You Can Buy This Model's Dress on Instagram

On the first day of Fashion Week, BCBG Max Azria brought us a Californian-infused bohemian daydream (OMG, fashion adjective alert). The collection was inspired, in part, by a dyeing process used on old carpets. Romantic, no? But while the textile inspiration may have been old-fashioned, what happened after the runway was brand-new.

Ever the innovator, the masterminds behind BCBG decided to make certain pieces from their Spring/Summer 2015 collection immediately available to the rabid public, but they're putting a twist on it. They (along with sister brand Hervé Leger) are using Instagram to sell their clothes: as soon as the last BCBG model strode down the runway, thirteen pieces from the BCBG runway were available on Instagram for immediate purchase. This is the future!

But the future is complicated. You can't buy the clothes directly from BCBG's Instagram, because that would make too much sense. Instead, BCBG has chosen certain "online influencers" to post snaps of the runway show with unclickable links in the captions. Example:

Caption: Early morning arrival in #NYC for the @bcbgmaxazria show | Shop the runway with me! | Join LIKEtoKNOW.it, "like" this photo, and you can shop it too! #liketkit www.liketk.it/lyYo @liketkit

If you spot a BCBG piece that you'd like to get your hands on, you have to get an account with an app called LiketoKnow:It. Next, you stalk the online influencers like Shay Mitchell of Pretty Little Liars and find their photos of the BCBG Max Azria show; then, you "like" whatever photos have a LiketoKnow:It link in the caption. Upon liking the photo, you'll get an email with ANOTHER LINK which will allow you to buy that flowing bohemian dress that you're already kind of done with. Whew!

BCBG isn't the first brand to harness the power of Instagram for their own personal gain. Retailers like Target and Nordstrom have already made their own Instagram accounts shoppable, and so has fashion's Bible, Vogue. It's a fun idea, but the reality is still a bit too complicated for, well, one-click-obsessed Millennials. In theory, this is a very important new development in the world of materialism, all very space-age-y and instant gratification-y, and isn’t that what the new millennium is all about? And all that's required of you is a single Instagram "like!" Streamlined fashion perfection!

In practice, there are just too many steps. It's hard to locate the "online influencers" (a major strike one) and once you do, you still have to sign up for an entirely separate app outside of Instagram to even get started. It seems like BCBG is hoping to catch people who are in the must-have-it-NOW zone by making their collection immediately available, but signing up for new services can cool down even the most passionate shopper. When Instagram makes itself shoppable, that'll be a game-changer. For now, it's just kind of fun to look at the clothes and like the Instagram snaps, no purchase required.

Images: Getty Images