Fashion News Alert: Kerry Washington’s New Gig, NYFW Revamp, Prada’s Profits Fall, Racial Issues at Alexander McQueen, and Joseph Abboud Comes Back to NYFW

December 16, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Givenchy spring 2016 image courtesy of architecturaldigest.com

Givenchy spring 2016 image courtesy of architecturaldigest.com

Amid all the complaints about the state of NYFW: The Shows (NYFWS), the CFDA is making a serious attempt to possibly revamp NYFW with the help of The Boston Consulting Group (BCG). BCG has been employed to conduct a study that looks at changes that need to happen to NYFWS and save it from all the dross and its possible demise.

“Designers, retailers and editors have been questioning the relevance of fashion week in its current format for some time,” said Steven Kolb, President and CEO of the CFDA in a fashionmag.com article. “Out of this industry need came our decision to hire Boston Consulting Group to create an in-depth analysis and roadmap for the future of fashion shows.”

Revamping a broken system is a great sentiment, but at closer examination this revamp may hinge on repositioning this industry institution’s—NYFWS—ability to open up the shows to consumers and charge admission to the public.  And the BCG may be the company that shows the potential profit margin behind this revamp.

Hmm, revamp indeed!!

Kerry Washington/OPI image courtesy of Twitter

Kerry Washington/OPI image courtesy of Twitter

Kerry Washington expands beyond “Scandal”

If being the star of “Scandal” is not enough, Kerry Washington has been pegged as OPI’s first creative ambassador. OPI co-founder, Suzi Weiss_Fischmann, have been working together since April 2015 to develop Washington’s role with the cosmetic brand.

Kerry Washington will assist Weiss-Fischman in co-curating all the new shade names and nail lacquer shades.  OPI, a division of Coty, is sold in over 100 countries.

Image courtesy of nifty.fashion

Image courtesy of nifty.fashion

Bigotry at McQueen store

Two employees of Alexander McQueen have sued to British brand and its holding company, Keurig, for racial discrimination.

According to several news sources, Christopher Policard and Duane Davis, who worked at the Alexander McQueen store on Madison Avenue claim that the company “systematically rejects African-American job applicants who seek positions on the sales floor where they can be seen by customers or positions where they might have authority over white employees, relegating the few African-Americans who are hired to menial positions behind the scenes.” Policard and Davis also contend that they have been falsely accused of theft by management and searched in front of staff and consumers, while white employees accused of theft are always searched in private after store hours.

A McQueen representative told Fashionista, “We (Alexander McQueen and Kering) take these allegations very seriously and are investigating, however, we don’t comment on current litigations.” The British brand has previously had two other racial discrimination lawsuits.

Prada Resort 2015 image courtesy of fashiongonerogue.com

Prada Resort 2015 image courtesy of fashiongonerogue.com

Hard times for Prada

On Tuesday, Prada reported a 37% decline in profits for the third quarter. The fall in profits has been attributed to fewer sales in the Asian luxury markets and Asian consumers looking for new shopping destinations due to the drop in the Chinese yuan. “The devaluation of the renminbi recorded between August and September had a negative impact on the purchases made by the Chinese travellers,” Prada said in a statement published in fashionmag.com.

Net income fell to 46.48 million euros ($51.12 million) for the three months ended Oct. 31, from 74.47 millioKen euros a year earlier, and 129.8 million euros in the second-quarter. That was lower than an analyst forecast of 77.83 million euros, according to Thomson Reuters SmartEstimate. Net revenue fell 5.3 percent, while sales of higher-margin leather goods dropped 11.6 percent.

abboud12Abboud returns

Joseph Abboud is returning to New York Fashion Week. Abboud is expected to show his men’s fall 2016 collection during New York Fashion: Men’s (NYFWM) as the opening show. The last time Abboud had a full runway show during NYFW was 15 years ago.

“With the continuous growth and focus in the US of the men’s market, I feel that this is the ideal moment to return to the runway during New York Fashion Week: Men’s. The CFDA has created this herculean momentum around the American menswear industry and I am happy to be involved in this ever-growing and evolving week of men’s fashion,” expressed Abboud.

