POPSUGAR: Why were you excited to partner with T.J.Maxx at this point in your career?
Law Roach: The conversation [with T.J.Maxx] had been happening for a while, but with my former job, I was so busy, so everything else that I wanted to do had been on the back burner. But then everything aligned with me leaving this really niche, high-fashion career to meet in the middle with T.J.Maxx, a pillar in the industry to provide luxury but without luxury prices. I always wanted my career to be tangible and for the people, and what brand is more for the people than T.J.Maxx?
PS: What is special to you about the T.J.Maxx Runway program?
"If people are saying they are inspired by me and aspire to do things I do, then it doesn't need to be this thing on a pedestal — it needs to be this thing that's in front of you."
LR: It's an incredible in-store experience where people can go directly to look at designer pieces that were on the runway. I love to tell this story — and the T.J.Maxx didn't even know it — but years before my career began to blossom, I bought a designer sweater at a New York location with my best friend, and we were just so proud. We thought we were so cool and we looked so fly. I will never forget that, because what T.J.Maxx did was give me the opportunity to have a little bit of fashion as a college student who couldn't break the bank. And when I put it on, I was transformed into something else. The right outfit can make you really confident — and I think that's what T.J.Maxx considered when launching the Runway program — the mentality of making it accessible. Confidence is the most beautiful thing that anybody can put on.
PS: If you could go back and change your career path, would you have seized this opportunity before you got into styling, or on a different timeline?
LR: I think I would do everything exactly the way I did it, because it's part of who I am. It will be part of my legacy, and I don't regret anything. I think every experience is valuable and it should be appreciated, whether it's good or bad. My having the opportunity to do this partnership means a lot to me, because I get to be in a room with you and other journalists, and we get to touch each other and talk, and be even more of a community.
