A Dynamic Duo with Star Power

Laura Citron & Andrew Clancey

@BYLAURACITRON | @ANYOLDIRON | LAURACITRON.COM | ANYOLDIRON.US

Couples who do business together and support each other’s career goals are major influencers for anyone looking to start a company or work side by side with their significant other. Spending so much time together can be challenging, learning to balance work and life. Laura Citron and Andrew Clancey are Nashville-based fashion designers and influencers in their own right; Citron through her eponymous fashion label and Clancey through his rock-and-roll-inspired brand, Any Old Iron. Both thrive on sparkles, sequins, and voyages to beautiful places worldwide, and they have collaborated on numerous collections and events throughout the years.

In addition to headlining Charleston Fashion Week this fall, Citron is planning a runway show at Virgin New Orleans leading up to Mardi Gras, in collaboration with Any Old Iron. “I’m originally from Louisiana, and this will be my first show in my home state,” she says. “I couldn’t be more excited to celebrate my favorite holiday with a fashion show.”

Clancey, meanwhile, recently collaborated with the Smiley brand on a new sparkly clothing line for men and women. “I’m super proud to have been picked to work with them,” Clancey shares. “Ralph Lauren, Moschino, and H&M all do collections with them, so this feels like a big deal for me. The launch party is on October 7 at the Dive Motel here in Nashville. It’s an open invite, so check out our socials for more info.”

Let’s catch up with the dynamic duo on all things social media, fashion, and inspiration!

VIE: How did you start using social media as an influencer?

Laura Citron: Social media is a way to expand and connect with your audience beyond what is in your immediate proximity. I quickly realized that early on when I created my clothing line. Through Instagram specifically, I began meeting people who started following, re-posting, and buying from all over the world! It’s a pretty cool feeling when you find your people!

Andrew Clancey: Firstly, I don’t identify as an influencer; I never liked the term. If some things I do influence people, that’s great, and I’m pleased for them, but I think you should play the key part in influencing yourself. Don’t be a follower. I started on Instagram a few months after it launched, and it was first a way to amuse myself with a mixture of satire and fashion. Some of it I’m not sure if I could get away with today! Nowadays, it’s IG stories to amuse myself and my main feed as a brand tool to raise awareness of what we do.

VIE: What is your favorite part about your job, and what is your least favorite?

LC: My favorite part about my job is connecting with amazing humans! I am lucky that my customers and supporters are some of the kindest, most creative, talented people out there. My least favorite part about my job is anything to do with finances and spreadsheets! I am right-brained, through and through.

AC: My favorite part is creating new clothing from conception to runway show. I’m already designing the next collection before the current one makes its debut. I make clothes to make money to make more clothes. I’d be dangerous with a Gucci budget! My least favorite is schlepping sequins everywhere, from pop-ups to runway shows in other cities. Those suckers can be heavy!

I think originality is key; find your voice, and don’t stop.

VIE: What is a highlight moment you’ve experienced as an influencer?

LC: One of my proudest moments so far was when my Gwenyth Set was published in Vogue on Jake Wesley Rogers last year! They are calling him this generation’s Elton John. Having a feature in Vogue is every fashion designer’s dream. The funniest part is that it was a complete surprise. My stylist friend Josh Owen pulled the set for a shoot with Jake, but Vogue was never mentioned. Then the photographer, Gina Binkley, later emailed saying, “Well, well, well, surprise!” Best. Day. Ever.

AC: I think as a designer, I would say having celebrities wear something I made. Top three: Jane Fonda (holy crap, I dressed Barbarella); second, Lady Gaga (I may get buried in that suit—with some alterations); and third, the Beyoncé jacket (which I sleep in).

VIE: What words of wisdom would you give someone interested in becoming an influencer?

LC: Be yourself—everyone else is taken! Truly though. People shine their brightest when they stop trying to be like everyone else and embrace what makes them unique! Don’t worry that people won’t like you. If you like yourself and be yourself, you will attract the right people who appreciate you for all you are! That will mean so much more than being liked for being someone you aren’t.

AC: I think originality is key; find your voice, and don’t stop. I remember coming in second or third place at South Walton Fashion Week, and Lisa Burwell and Ashley Longshore both said to me, “Keep doing what you do, don’t change anything,” which stuck with me. Be younique—just made that word up, haha!

VIE: What are you currently watching, listening to, or reading?

LC: Watching: I love crime/investigation series! I’m currently watching a great Netflix program called Who Is Erin Carter? I just finished a clever dark comedy called Beef. I love to balance those programs with a feel-good show after! Recent favorites have been Ted Lasso, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and Loot.

Reading: I’m currently reading It’s All About the Dress by your former VIE cover feature, fashion designer Vicky Tiel. It was a sweet gift from Lisa Burwell! Vicky’s life reads like a fairy tale with fashionable best friends like Elizabeth Taylor and surprising adventures in exotic places.

Listening: I’m an old soul and grew up with a disco-loving mother who always had Diana Ross and Motown playing, and it’s still my favorite music! There’s also been a resurgence of disco-inspired new music. Some of my favorites are Jessie Ware, Róisín Murphy, Robyn, Daft Punk, and Scissor Sisters.

AC: Going to the Arctic Monkeys show tonight here in Nashville and reading about all things India, with Shantaram being the most epic book I’ve ever read. I’m also listening to my dog crying at me as she wants her rubber bone thrown. We call her a Boston Terror.

VIE: Besides your phone, what’s one thing you can’t leave home without?

LC: Sunscreen! I paid the price for being a sun worshipper in my younger years when skin cancer popped up five years ago. Now, I slather and protect religiously. Wear your sunscreen!

AC: Laura Citron—it’s cheaper to take her with me than all the presents I buy when we’re apart.

VIE: What’s your top travel destination for fall?

LC: Charleston, South Carolina. I was chosen as the winner of the 2023 Emerging Designer Competition for Charleston Fashion Week, and I’ll be showing my collection as the headlining designer on Friday, October 13!

AC: Heading to LA in mid-October to see family and check out fabrics, then India in January for production and vacation combined. It’s rarely just vacation.

VIE: What’s your favorite fall trend?

LC: Statement jackets and coats. I love swanning around in my vintage ’70s floor-length leopard print faux-fur coat. It makes any mundane errand feel oh-so-fabulous! Don’t save your special pieces for the “right” occasion; make grocery shopping that occasion, and you’ll instantly elevate your ordinary!

AC: Sweatshirts—or swearshirts, as my store manager Shelby calls them. It’s that time of year again for sparkling profanity!

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