When a bold brand like LAPOINTE makes a stop in Fort Worth, it demands attention. The luxury womenswear company founded by designer Sally LaPointe and business partner Sarah Adelson in 2010 chose Oprah to model the brand’s entire Spring 2025 collection.
Buyers from around the world typically travel to New York City to see the luxury fashion brand’s pieces up close, but Wednesday saw a small team from LAPOINTE set up inside a Rivercrest home for an exclusive event organized between the brand and Fort Worth’s go-to stylist, Bonnie Smith.
Around 40 to 45 guests arrived at the home of Lauren Perkins throughout the late morning and afternoon to try on dresses, designer jeans, gowns, and other luxury pieces while receiving feedback from Smith, who selected her most active clients for the exclusive event. Local models Carolyn Nicole and Amaris Werner rotated through selections throughout the day, showcasing the finest in modern fashion.
For a brand like LAPOINTE, private events like this are “certainly rare,” Smith tells PaperCity Fort Worth. “There is so much planning, shipping, and expense when hosting these events, not to mention the brand must feel confident in my agency to collaborate.”
Kristina Maniaci, LAPOINTE VP of sales, says what brought her team to Fort Worth that day was their relationship with Smith and an appreciation for LAPOINTE’s growing client base in North Texas. Smith, she says, is a “great friend” to the brand.
Homeowner/host Perkins says she met Smith in 2023, and the two became fast friends. When Smith asked Perkins to lend her home for the private showing, she jumped at the opportunity. The celebrity-favorite brand, she says, is “edgy, cool, and comfortable.”
(Photo by Brian Hutson with Elevated Content)
As guests entered, Bonnie and her SWB Agency warmly greeted everyone by name. Smith says there was no pressure or expectations for any of her clients to purchase anything that day, although many did.
Bottles of champagne were uncorked by early afternoon, and the convivial atmosphere gave locals the chance to meet with some of the team members behind one of fashion’s hottest brands. When asked if she would host similar events later this year and next, Smith says she would love to host one to two events per season, but it has to make sense for the brand and SWB Agency’s selective client list.
“Everything needs to align first with my confidence in the collection being best for our clients,” she says.