of new proportions because of the boots,” Lotan said at her downtown showroom. “I always used to do extra, extra long pants.” This time around, hems were cropped on khaki barrel jeans, ecru stovepipes, or kick-flair trousers. (And speaking of those trousers, Lotan’s suiting offering of the season—a slim, sharp-shouldered blazer with high-rise pants, which she styled with a red button-up, silver and brass Western belt, and her cowboy-adjacent boots—was a lesson in nonchalance.)
But while the collection was plenty boyish—Serge Gainsbourg was on the moodboard this season—Lotan showed her softer side with romantic Western blouses, diaphanous cheetah lace-trimmed skirts, and beachy crocheted dresses. But even with a more dedicated approach to prairie life femininity, it never looked costumey. “It’s all about the styling at the end of the day,” Lotan said.
