ELOQUII Launches Collaboration with Designer and The Cultivate Award’s Inaugural Winner, Melissa Mercedes

The Melissa Mercedes x ELOQUII collection will be the brand's first designer apparel collaboration to offer sizes 30 & 32

ELOQUII, the ultimate fashion destination for sizes 14-28, today announces a collection with designer Melissa Mercedes available exclusively at ELOQUII.com. This comes on the heels of Melissa’s win at the inaugural The Cultivate Award, an initiative that supports and nurtures the next generation of BIPOC emerging designers in the plus-size fashion community, presented by The Curvy Fashionista with ELOQUII as founding sponsor.

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Designer Melissa Mercedes (left) and model in Melissa Mercedes x ELOQUII Collection (Photo: Business Wire)

Melissa is Afro-Latina and a self-taught emerging designer from Los Angeles with a passion to create a more inclusive fashion world. After being an invited attendee to the 2016 Latin Grammys, she designed her own dress when she couldn't find adequate plus-size offerings; the same dress ended up on the cover of People en Español worn by acclaimed singer and actress, Chiquis Rivera. She has designed for notable figures, including Laverne Cox (actress and LGBTQ+ advocate), Lauren Ash (actress and comedian) and Nina Parker (E! News host).

The Melissa Mercedes x ELOQUII collection, which features 16 pieces ranging from $59 to $149, merges the unapologetic sexiness of the Melissa Mercedes brand with the feminine polish of ELOQUII. Alongside ELOQUII’s Creative Director Yesenia Torres, Melissa created the collection to be the ultimate assortment for day to night party dressing. Inspired by Melissa’s mother’s favorite flower, the hero print is a beautiful pattern with a feminine touch of soft greens, yellows and pinks showcased in sophisticated yet sensual silhouettes. With a goal to have something for everyone, the collection also features two suit sets in bold prints, flowy dresses with trendy cut-out details and a sequin dress.

“When I was designing this collection with ELOQUII, it was important to create something that would make customers feel empowered and confident as they move throughout the world,” said Melissa Mercedes. “I put a lot of my own personality into this collaboration, drawing from inspiration my own mother has given me with our hero print. Each piece of clothing from this collection has a versatility of textures and prints that can move from brunch to a night out. It was a dream come true to be able to work with ELOQUII on bringing this collection to life.”

As the ultimate fashion destination starting at size 14, ELOQUII is also announcing that Melissa Mercedes x ELOQUII will be the brand’s first designer apparel collaboration to offer sizes 30 and 32. Based on customer feedback and both ELOQUII and Melissa's shared passion to make elevated plus-sized fashion accessible to more customers, every style in this apparel collaboration is offered in sizes 14-32.

“Combining our expertise in quality and fit, and Melissa’s creativity and fresh perspective in fashion design, we created an amazing collection that can be enjoyed by both the ELOQUII and Melissa Mercedes customers,” said Yesenia Torres, Creative Director at ELOQUII. “We know and love that our customers want fashion to help express themselves, and this collection delivers a range of trend-driven styles with impeccable fit and attention to detail that you expect from ELOQUII. We couldn’t be more thrilled to have Melissa’s collection as our first designer apparel collaboration with more sizing options.”

Melissa will be making a special appearance during The Cultivate Award Year II’s virtual finale show to share her experience of working with ELOQUII during her year-long mentorship with the brand. The Cultivate Award was founded by Marie Denee of The Curvy Fashionista, a Black-owned media platform. For years, Marie has been shepherding the movement toward featuring and collaborating with emerging BIPOC designers. She believes diverse designers have been the creative force that has ushered plus-size fashion to where it is today.

The selected designer will win a $10,000 grant, a one-year professional mentorship program and the opportunity to create a capsule collection to be produced and sold by ELOQUII in 2023. The virtual finale show will take place via Facebook Live on Saturday, April 23 at 6 p.m. EDT.

The Melissa Mercedes x ELOQUII collection is available for purchase exclusively at ELOQUII.com/MelissaMercedes.

ABOUT ELOQUII

ELOQUII is the ultimate fashion destination for sizes 14-28. The pioneering e-commerce destination debuts new, trend-leading collections multiple times a month and features merchandise categories including apparel, swim, wide width footwear and accessories. Their in-house design teams are obsessed with fit, and use proprietary data as well as customer feedback to ensure every single style is perfectly sized. ELOQUII offers customers access to unique content through its Style & Substance platform and has created an online community through its #XOQ hashtag, which allows customers to tag themselves via Instagram. In 2020, ELOQUII launched ELOQUII Unlimited, a clothing rental service giving customers access to a rotating dream closet, and debuted ELOQUII Elements, a new brand of perfectly priced everyday fashion sold exclusively at ELOQUII.com, Walmart.com and select Walmart stores. Launching in Summer 2022, Bridal by ELOQUII is the ultimate wedding wardrobe with styles for the bride’s every wedding event. ELOQUII believes in the ability to create positive change through the transformative power of fashion. To join the community, please go to www.eloquii.com and @eloquii.

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