For NYFWM, Abboud is collaborating with 6 other brands that manufacture and produce in the United States: bags by Rawlings, hats by Albertus Swanepoel, ties by Barbara Blank, watches by Kobold, shearling outwear by Aston Leathers and footwear by Allen Edmonds. Joseph Abboud launched his brand in 1987.

—William S. Gooch

Weekend Fashion News Alert: Alexander McQueen Returns to London Fashion Week, Jared Leto’s Gucci Gig, and Kitson Bites the Dust

December 12, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Image courtesy of justjared.com

Image courtesy of justjared.com

Move over Chris Evans, there is a new Gucci man in town!! On Friday it was announced that Jared Leto has been pegged as the new face of Gucci’s Guilty fragrance.

This is not the first time that Leto has been the face of a fragrance campaign. Previously, Leto was the face of Hugo Boss’ Red fragrance campaign. Leto replaces “Captain America’s” Chris Evans as the face of Guilty.

Leto also appears to be a Snapchat pro. Over the next three days, Leto will take Gucci Snapchat followers behind the scenes of the campaign shoot in Venice.

Image courtesy of fashionisers.com

Image courtesy of fashionisers.com

McQueen’s return

London Fashion Week’s fall 2016 collections will have a few highlights and surprises. The return of Alexander McQueen to lineup of designers is one of the most anticipated highlights.

Typically, Alexander McQueen in Paris; however, it was recently announced that the iconic British label will return to London in February for just one single season. Other additions for the upcoming season are Burberry and shoe designer Charlotte Olympia.

London Fashion Week runs from February 19–23.

Image courtesy of momangeles.com

Image courtesy of momangeles.com

Sayonara Kitson

Los Angeles–based fashion boutique chain, Kitson, announced on Thursday that it will close all of its 17 stores in Nevada, Oregon, and California, as well as its online retail site. Kitson came to prominence in the early 2000s because of its celebrity clientele that included Paris Hilton, Kim Kardashian, Jennifer Love Hewitt, and reality TV personalities from “The Hills.”

In recent years as some of its celebrity clientele went out of vogue and the country’s jobless recovery, Kitson started falling on hard times. In 2013 Kitson received a $15 million credit line from Salus Capital Partners to refinance its debts, and according to the Wall Street Journal this summer, Spencer Spirit Holdings Inc. agreed to extend a loan to Kitson to pay down the loan to Salus.

According to a fashionmag.com article, Kitson has been advertising a 30% to 50% sale on its online retail site of product in all of its retail stores.

—William S. Gooch

Fashion News Alert: Patricia Fields Shutters, Wynona Ryder Teams up with Marc Jacobs, Manolo Blahnik Sued, and Trump Dumped

December 9, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Image courtesy of neomagazine.com

Image courtesy of neomagazine.com

After 50 years of cutting edge, funky fashion, Patricia Fields is shutting down her New York City store.  “I know that my clients are going to be sad, because they come in and tell me that there’s no store like this in the world,” the 74-year-old fashion icon told the Daily News. “But I’ve gotta watch out for my health and myself.”

Patricia Fields became a household name as wardrobe stylist for the “Sex in the City” series and movies by the same name, introducing Oscar de la Renta and Manolo Blahnik to millions of TV viewers. Her store, now located in the Bowery between Houston and Bleecker Streets, since 1971 has been fashion hotbed for celebrities from Debbie Harry, Madonna, and a young Beyoncé to Avril Lavigne, Kelly Osborne, and recently, Caitlyn Jenner, and not to mention the hoards of party revelers who have always flocked to her store.

I’ve enjoyed the game … but I’m getting tired, because the store] has grown to such a size,” she said. “I want to open my social life back up, and go to the gym for a swim every day. I can’t do normal things anymore, and I’m feeling it.”

The store and website will shut down sometime in April 2016. Pat Fields currently styles Sutton Foster and Hilary Duff on TV Land’s “Younger.”

