Roberto Cavalli Takes His Fashion House Off The Market
@ 10:48 pm July 9, 2008Filed under: Market Watch
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MILAN, Jul 9, 2008 / FW/ — Roberto Cavalli fans, rejoice! The Roberto Cavalli label is staying in the hands of its founder for at least another year. The Italian designer has taken his fashion house off the market citing the global financial crisis as the reason.
In an interview with Italian financial daily Il Sole 24, Roberto Cavalli was quoted saying that he was not selling for 800 – 900 million euros. Merrill Lynch had valued the company at 1.4 billion euros (about $2.19 billion with the current exchange rate.)
Now, the sale of his company might be off, but Roberto Cavalli’s trip to Vietnam to judge the 2008 Miss Universe Beauty Pageant is still on. The Miss Universe Organization announced July 7 that Donald Trump Jr., Roberto Cavalli; Nadine Velazquez, Jennifer Hawkins (Miss Universe 2004), Louis Licari, and John Nguyen will be the judges for the beauty contest.
As previously announced, Jerry Springer and Mel B will host the live telecast of the 57th Annual Miss Universe competition being held at the Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa, Vietnam. The competition will air live NBC (simulcast on Telemundo) from the Crown Convention Center in Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa, Vietnam on Sunday, July 13th at 9:00 p.m. ET (delayed PT).
Photo above: Roberto Cavalli on the runway, Milan Menswear Spring 2009 season, photo by Lisa Helm
Henry Cotton’s University: When Harvard and Oxford Enter the Realm of Fashion
@ 3:07 pm June 19, 2008Filed under: Visual Merchandising
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MILAN, Jun 19, 2008 / FW/ — Except for the time when Elle Woods visited the hallowed halls of Harvard in the now classic movie ‘Legally Blonde,’ the Ivy League university is not known for being fashionable. And the same goes with Oxford University in England.
Both educational institutions are known for their intellectual and scientific treatises; but that their ‘stuffy’ image will change soon, as both of them are partnering with Henry Cotton’s to create a collection of clothing that enhances the history and tradition of both universities and be seen not only as a places to get an education but also temples of culture.
With the collection entitled, ‘Hello to you, my future,’ the collection which is aptly named Henry Cotton’s University re-told and re-interpreted the distinctive history, human values and above all, the peculiar sense of belonging to those who have walked their hallowed halls and enabled these two institutions to change the course of history, forming leaders in the world of politics, economics, culture, science and sports.
Unveiling the debut collection at Pitti Uomo, Henry Cotton’s University is a historic partnership not just in fashion but also between Harvard and Oxford, which by virtue of their locations, the first one in the U.S. and the latter in the United Kingdom had seldom met.
Yet, for the first time, these two famous institutions from whose classrooms Kings, Saints, Heads of States and Nobel laureates were trained, are also shedding their ‘stuff images’ as they open their doors to young people around the world, albeit through a fashion item.
Henry Cotton’s University is distinctly divided into two subsets, one dedicated to Harvard, the other to Oxford. The two institutions, while accepting to live within this project unique and prestigious, but wanted to maintain, as their tradition, their unique identity.
So the colors will be the flagship crimson for Harvard Polo and blue for Oxford Polo, with their respective university emblems. While the Oxford Polo will display the armorial bearings of the 39 colleges that make up the university, Harvard Polo on the other hand will highlight the badges of its 14 schools and 12 campuses.
The collection will be available during Spring / Summer 2009; but beginning the Autumn 2009 / Winter 2010, the Henry Cotton University collection will be available in all locations where Henry Cotton’s is sold.
The project is not just about commerce. We are, after all talking about two highly respected universities. Royalties earned from this licensing agreement will be put into a scholarship program that will allow deserving students’ entry to their hallowed halls.
Ferré Milano branded store Opens in China
@ 10:24 am June 17, 2008Filed under: Boutiques
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MILAN, Jun 17, 2008 / FW / — On the eve of the Milan Menswear Spring 2009 season, Gianfranco Ferré announced the opening of a Ferré Milano boutique in China. Located at the prestigious Times Square of Wenzhou, the boutique is the second Ferré Milano concept store in the Asian subcontinent but the 18th retail location in the country.
With two more scheduled to open later this year in Guiyang and Zhengzhou, the Gianfranco Ferré retail network in Asia continues to expand. These latest openings confirm the success of Ferré Milano in the Far East, where it owns dedicated stores in Indonesia, Taiwan, and Malaya, and strengthen the international expansion of the brand, which is already available in such locations as Istanbul, Moscow, Warsaw, Dubai, Kuala Lumpur, and Jakarta.
