Fancy that Stetson cowboy hat Oprah wore during her Texas state-fair adventure with BFF Gayle King? Or maybe you lusted after her Dolce & Gabbana heels from the 20th season premiere episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show.
They can be yours, via "Oprah's Cleanout on eBay." In partnership with the online site, Oprah Winfrey is auctioning off outfits worn during her iconic talk show, donating all of the proceeds to the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls (OWLA).
Although her show ended in 2011, Winfrey’s Chicago Harpo Studios will soon to be demolished, “and she wanted to do something incredible with all of the fashion items and accessories that have landed in her closets there over the years,” Vincent Payen,
Shoppers can bid on over 250 of Winfrey’s brand new and gently worn clothing, shoes, bags and decorative accessories via auctions starting at 99 cents on eBay.com, which boasts 162 million active buyers.
Oprah Winfrey's Dolce & Gabanna heels are among the 250-plus items for sale on eBay. All proceeds go... [+]
The auction is a chance to “buy a piece of television history," while providing educational opportunities for academically gifted girls from disadvantaged backgrounds, Adam Glassman, creative director of Winfrey’s O magazine, told Forbes. Glassman helped Winfrey pick what to auction off.
‘Still A Huge Fan Base’
The target audience for the auction is Winfrey’s still “huge” fan base — from the women who watched her daily show to their children, or, “Oprah babies,” Glassman said, as well as regular eBay shoppers looking for some sharp duds.
The auction theme coincides with the spring issue O, which is all about “decluttering, getting ready for spring, and getting rid of excess baggage.
It also signals the last vestige of Winfrey’s life in Chicago. “She really started to evaluate how she lives now,” Glassman said. And the bright, telegenic clothes Winfrey wore on the show no longer suit her lifestyle. “Now that she’s in California, wears a neutral palette, and way more comfortable clothes, she said, ‘let’s pay in forward.’”
The auction marks Winfrey’s second closet-clean out event with eBay. But while that earlier 2010 promotion traded in many of the looks Winfrey donned on the show in the 80’s, “like doorknocker earrings and jackets that stepped out of the “Dynasty” show era, this time around, “everything is current, classic and beautiful,” he said.
While there’s nothing new about the concept of spring-cleaning, the nation is having a “less is more” moment. People are spending more on experiences these days than on things, just as the book, “The Life Changing Magic Of Tidying Up,” became a best seller with its simple message to eliminate what does not spark joy.
When trying on a piece of clothing, Oprah always asks: “Does it make me feel alive and beautiful?” Glassman said. If not, she doesn’t wear it.
Indeed, Oprah was ahead of the curve in preaching the decluttering-to-outer-and-inner peace gospel, having devoted many shows to the topic over the years, Glassman said. As we now “live in a time where we’re evaluating every purchase we make,” that message has gone mainstream.
But what couldn’t Winfrey part with when mulling what to sell on eBay? “A great Ralph Lauren leather skirt,” Glassman said. “She held on to that.”