Image courtesy of lightsonline.com

Image courtesy of lightsonline.com

Mr. Big Mouth

Loose lips sink ships and in Donald Trump’s case that means being dumped by a major department store chain in the Middle East. Donald Trump makes most of his money by licensing out his name for wide range of goods and products, not from real estate property, as most consumers would assume.

The sale of “Trump Home” which includes flashy mirrors, lamps, and jewelry boxes will be halted in the major department store chain. “Trump Home” products, like a “table lamp in antique brass with crystal drops” and a decorative box with a “brilliant plume of a peacock… redecorated in gold finish for an exclusive look”, have been on sale at Lifestyle department stores in the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, as reported in fashionmag.com.

“In light of the recent statements made by the presidential candidate in the U.S. media, we have suspended sale of all products from the Trump Home décor range,” CEO Sachin Mundhwa said in an emailed statement. Landmark, one of the region’s biggest retail groups with 190 stores in the Middle East, Africa, and Pakistan, said it was pulling all Trump merchandise off its shelves

Image courtesy of Instagram

Image courtesy of Instagram

Wynona and Marc

Marc Jacobs continues his penchant for using celebrities as the face of his brands. For fall 2015 Jacobs used Cher and Willow Smith, and now for his beauty brand, Jacobs has tapped Wynona Ryder. This is not Wynona’s first time at the Jacobs’ rodeo; Wynona has fronted an eyewear campaign for Jacobs.

Earlier in the week Marc Jacobs released an early image of Ryder for his spring 2016 beauty brand on Instagram.  “The force of the surreal calm, and painstaking fetishistic polish of this film and its heroine are truly ‘on fleek” and continues to inspire me to date,” he wrote. “No one I know could exude the adjectives I’ve listed as perfectly as Winona does… She does not model the look she gets into the role- and exudes it!”

Lebanese-born French stage actress Delphine Seyrig was the inspiration for the spring 2016 line. Make-up is by Diane Kendal, photos by David Sims.

Image courtesy of condenast.uk

Image courtesy of condenast.uk

A snaky lawsuit

A Brooklyn Federal Court has taken on a lawsuit against famed footwear designer Manolo Blahnik. Blahnik is accused in the lawsuit of importing nearly 300 pairs of shoes made from the skin of a rare species of snake.

The U.S. Customs” officers noticed two years ago that an import of Manolo Blahnik shoes’ bill of lading didn’t detail where the shoes were produced and what type of skins were used. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service seized the shoes that were made of skin from the dog-faced water snake. The dog-faced water snake is native to Southeast Asia and has been on the endangered wildlife list since 1973.

A Blahnik representative said that they were investigating the matter.

—William S. Gooch

Weekend Fashion News Alert: Coco Rocha’s Launches RTW Collection, Lanvin/Elbaz Debacle Goes to French Court, and Model Exposure

December 6, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Image courtesy of fashionweekdaily.com

Image courtesy of fashionweekdaily.com

There have been many firsts for Coco Rocha this year. First, but foremost, the birth of her first child, then her collaboration with Botkier, and now the supermodel is launching her first ready-to-wear collection.

Rocha’s new label, Co + Co with her husband James Conran has been created through Paragon Project, an L.A.-based collective of fashion executives launched solely to launch Rocha’s line. The inspiration for the 60-piece collection is architecture with garments pricing between $60 and $300. The collection will be sold on CocoRocha.com.

Image courtesy of fashiongonerogue.com

Image courtesy of fashiongonerogue.com

Lanvin revelation

Lanvin executive management called a public hearing of Lanvin staff at a Parisian district court as Lanvin staff employees demanded transparency and answer for the dismissal of creative director Alber Elbaz. Elbaz after 14 years was let go from his post at Lanvin on October 28.

Elbaz was seen as the creative force that helped rejuvenate the iconic fashion house founded in 1889 by Jeanne Lanvin. Until Elbaz joined Lanvin as creative director, Lanvin had seen a decline in profits for over 30 years.

At the hearings it was revealed that Lanvin had experienced a vitalization creatively and financially under the helm of Elbaz; however, in recent years Lanvin’s revenues had fallen over three years period from 235 million euros to 203 million euros.

