CONFIRMED: MIUCCIA PRADA RULES THE FASHION INDUSTRY RIGHT NOW

The latest installment of the Lyst Index — which ranks the most sought-after fashion brands and products each quarter — affirms what we in the industry have known for a long time: that Miuccia Prada knows best.

In Q1 of 2023, Prada holds the crown as the world's hottest brand, according to Lyst, for a second consecutive quarter. Searches for its products increased by 22% during this period, with Prada sunglasses seeing the most dramatic category increase of 56%. Moving up two spot to second place comes sister brand Miu Miu, scoring its highest ranking since the Lyst Index began. (Per Lyst, interest in Miu Miu was boosted by its hit pocket bag, its second collaboration with New Balance and a buzzy Paris Fashion Week showing featuring Zaya Wade and Emma Corrin.)

With both her brands cracking the top five of Lyst's quarterly ranking, Mrs. Prada is clearly doing something right.

In the last Lyst Index, for Q4 of 2022, Prada saw a 37% rise in searches. Miu Miu's steadily gone up in the hottest brands ranking in recent quarters, called out for the virality of its ballet flats and mini skirts.

Versace secures the title of the fastest-rising brand of Q1, climbing seven spots up to become the eighth-hottest brand. Donatella deserves some credit here — more specifically, her decision to stage the brand's Fall 2023 show in Los Angeles on Oscars weekend, which created some big celebrity social media moments (39.8 million views on TikTok, per Lyst) and led searches for the brand to increase by 44% in the days following.

Meanwhile, Balenciaga continues to drop, now slipping seven places to number 18, falling out of the top 10 for the second time since the Lyst Index launched five years ago.

We do have some newcomers to the hottest brand ranking this quarter: Skims steps into 17th place (supported by a 30% increase in searches on Lyst for its sculpt bodysuit, this quarter's third-hottest product), while J.W. Anderson rounds out the top 20, making Jonathan Anderson the third creative director to lead two of Lyst Index's hottest brands in the same quarter (the other being Loewe).

Lyst has also started highlighting "breakout brands," which are the fastest-growing labels on its platform outside of these rankings. For Q1 of 2023, it called out Khaite (which enjoyed many major moments, including winning a CFDA Award, opening its first retail store and big celebrity placements), Magda Butrym (given that its floral mini dress has been worn by Hailey Bieber, Rihanna and Sydney Sweeney, among others) and finally Ann Demeulemeester (whose new creative director Ludovic de Saint Sernin made a splashy debut in March).

As for the hottest individual products of Q1, the Lyst Index named Uniqlo's round mini shoulder bag number one, after it went viral on TikTok generating over 59 million views. It's the most affordable product to ever be featured on the Lyst Index, coming in at under $20. The rest of the list consists of a mix of casual and high-fashion options, including the Diesel denim maxi skirt coming at number five (could this be the end of the mini?), Mschf's big red boots (surprise, surprise) and Bottega Veneta's drop earrings (a "quiet luxury" moment).