Hermès held its spring show at the Longchamp racecourse, as did Dior earlier in the week, just to tease Mister Arnault. The two houses made very different uses of the venue. If Dior was your rich gypsy aunt who reads Tarot cards and loves modern dance, Hermès was her richer, snobbier sister, for whom tastefulness is next to godliness. She’s not as much fun as the bohemian, but her cashmere is softer, her Champagne is crisper and you can put money on her horse it always seems to win. Continue reading
UMA WANG PARIS 2019
MUGLER CONFIDENTIAL
The guest list was only 200 people. The collection was short 27 looks. And the designer making his runway debut was a relative unknown: Casey Cadwallader, who worked behind the scenes at Acne Studios before taking the helm of Mugler last year. So what was Cardi B, a one-woman celebrity tsunami, doing in the front row? Continue reading
KORS DEAL FOR VERSACE
Michael Kors Deal for Versace for 2 Billion Euros? Michael Kors Holdings Ltd. is adding some Italian flair. a deal that is expected to close this week. The Versace family will maintain a role in the company, although it could not immediately be learned what will be the exact nature of their involvement.
The stock market didn’t react well to reports of an impending deal, with Kors shares trading at $66.11 at 11 a.m., down 9 percent.
Versace is run by Donatella Versace, creative director, and her brother Santo Versace, chairman, who own 20 percent and 30 percent of the firm, respectively. According to sources, the private equity firm Blackstone, which owns 20 percent of Versace, is planning to sell its stake in the deal.The remainder of the company is owned by Allegra Versace Beck, Donatella’s daughter and the niece of the house’s late founder, Gianni Versace.
GUILLAUME HENRY AT PATOU
Sidney Toledano, chairman and chief executive officer of LVMH Fashion Group, is spearheading the project and has already selected and signed on a designer to lead it: Guillaume Henry.
Last March, Henry exited Nina Ricci and he is said to be passionate about the legacy of Patou, a French designer who brought modernity and buzz to fashion in the Twenties —and innovated in business with fragrances, logos and sport clothes.
LVMH is now in the throes of building teams around Henry with a view to launching the first collection of ready-to-wear and accessories in the second half of 2019.
It is understood the group views Patou as something of a niche, rarified name and not its next megabrand. Consequently, LVMH will likely start with a single boutique, most likely in Paris, along with e-commerce and select wholesale partners.
The relaunch suggests the world’s largest luxury group is anticipating an easing of the streetwear craze, and a swing of the fashion pendulum back to sophisticated chic. Continue reading
ARMANI GREEN GATORADE
In 1996, Giorgio Armani was one of the biggest and most thrusting brand names in fashion and the man himself was among the richest people in Italy.
The logo isn’t going anywhere. At a time when designers are tweaking the look of their logos (Burberry, Berluti and Celine ) Armani said he’s keeping Emporio’s as is. “It’s mine and I’m holding it close,” the 84-year-old designer said during a collection walk-through. This was his first show at Linate, and he said he was keen to make a connection between past and present.
That was one reason why Nineties heartthrob Robbie Williams closed the show in a black pleated skirt and matching sequin jacket and performed later for a crowd that numbered 2,300, including members of the public who won tickets to the event.
“Hello, I’m Robbie Williams, you might remember me from the Nineties. Tonight you are mine,” he told a cheering audience before waving his black walking stick around and breaking into song and paying tribute to George Michael with a high-energy cover of “Freedom.” Continue reading
MOSCHINO 2019 MILAN 2019
MILANO FASHION WEEK 2019
There are plenty of birthday candles to blow out this time around during Milan Fashion Week 2019. Continue reading
KIRKWOOD APOCALYPSE NOW
The Nicholas Kirkwood Spring Summer 2019 show in London appears the apocalypse is now ! Nicholas Kirkwood certainly tapped into this mood for his first London Fashion show this season (having shown in Paris for several seasons), putting on a monster production that reverted us to Orwellian times. The “hacker” was his inspiration, specifically “a group of hacker activists rebelling against a government-enforced regime of banality and fashion monotony. Continue reading
CHANEL BUYS A JOURNEY
Expanding its reach into the realm of watchmaking, Chanel has bought a minority stake in Montres Journe, the French luxury house said on Monday.
Established by François-Paul Journe, who made his first watch in Paris in the early Eighties, the company has been making high-end time pieces in Geneva since 1999. It limits production to 900 watches a year, designing and building all of the movements, cases and watch cases.
“Chanel’s stake will enable Montres Journe SA to continue its development by ensuring its sustainability, as well as its autonomy,” Chanel said in a statement. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Chanel in 1998 invested in Bell & Ross and in 2011 in the Swiss watchmaking house of Romain Gauthier, who has made components designed by Chanel teams for the French house’s Monsieur watch. Chanel has not disclosed its ownership levels in the watchmakers. Continue reading
GARETH PUGH LONDON 2019
A FLOATING SHOW IN PARIS
L’Oréal Paris is gearing up to stage its second fashion-beauty runway show, With a floating catwalk near the Musée d’Orsay, the display on Sept. 30 at 2 p.m. at the Port de Solférino is expected to attract even more eyeballs than the high-profile show staged on the Avenue des Champs-Élysées last year.
“Everyone is invited,” Pierre-Emmanuel Angeloglou, L’Oréal Paris global brand president, told “We wanted to choose an iconic space in the city that really reflects the true Parisian spirit.”
Le Défilé L’Oréal Paris a “celebration of beauty, fashion and diversity.” The program is done in partnership with the Chopard jewelry brand and 12 established and emerging fashion houses, including Off-White, Balmain, Jacquemus, Isabel Marant, Ami, Giambattista Valli and Elie Saab, which will be showing looks inspired by Parisian chic from their fall 2018 collections. Continue reading
OSCAR DE LA MODA
BOUCHERON HEADS OR TAILS
Boucheron and the Monnaie de Paris have teamed to make a series of limited-edition coins, including a 1-kilo (35.3-oz.) pure gold coin in the shape of an emerald-cut stone, with references to the high jewelry house including the Place Vendôme, ivy vines and a diamond encrusted leaf.
The collaboration, which coincides with the jeweler’s 160th anniversary, is meant to celebrate French luxury traditions and follows similar projects with other prestigious French institutions including Sèvres-Cité de la Céramique, Baccarat, Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels and French chef Guy Savoy. Working with Savoy, the mint issued a rose-gold pan featuring a black truffle, fried egg while it reinterpreted Marie Antoinette’s milk bowl with the Sèvres-Cité de la Céramique. The Cartier collaboration resulted in a coin stamped with the Taj Mahal, complete with a diamond-encrusted dome. Continue reading