Also Elbaz’s severance package came to light at these public hearings. Elbaz’s severance package could amount to 20 to 40 million euros.

Jourdan Dunn image courtesy of fashionweekdaily.com

Jourdan Dunn image courtesy of fashionweekdaily.com

Model nudies

Supermodels posing nude is trending!! Recently, Fashion Reverie reported on Victoria’s Secret’s supermodel Alessandra Ambrosio posing au naturel for Maxim magazine.

Well, add to the list of nude supermodels Jourdan Dunn, Anja Rubik, Edita Vilkeviciute, Lara Stone, Natasha Poly, Toni Garrn, Carolyn Murphy, Amber Valletta, Daria Strokous, Małgosia Bela, and Isabeli Fontana. All have posed in their birthday suits for French magazine, Lui for its December/January issue. Each model will be on the cover of a version of the December/January issue. There are twelve different versions of this nude issue.

Proceeds of the sale of Lui’s December/January issue will go to support breast cancer. Luigi and Iango photographed the images.

—William S. Gooch

Fashion News Alert: Beyoncé Partners with Topshop, Kylie Jenner’s Lipstick Line Blowout, Pirelli 2016 Calendar Revealed, and Cyber Monday Sales Exceed Expectations

December 2, 2015 by Leave a Comment

 

Image courtesy of Brit.com

Image courtesy of Brit.com

Beyoncé has partnered with Topshop for a street wear line that includes footwear and accessories. This collaboration was announced last year; however, it was recently revealed that street wear-inspired clothing line will not be available for consumers until April 2016.

I have always loved TopShop for their fashion credentials and forward thinking.  Working with their development team to create and produce a technical and fashion led collection is exciting and I’m looking forward to participating in all aspects of this partnership,” said Beyoncé in a statement last year.

The Topshop collaboration with Beyoncé is a 50/50 venture between Topshop and Beyoncé management company, Parkwood. Now, the question is what happened to the House of Dereon?

Image courtesy of huffingtonpost.com

Image courtesy of huffingtonpost.com

Lipstick lollapalooza

The Kardashian/Jenner media and market domination continues!! And that was made evident when Kylie Jenner’s lipstick line, Kylie Lip Kit by Kylie Jenner, sold out in minutes after it went on sale Monday morning.

And though this sell out is almost unprecedented, no one is really surprised!! There was such a scramble for Kylie’s lipstick product that the site has slowed down and product will not be available for a few days.

The lineup includes three shades of brown, including Dolce K and Candy K, which are lighter nudes, and True Brown, which is like it says, brown. With the kit comes a three-step system that will leave you with a look similar to Jenner’s.

Image courtesy of Pirelli/Annie Liebovitz

Image courtesy of Pirelli/Annie Liebovitz

A different Pirelli

Pirelli’s annual calendar has gone in a different direction for 2016. Instead of using nude or scantily clad supermodels for each month of the year, Pirelli for 2016 features 13 “women of outstanding professional, social, cultural, sporting and artistic accomplishment” from tennis pro Serena Williams to singer Patti Smith and the actress Amy Schumer.

Annie Liebovitz photographed the 2016 Pirelli calendar. When Pirelli approached me, they said they wanted to make a departure from the past,” Leibovitz says. “They suggested the idea of photographing distinguished women. After we agreed on that, the goal was to be very straightforward. I wanted the pictures to show the women exactly as they are, with no pretense,” explained Leibovitz in a fashionmag.com article.

Other women starring in the calendar include Chinese actress Yao Chen, Russian model Natalia Vodianova, producer Kathleen Kennedy, art collector and patroness Agnes Gund, leader, critic and writer Fran Lebowitz, the President of Ariel Investments, Mellody Hobson, film director Ava DuVernay, blogger Tavi Gevinson, Iranian visual artist Shirin Neshat and the performer Yoko Ono.

Image courtesy of frysblackfriday.com

Image courtesy of frysblackfriday.com

Cyber Monday boom

Cyber sales for Cyber Monday was bigger than expected with online electronics and toys making up the bulk of product sold.  Sales in the US topped over $3 billion worth of sales.

