Whom do you turn to for inspiration when trying to decide your look for the day/week/season? In the interest of transparency, I find myself googling ‘Sarah Jessica Parker street style’ whether I’m thinking of eight different ways to style my sweater for 8 a.m. school drop-off, or wedding-wear inspo. I may dislike Sex And The City with a passion, and judge Carrie Bradshaw’s writing like you judge your sister’s romantic choices, but SJP’s position as a style icon is undeniable.

Plus, the woman can wear a pair of slouchy jeans like no other. On any given day, she can be sporting tattered sneakers, a comfy jumper and the most relaxed pair of jeans you’ve ever seen, and still look like a legend on legs.

So when she came up with her shoe line – a nod to Carrie Bradshaw’s obsession with $400 footwear and $7 dresses – women with a similar love for shoes were beyond thrilled. As a known shoe-lover, Sarah Jessica Parker has brought both her knowledge and passion together to create very sophisticated pieces that are still fun.

When any celebrity dips their toes into the wonderful and whacky world of fashion, we sit up and take notice. Will they bring their signature aesthetic to the label? Will we be able to access and channel some of their glamor and style? Will we really be getting high-end, luxe pieces at a price point that is accessible?

The answer varies celeb to celeb. We’ve seen Sonam Kapoor both on-and-off-screen, looking pretty amazing, be it on red carpets or walking out of a restaurant. Her label Rheson, in collaboration with stylist sister Rhea Kapoor brought the duo’s very stylish aesthetic to the table, with pieces that you could easily imagine yourself wearing. Though very practical and functional, Rheson designs were still cute and quirky, and most seem to have that beautiful ability to be dressed up or down.

We can’t talk about celeb x fashion without mentioning Kate Moss for Topshop. Not only was Kate Moss the face of ‘90s fashion, she also defined everything about ‘90s style – the way jeans were draped, the crop of a t-shirt, long, loose hair. Here’s a hack for you: dress like Kate Moss every day and you’ll look great.

Her Topshop collections were always sold-out, with people queuing up hours before stores would open to get their hands on some of that. And we would completely join that queue if we were there: the gorgeous yellow dress, a wispy floral hemline, some wild gold pieces; they are, if nothing else, as close as we are ever going to get to being dressed like a supermodel.

Now, in Pakistan, we’ve got a few entrepreneurial souls taking the route. Sister act Urwa and Mawra Hocane – though we know them more for their television work than their groundbreaking style – have a label called UxM. They have various lines under U and M, that range from very casual, like t-shirts, to fancier tops.

Though some of the items appear to be sold out, as far as the aesthetic goes, UxM gets a few heartfelt thumbs-downs.

The material of even the most basic cotton button-down looks kind of low-end in the pictures, and the tees and tops with graphic prints are badly designed. The jeans the sisters model are actually quite bad too, both in terms of the appearance of the fabric and the fit.

On a completely different level is Maya Pret, Maya Ali’s label. The outfits are all eastern, heavily embellished or cut in luxurious fabric. They may not be on the cutting edge of style, but they are pretty and will find their takers in the Pakistani market. It would be fun though if she brought her own relaxed style to her label though, and went for a more casual line with the formals and semi-formals.

Sadaf Kanwal recently announced her own fashion line, and while the Insta page still bears the ‘coming soon’ post at the time this goes to print, we’re actually hoping to see something cool from her. Yes, while Sadaf Kanwal may be an old-fashioned, demure belle of the castle at heart, she knows how to look great no matter what she’s doing. This is one of the cases where you will have to decide if separating the art from the artist is possible at all, but if she’s bringing even a sliver of her street-and-airport-and-travel-looks to her label, the decision will become that much harder.

However, if Sadaf Kanwal decides to bring her bahu of the nation vibe to the line, you’re allowed to call a hard pass.

As with any designer, celebrity, or retail collaboration in fashion, the idea is to trickle high fashion to the masses. You may not be able to afford a whole Sana Safinaz outfit, but you definitely can own one of their lawn suits. You might not have access to the funds to score a Prada purse, but you can smell like Prada for a fraction of the price. You may never be Carrie Bradshaw wearing amazing shoes all the time, but you can get really close with SJP footwear while paying three times less.

If your aim though is to just stick your name on some clothes someone else designed or procured as a side hustle, you’re doing yourself and your celebrity a disservice. Most of all, you will be doing your buyers a disservice by dishing out low-quality products at what could be lower prices, but bought with high expectations.

Instead, take a cue from the pros. Do some research, give your input, and if you must make some quick cash on the side, at least make it worth everyone’s while.