Shop Talk with Emma Zack

The owner of Berriez, the plus-sized vintage fashion mecca, chats styling go-tos and the #1 rule for finding vintage

Oct 27, 2024

Welcome to Shop Talk, a monthly series where I chat vintage, shopping, and style with cool and exciting people who are making waves in their respective fields.

Today’s subject is Emma Zack, the founder of Berriez, the most prominent vintage destination for plus-sized and curvy people! A dream! Founded in 2018, Berriez and Emma have had global recognition and has been featured in The New York Times, Nylon, The Today Show, Teen Vogue, and so many more. Emma also works as a stylist and styles with such tenderness, love, and admiration for her models that I’ve saved many a shoot of hers to check in on when I need a jolt of inspiration.

I first met Emma when I was working at Object Limited and she was starting Berriez and we bopped up and down Manhattan selling vintage at every pop-up we could! Everything you assume of her is true: she’s as cool, as deeply kind, as funny, and as down-to-Earth as she seems. With her stylist’s eye, and her coterie of equally-talented designer and artist friends, she’s built a style, a wardrobe, and a brand that is so celebratory and revelatory, that it can take something as simple as a button down and expand it to every possible iteration your imagination could conjure. In short: I’m a huge fan. Follow Emma on IG here, Berriez here, and obviously get some shopping done here!

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1. Name // Location // Occupation

Emma Zack // Brooklyn // Founder + CEO of Berriez, Wardrobe Stylist

2. Three personal closet staples.

Vintage baggy denim (I like Levi's 550s/560s)
Fyoocher corset (which I bought at Berriez of course)
Vintage 'oversized' black blazer

3. What can't you stop wearing right now?

This vintage 'oversized' rugby shirt that I bought on eBay (my favorite store).

4. When you go sourcing, do you have a vision board/game plan in mind?

Yes! I have a "sourcing guide" that myself and the folks who source for me follow. In the guide, I provide specific examples of what I'm looking for and what to avoid (i.e., grandma florals, straight cuts, polyester). Since plus-size vintage is hard to find, I can't be too picky, but I rarely make exceptions - I know what I want, and I know what I don't want. Lately I've been having more fun sourcing menswear because it's less picked over and the sizing is more generous.

5. What's on your to-find list?

Men's button downs size 18 and up (for our collaborations with Femlord, Nena Hansen, and Sloppy Seconds), nylon slips (for our ongoing collaboration with Meadow Land), sexy going out tops, mesh/lace/silk/linen, bias cut dresses, Levi's 550s, pieces over size 3X (they're SO hard to find), pleated skirts, leather jackets size XL and up, and the list goes on!

6. Best thrift score and/or most haunting vintage left behind?

One of my best thrift finds was this original signed art print, "Chocolate, What Chocolate?" by Sarah Jane Sikora. I scored it at a Goodwill in Hilton Head, South Carolina while on vacation with my family. The print shows a thin man giving a curvy woman chocolate in bed with a cat on her lap – personally very relatable. The print is now hanging in my living room!

7. You're such an incredible stylist - what's your styling go-to when you're feeling uninspired or in a rut?

Truthfully, I was in a rut for most of this year (and still kind of am). I find myself gravitating towards my favorite pieces or pieces I feel comfortable styling. I've definitely been taking less risks and leaning on what I feel good in. Occasionally I look at other stylish people's Instagrams for inspiration. I always start with the piece I want to wear and then build my outfit around that piece, which makes the process easier.

8. One of the many things I love about Berriez is that if you can't find it, you make it. Do you have a favorite piece from one of your collabs?

What a hard question! I love all of them equally. I love the Berriez collaborations because it allows me the chance to work with so many incredible artists and designers. The best selling collaborations are the ones with Femlord, Shop Journal, and Meadow Land.

(ed. note: If you need a great gift idea for a vintage-lover, Emma collected vintage clothing tags for months for this Le Puzz puzzle!)

9. What's your best shopping advice for plus size people looking to integrate more vintage/secondhand into their wardrobes?

Knowing your measurements is KEY. Don't look at the numbers on the size tags (a vintage size 20 is not a modern day size 20)! Remember: it's not you -- it's the clothes (vintage plus-size clothing fits very differently than modern day plus-size clothing).

10. Favorite vintage stores in general?

For plus size vintage: Berriez (duh!), Luvsick Plus, Proud Mary, Shop Fatties

For vintage home decor: Dobbin Street Co-op, Odd Eye NYC, eBay

For straight size vintage: I Am That, St. Evens