“So many businesses fared better this year because they planned it out better,” said Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst at NPD Group, a retail industry research firm. “Overall, pretty much every retailer performed better than in years past,” as reported in fashionmag.com. Consumers were even encouraged to purchase Cyber Monday sales from their desktop and laptops at the office on this past Monday that may have account for the spike in sales.

Top-selling items included Lego Star Wars, the Barbie Dream House, Samsung 4k television sets and Apple Inc’s iPad Mini. Star Wars toys were among the items most frequently out of stock, Adobe said in a report sent to Reuters on Tuesday. Also frequently out of stock were Samsung Electronics Co Ltd’s 55-inch screen 4K TVs as were some Sony PlayStation and Microsoft Xbox console bundles.

—William S. Gooch

Weekend Fashion News Alert: Alessandra Ambrosio’s Maxim Editorial, Hearst’s Print Bonanza, and the Fadstir’s Fashion App

November 29, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Image courtesy of padgadget.com

Image courtesy of padgadget.com

On the heels of recent layoffs at Conde Nast and the shuttering of Details magazine, things seem to booming over at Hearst media. As unusual as this may sound for this print publishing giant, it is actually factual.

For the sixth consecutive year, advertising sales have been up at Marie Claire. And both Elle and Marie Claire will increase their advertising pages in March of 2016 with Marie Claire seeing a boost of 15 percent.

“2015 was a record-breaking year for our fashion/luxury brands—ELLE, Harper’s BAZAAR, Marie Claire, and Town & Country—and we see that trend continuing. We’re investing in our print products in that space, increasing size to give readers a more engaging experience and marketers a truly luxe environment. Our mission is to continually innovate, and Marie Claire is a perfect example of that. The magazine has developed so many creative, attention-getting covers this year, which will now have even more impact,” Michael Clinton, Hearst president of marketing and publishing director, told fashionnewsdaily.com.

Image courtesy of Gilles Bensimon/Maxim

Image courtesy of Gilles Bensimon/Maxim

Show your birthday suit

Victoria’s Secret Angel Alessandra Ambrosio is showing even less than she usually shows on the runway during the Victoria’s Secret runway show.

For the December/January issue of Maxim magazine, Ambrosio is au naturel. And when I say au naturel, I am talking her delicious birthday suit!!

Not only is Alessandra Ambrosio beautiful and sexy, she is also quite well off. Recently, named the 8th highest paid model in 2015 by Forbes magazine, for the December/January issue of Maxim Ambrosio was penned the “World’s Sexiest Businesswoman.”

Famed photographer Gilles Bensimon shot the cover and editorial for the December/January issue at various locations in and around Monte Carlo. Va va voom and ooh la la!!

 

Image courtesy of Fadstir

Image courtesy of Fadstir

Match shoes with what?

Are you always in a quandary over which shoes match a particular pair of pants or compliment an outfit? If you are, then there is an app that might just help you out of this sticky situation.

The Fadstir app offers answers to the age-old question, “Do these shoes go with these pants?”  Using crowd-sourced data, Fadstir gives users statistically supported, direct suggestions on how to match their clothes with a simple tap on a screen.

Powered through an algorithmic, curation engine, Fadstir optimizes style advice.  This new app takes its user community’s feedback on outfits uploaded in the app and scans the feedback for the best rated clothing combinations.  Fadstir then returns the highest rated clothing combinations to help inform users’ decisions when either shopping or simply mixing and matching items from their wardrobe.

Fadstir’s features:

  • instant, crowdsourced, fashion answers
  • ability to upload/rate outfits and follow users
  • instant, automated analysis on uploaded outfits
  • ability to gain points and achieve new user levels
  • newsfeed to view the latest and top rated styles

Fadstiis available on the app store for free.  Fadstir is designed for iPhone and iPod Touch. Fadstir requires OS 7.0 or newer.

