By MARLEY LIEN-GONZALEZ
Vastino Ventures, a consulting firm specializing in fashion, retail, and production, offers comprehensive services for individuals and businesses to support innovation and design from whiteboard concepts all the way to the consumer’s hands–and everywhere in between.
Entrepreneur Arianna Vastino is a pioneer in performance wear and the founder of equestrian lifestyle brand Le Fash. Her recently celebrated exit from the company after leading for 15 years marks an exciting transition to full-time consulting. Vastino’s decades of experience and vast resources facilitate an experience where clients can benefit from advanced quality and maximum efficiency while remaining economically conscious.
With an established base in New York City, NY, Vastino Ventures also serves the winter equestrian hub of Wellington, FL, where Vastino will work on location through March 2026 to offer hybrid, readily available in-person and virtual services to equestrian brands during the active season.
“My aim within the fashion market is to offer a helping hand,” says Vastino. “In the early stages of running my business, I made many mistakes and never felt that there were people that I could go to and ask for advice from. Now, when people come to me with an idea but no direction on how to design clothes, source materials, or find facilities, I not only advise them, I’m with them every step of the way.”
The full suite of services available at Vastino Ventures starts with a free introductory consultation and includes fully domestic design and production, visual retail staging, advertising, marketing and brand management, as well as website design. That’s not where the support ends, though; Vastino says, “Part of my responsibility to clients is giving them peace of mind. I know how stressful it is being an entrepreneur and running a business–the sleepless nights, the waking up worried about something–and if I can take that away from other people, to have them know everything will be handled for them by someone who has done this for over 15 years, it gives them the focus to make their brand excel, which is really what I’m trying to achieve.”
Vastino’s experience ranges from boutique companies and retail stores, such as her own Le Fash, to some of the fashion industry’s largest high-end labels. She has worked as a head visual merchandise manager for Theory and contemporary brand stylist for Bergdorf Goodman as well as a stylist for Vogue, Victoria’s Secret, and other notable brands.
“I seek more elevation in terms of quality,” she says, “Which doesn’t mean more expensive, but being methodical about where to save money. Your product needs to have a flow. It needs to have a story.” Vastino Ventures brings those elements to its clients, not only in terms of design, but also in merchandise and sales, helping businesses reach a high procedural standard to create that elevation.
From brand events, brick-and-mortar stores, online storefronts, photoshoot styling, and ad campaigns, Vastino’s expert eye ensures the overall picture conveys the perfect narrative. “If something doesn’t look right on a model in a photo, consumers are thinking, then what will it look like on me?” She adds, “I help business owners constantly create a brand awareness that things are elevated, details are thought about. Every t is crossed, every i is dotted.”
Vastino’s span of knowledge between fashion and what it means to be an equestrian puts her in a unique position to understand all the elements involved in producing fashionable yet functional style. She analyzes product design and composition from pre-production to ensure a successful launch, and also after production, if a product is not meeting its sales target.
The encompassing role Vastino takes on as a consultant in the ever-evolving landscape of the fashion industry has as much to do with the future of her clients’ brands as it does with the present. Especially with the rapid rise of emerging equestrian fashion brands, Vastino says, “You have to be one step ahead and think a little outside the box.”
When companies rush to produce carbon copies of other brands’ products, quality suffers, innovation stalls, the economy suffers, and consumers are left with limited selection. “I always tell my clients, let’s look a little further and see how we can be set apart from the market,” says Vastino. And if you’re not a creative person, but you have an idea and want to create products, Vastino Ventures provides the rest of the pieces to bring your vision to life effectively and authentically.
As a lifelong equestrian who not only campaigned her clothing brand on the equine circuits but also actively competes on them, Vastino’s overarching goal is to promote kindness and positive experiences in the fashion and horse industries. “We’re not curing cancer, we’re making clothes, and this is supposed to be fun,” she says. “With Le Fash, I wanted to uplift people and make them feel better and give them confidence. Now, I help others create that through their own brands.”
With Vastino Ventures consultancy, Vastino fosters an environment suitable for individuals of any age, experience, or acumen, from entry-level to expert, where they can feel empowered to release products that deliver a positive impact on the community. All with the comfort and security of being backed by a firm with the skills and real-world strategy to put your best business forward.
Get in Contact
Visit the Vastino Ventures website here
Email Arianna Vastino at: ariannavastino@gmail.com
Find Vastino Ventures on Instagram here
