courtesy of Target

Target’s GO International campaign featuring capsule collections by some of the fashion industry’s best and brightest is making household names out of designers while delivering high fashion (at low cost) to the masses. In some ways, the campaign is evolving into a who’s-the-next-cool-kid spotlight among industry folk; take for example the recent collection full of whimsy by Berkeley-native Erin Fetherston. Next up? Jovovich-Hawk for spring, followed by Rogan Gregory, winner of the Vogue/CFDA Fashion Fund Award for 2008.

I’ve adored this concept from its inception, but my biggest gripe has been how difficult it’s been to get my hands on pieces before they sell out locally. If you’re not at the stores within at most a couple days of the release, the line will have all but disappeared. Fast fashion, indeed! Of course you can shop online, but pieces from the collections can be hit or miss, so I prefer to see actual product. Yesterday, I made my way south beyond the usual Colma and Daly City Targets— where SF’ers tend to shop— to hunt down the newly launched Loeffler Randall accessories designed by Jessie Randall. At the San Mateo Target, I happily scored a comfortable pair of brown patent rosette ballet flats ($30), a chain handle clutch that can go from day to night also in brown patent ($25), and a vintage-looking linen metallic rosette clutch ($20) that looks quite expensive. Another insider tip: the Target in Albany also tends to fully stock the GO collections.