—William S. Gooch

 

 

 

Fashion News Alert: Lady Gaga’s New Gig, Guess’ Financial Woes Continue, and Saks to Start Black Friday Early

November 25, 2015 by 1 Comment
Fall 2013 V magazine cover image courtesy of tomandlorenzo.com

Fall 2013 V magazine cover image courtesy of tomandlorenzo.com

Lady Gaga has a new job. For the January 2016 issue, Gaga will be a guest editor at V magazine.

Lady Gaga has been on the cover of V magazine four times, and V magazine’s Editor-in-chief Stephan Gan has discussed Gaga coming on board as an editor for years. In addition to editorial duties, Gaga will also appear on the January cover of V magazine.

“I feel like we all share an appetite for living a life of passion and creativity. It’s like we all found our immortality through art and fashion. These are people who have kept me and protected me over the years, because they’ve wanted me to survive. That’s part of the message of this issue: we have to carry each other through the decades and take care of one another and honor each other’s work. I am saying thank you to all these people for everything they’ve given to me. I want to make sure the world knows who they are—it’s a guard of people—I call them my Fashion Guard!,” detailed Lady Gaga in a fashionweekdaily.com article as she revealed that some of her close fashion friends will support her in her new endeavor.

Image courtesy of nytimes.com

Image courtesy of nytimes.com

Black Friday Early

Saks Fifth Avenue gets a jump on other high-end retailers by starting their Black Friday holiday sales on Wednesday. Saks Fifth Avenue will be closed on Thanksgiving.

“We thought it would be nice for customers to be able to come on Wednesday and get the great Black Friday offerings without having to go through the more crowded atmosphere on Friday,” Hudson Bay Co’s Chief Executive Jerry Storch told Reuters. Saks Fifth Avenue is owned by the Canadian-based Hudson Bay Co.

Other major US retailers have adjusted their Black Friday policy in lieu of cautious US consumers. Amazon.com has been offering a preview of its Black Friday deals through most of November, while the majority of Wal-Mart’s Black Friday deals will be available on walmart.com after midnight on Thursday.

While back-to-school sales were lower in August and September for most major retailers, retailers are hoping pre-Black Friday deals will lure consumers to stores early.

Image courtesy of bestcelebritystyle.com

Image courtesy of bestcelebritystyle.com

The economic guess is still on for Guess

Though third quarter reports confirm that Guess’ retail sales exceeded expectation, the company’s financial woes are far from over.

According to fashionmag.com, net earnings for the quarter decreased 40.1% to $12.4 million from $20.8 million in Q3 2015, total net revenue decreased 11.7% to $521 million from $589.8 million, and earnings per share decreased 38%, which includes the negative impact of currency of 55%.

Revenues decreased sharply in US dollars and only slightly in constant currency. US revenues decreased 7% in US dollars, Europe revenues decreased 15%, Asia revenues dropped 17% and Americas wholesale declined 12%.

—William S. Gooch

Weekend Fashion News Alert: Tyra Banks Leaves FABLife, H&M x Balmain Fragrance, Kristen Stewart Stars in Chanel Short Film, and Cavalli Workers Strike

November 21, 2015 by 3 Comments
Image courtesy of Disney/ABC

Image courtesy of Disney/ABC

“FABLife” without Tyra Banks, well, kind of. Though FABLife just premiered in September, Tyra Banks will no longer have much of an onscreen presence on her new talk show “FABLife” due to growing commitments at her cosmetics company, TYRA Beauty. According to Variety, Banks will stay on as executive producer and occasionally make guest appearances on the daily talk show.

“FABLife” will continue with co-hosts Joe Zee, Leah Ashley, Chrissy Teigen, and Lauren Makk. “FABLife” was aimed at giving Tyra Banks a continued onscreen presence after it was recently announced the Cycle 22 would be the last season of Banks’ “America’s Next Top Model.”

Image courtesy of fashionmag.com

Image courtesy of fashionmag.com

More from Balmain x H&M

If a clothing collaboration was not enough, Balmain x H&M has planned to launch a fragrance. From the day of the Balmain x H&M capsule collection launch on November 5, the collection has been one of the most successful collaboration at H&M.

