Cuyana co-founder Karla Gallardo on how the pandemic strengthened the brand's mission statement

In Karla Gallardo's estimation, the world got tired of fast fashion just as the direct-to-consumer model was being proven out.

"By 2010 there was fatigue, there was dissatisfaction with the quality," Galardo said on the Modern Retail Podcast. "A lot of of news was coming out in terms of the conditions of the factories where these products were made. There was an opportunity for something better right after that bubble burst."

Gallardo co-founded Cuyana with Shilpa Shah in 2011. The idea was to do to fashion what Warby Parker did to glasses "The choice was really obvious back then. It was 'well, this worked in the frames vertical, can we can we do this on the accessories and apparel side?"

But, over the years, the program has changed a great deal -- even more so as a result of the coronavirus.