The Gianfranco Ferré retail network in the Asian continent totals 31 branded stores in addition to the 32 Gianfranco Ferré boutiques and 19 of the young line GF Ferré, which includes boutiques in Hong Kong, Tokyo, Beijing, Macao, and Seoul, is expanded through the opening of new Ferré Milano branded stores.
The turnover of the Ferré Milano collection achieved a 45% growth in the past three seasons, with a 55% increase of the turnover of the boutiques alone, and 37% with unchanged perimeter.
The Ferré Milano collections are a natural development of the Gianfranco Ferré world, from apparel to accessories, aimed at men and women that strive for excellence, uniqueness, and contemporary elegance at a more affordable price compared to the main line.
The global project redefining and updating the brand’s identity includes the completion of the new Ferré Milano logo and the development of a dedicated store concept to be achieved through a rigorous design and soft colours, enhancing the collections.
The Relevance of Haute Couture
@ 7:16 pm June 8, 2008Filed under: Runway Shows
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DALLAS, Jun 8, 2008 / FW/ — In a BBC special, ‘The Secret World of Haute Couture,’ it was mentioned that there are only about 200 ‘paying members’ of this exclusive club of women who wear the most expensive dresses and gowns in the world.
At the turn of the century, it was estimated that there were about 1500 women in this very exclusive list, which was roughly 10% of the 15,000 strong during the early 1960s, the height of the popularity of haute couture in this century.
So, while the world’s population continues to expand, with the super rich numbers also increasing, why is there an attrition of haute couture clients?
For the past five years, as a journalist, I have been trying to find the answer to this question. Pessimists have announced that haute couture is dead; even the most ardent supporters of the craft have acceded.
Yet, twice a year, the press, together with the 200 haute couture ‘club members’ trek to Paris to see the latest collections. So, how can haute couture be dead?
To the eternal optimist in me, I would say that it is alive and well. The shows are exciting and the press coverage has expanded, though not in the traditional media of television and print, but on the internet. In short, it is the traditional media that is dropping haute couture for one reason alone, less audience, which means less advertising dollars spent by advertisers.
But, the new media does not have to worry about ‘rate cards’ so much. They just want to bring news and at times, just provide an independent point of view. And of course, with the advent of YouTube and MySpace, an entirely new playing field arose. Add the blogs and tweeter, news travel at internet speed.
In the beginning, the Internet in general was suspect. It was accused of being the reason that ‘fast retailing exist.’ Yet, an objective view of the situation revealed that ‘copying’ and ‘fakes’ existed long before the internet existed. Times change and haute couture finally realized that the Internet is not the villain here; that the villains existed simply because every civilizations have ‘dregs of society.’
Surprisingly, the Internet was the medium that introduced haute couture to the young people, the one who made them interested to a way of dressing that some would call ‘arcane’. Because truly, in how many places could one wear a $100,000 dress without people noticing that you are only wearing one dress?
Yet, unknown to many, due to the very secretive world of haute couture and the women members shunning publicity, these women have a wardrobe full of haute couture dresses, the same way… ahem… a ‘normal woman’ would have a closetful of clothes, albeit bought at normal prices.
So, is haute couture relevant? To these 200 women — yes! To the rest of the world, though they might not understand it yet, the craftsmanship and artisanship that goes with haute couture should not be lost. If we lose them, it will be equivalent to losing an oral history of a civilization. Whether it is politically correct or not, the tradition of haute couture is part of world history that should continue simply because if we lose it, we lose part of the richness of our heritage.
The Secret World of Haute Couture Part 1
The Secret World of Haute Couture Part 2
The Secret World of Haute Couture Part 3
The Secret World of Haute Couture Part 4
The Secret World of Haute Couture Part 5
The Secret World of Haute Couture Part 6
Store Windows in Paris: Chanel
@ 12:20 am May 20, 2008Filed under: Store Windows, Visual Merchandising
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PARIS, May 20, 2008 / FW/ — Stars and huge bows were used as the main props and decoration for these Chanel store windows at Avenue Montaigne last January. Realistic mannequins were used, thus giving the store window that extra feeling of beauty.
Though obviously many window dressers choose to use different types of mannequins, using the realistic variety is becoming more rare every year. Because realistic mannequins are always more expensive than the other types, it is a big investment for the store.
Of course, this is Chanel we are talking about. Still, it is good to mention that using realistic mannequins gives the store window TLC.
click on image to see bigger photo
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