On the heels of the overwhelming success of Balmain x H&M, the collaboration has decided to continue with a fragrance launch on December 3 as a limited edition in select H&M stores. This unisex fragrance, which was created with Interparfums, combines notes of tonka bean and jasmine, enriched by cedar and blond woods and base notes of musk and sandalwood.

Image courtesy of vogue.it

Image courtesy of vogue.it

Kristen Stewert as Coco

Kristen Stewart’s next big film opportunity comes in the form of playing Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel alongside Geraldine Chaplin in a short film for the iconic French fashion house.  This short film is the latest high-profile campaign of Kristen Stewart for Chanel since she has become a muse for Karl Lagerfeld.

The short film focuses on the behind-the-scene preparation as the two actresses portray actresses preparing to star in a film about Coco Chanel. “If I had made image after image of Chanel’s past, it would be boring,” explains Lagerfeld in a recent fashionmag.com article. “… I wanted to show Chanel through all the decades of her life and the comeback in the 1950s.”

The film will be unveiled in Rome on December 1, at the opening of the Chanel Métiers d’art collection. The Paris-Rome 2015/16 collection will be shown at Cinecittà, the legendary film studio complex located in Rome. A trailer will be unveiled on November 25.

Just Cavalli fall 2013 ad campaign

Just Cavalli fall 2013 ad campaign

Cavalli Strike

More than 200 workers at the Roberto Cavalli factory in the Tuscany region took to the streets against the company’s decision not to open a mobility procedure for 66 employees. The employees demonstrated for eight hours in front of the brand’s flagship store in Florence.

“We ask the company for a strategic industrial and transparent regeneration, in order to understand what are the real intentions of the board,” Bernardo Marasco of Filctem-CGIL Florence, told the UK–based Fashion Times. “And since we are in the preliminary negotiations, given that the company has never benefited from social safety nets, we ask to activate this too as soon as possible.”

Mobility procedure centers around the correct procedures of dismissal of several employees on the same day. The entire procedure should take around 75 days (38 days if there are less than 10 dismissals).

—William S. Gooch

Fashion News Alert: Band of Outsiders Lives Again, Obama Speaks with Alibaba Billionaire, Details Bites the Dust, and Bye Bye Marc by Marc Jacobs

November 18, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Image courtesy of urbanmogullife.com

Image courtesy of urbanmogullife.com

Though President Obama was engaged in intense negotiations and talks with world leaders at the Asian-Pacific Cooperation Summit (APEC), he found time to chat and interview Alibaba billionaire founder and chief executive Jack Ma.

President Obama questioned Ma on how big business could support and empower young entrepreneurs like many of the young Filipino entrepreneurs in attendance at the summit in Manila. “Government is simple—just reduce the tax, or no tax, for these guys,” Ma responded, according to a Reuters report.

Alibaba is seeking to invest heavily abroad outside of its dominated Chinese and Asian markets. Alibaba already has huge markets in Russia and Brazil. Alibaba.com is China’s biggest e-commerce company with transactions daily of over $30 million.

Image courtesy of highsnobiety.com

Image courtesy of highsnobiety.com

Band of Outsiders back

The fashion industry mourned when Band of Outsiders announced last May that the brand was going under. During the summer, creative director Scott Sternberg let go of the majority of the brand’s staff and canceled the fall 2015 wholesale orders.

That said; Band of Outsiders will live again on Black Friday on Filene Basement’s discount website with savings of up to 50% off with an additional 25% off from Black Friday through Cypher Monday.  It appears that Filene Basement acquired the full inventory of Band of Outsiders from its NYC flagship store.

Filene Basement launched as a discount e-commerce website offering name brand and designer goods for up to 70% off earlier this year.

jake-gyllenhaal-details-magazine-feature

Sayonara Details

There are further cuts at Condé Nast. This time it not just layoffs, it is a full-fledged closure. And the victim magazine this time is Details.

According to Condé Nast President Bob Sauerberg, the December issue will be Details’  last print issue. That said; this is not the first time Details shut down. Details.com will continue.

Leaving the hallowed halls of Condé Nast will be Details longtime editor-in-chief Dan Peres and publisher and chief revenue officer Drew Schutte, formerly the publisher of Wired and The New Yorker. Self publisher and chief revenue officer Mary Murcko was also let go.

All this moving, shuffling around and, in many instances, removing, comes on the heels of Saueberg’s promotion to President/CEO of Condé Nast in September. Condé Nast has also recently acquired its own music vertical, Pitchfork Media, expanding its digital footprint to music.

Image courtesy of fashiongonerogue.com

Image courtesy of fashiongonerogue.com

Marc by Marc Jacobs absorbed

It is now official, Marc by Marc Jacobs will be absorbed into the Marc Jacobs fashion and accessories label. Marc Jacobs recently announced that he is abandoning the Marc by Marc Jacobs’ line and that the two fashion lines will be showcased together as one brand.

This new direction facilitates the immediate closing of the Marc Jacobs’ store at Palais-Royal in Paris, followed by Milan and, last September, London (with the closing down of the South Audley St. and Mount St. stores). According to fashionmag.com, this will be followed by the presentation of a new store concept in September 2017, starting from the store on Mercer Street, New York, the designer’s historic first store.

—William S. Gooch

Weekend Fashion News Alert: Caitlin and Andreja Pejic Meet, More Cuts at Condé Nast, Ryan Seacrest Men’s Beauty Line, and Paris Retail Stores Close for the Weekend

November 15, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Image courtesy of dailymail.co.uk

Image courtesy of dailymail.co.uk

Transgender supermodel Andreja Pejic and reality television star Caitlyn Jenner finally meet, posed for photos, and had a girl chat at the GLAMOUR Magazine Women of the Year Awards last week in NYC. They also exchanged phone numbers while taking a series of pictures in the VIP Room at the awards event.

Caitlyn Jenner attending the awards benefit event to receive a ‘GLAMOUR Woman of the Year’ award. “Finally had the pleasure of meeting this amazing woman. Congrats on becoming GLAMOUR Woman of the Year,” Pejic wrote. Misty Copeland, Reese Witherspoon, and Victoria Beckham also received ‘GLAMOUR Woman of the Year’ awards.

Image courtesy of condenast.com

Image courtesy of condenast.com

Condé Nast layoffs

Condé Nast continues to trim the fat with more cuts to many of its esteemed employees and colleagues. On the heels of seven layoffs at GQ last week, the continued staff reduction at some of Condé Nast publications includes executives as well general staffers.

Teen Vogue publisher and chief revenue officer Jason Wagenheim has departed. According to WWD, advertising in the months between June and September had fallen 11 percent. This departure comes a day after long-time Allure editor-in-chief Linda Wells was laid off.

Apparently, there are layoffs in the works at other Condé Nast publications with Glamour and Traveler being at the top of the list!! Who said being a clacker at Condé was such a great gig.

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Seacrest’s skincare

“American Idol” host Ryan Seacrest is set to launch a men’s skincare line in 2016. Seacrest has teamed up with Beverly Hills dermatologist Dr. Harold Lancer on a men’s skincare lined based on the principles in Lancer’s Lancer method, with additional original formulas designed to target the specific skincare needs of men today.

“It’s no secret that guys are increasingly embracing the benefits and value of grooming, as well as openly talking about it,” explains Lancer. “I’ve always credited Dr. Lancer with my own efforts to maintain a youthful appearance, leveraging his skincare regimen.” Seacrest is a long-time patient of Dr. Lancer.

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Paris retail shutdown

Many Paris luxury and ready-to-wear stores closed their doors on Saturday in lieu of the Paris attacks. Le Printemps and Galeries Lafayette on Boulevard Haussmann opened for a few hours Saturday morning but later closed their doors later during the early afternoon.

The LVMH group also announced that its Parisian outlets, including Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior, as well as Sephora and Le Bon Marché, would stay closed all day, as reported in fashionmag.com. H&M also did not open its Paris outlets.

“For the security of our staff and our customers, and in solidarity with the victims, we chose not to open our stores on Saturday, in Paris and its area,” said H&M representatives in a statement. Following a request from French authorities a number of malls in the center of Paris also closed their doors.

—William S. Gooch

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