Category Archives: BREAKING MODE

CELINE AND EASY SLIMANE

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One of fashion’s preeminent image-makers and trendsetters, Hedi Slimane is to lead Céline into men’s wear, couture and fragrance as its new artistic, he is to join the LVMH brand on Feb. 1 and unveil his first fashion proposition for men and women next September during Paris Fashion Week.

It marks a major homecoming for Slimane, who cemented his reputation and influenced men’s tailoring for more than a decade as the designer of Dior Homme between 2000 and 2007. He went on to reinvent and ignite the Kering-owned house of Yves Saint Laurent, which he rechristened Saint Laurent, betweenr
2012 and 2016 all the while maintaining a close rapport with the Arnault family, which controls LVMH and Dior

In a curious twist of fate, Slimane will be reunited with Sidney Toledano, the legendary chief executive officer of Dior, who recruited the designer to propel the storied couture house into men’s fashion. Continue reading →

MARGIELA PARIS 2018

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The designer John Galliano added his dose of cinematic fantasy plastic overlayers and matching aviators figured among the styling tricks to the Maison Margiela men’s wardrobe. Introducing Artisanal pieces to the line, he put his own stamp on the relaxed suit, reinterpreted in a bias cut.

Skeletal structure in fur on an oversized yellow bomber, giving a harness effect. Shadows crept across a flocked navy bomber, while an orange rubber cardigan in an Aran knit motif that quivered down the runway was pure showpiece.

The collection also had its fair share of commercial pieces, like the sharply cut plain beige suit worn with patent leather cowboy boots, which was supercool, and a slim red nylon sports jacket tucked into pants like a shirt. Continue reading →

ZALANDO DRUGSTORE & ROLF

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Viktor & Rolf are taking their conscious couture philosophy to a wider audience with a collection for Zalando that is made from left over clothing.

It also marks the debut of Zalando’s new recycle project, which is aimed at raising awareness around sustainability in fashion and consumption.

“We have been working on the idea of recycling for a couple of seasons in our couture shows in various ways, and we feel quite strongly about it. We said to ourselves it would be so great to take this to a bigger audience. It was great fun to think about ways to translate a couture idea into a ready-to-wear idea, and to have it industrially produced.” Continue reading →

ALIBABA AND THE 40 CHINESES

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Xinhua, CEO of Chinese giant Alibaba, will soon sign an agreement with Paris to install a logistics center in France and to increase the sale of French products on its trading platforms online.

“We are planning to open a logistics center in France, we are currently looking for a site and partners,” said the founder of the Chinese number one of the e-commerce, on the sidelines of the meeting between French and Chinese presidents, Emmanuel Macron and Xi Jinping, at the People’s Palace in Beijing.

Jack Ma met Emmanuel Macron last Tuesday morning with also Richard Liu, boss of JD.com, number two of the Chinese e-commerce, which also announced to want to set up in France and promised to sell for 2 billion euros of French products on its platforms within two years. Continue reading →

TOURNE DE TRANSMISSION LONDON

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Graeme Gaughan, Tourne de Transmission’s creative director, returned to foreign cultures for fall 2018, the inspiration material that fueled his rise on the men’s wear scene. “I got a bit distracted in the last few seasons, this season it was images in photographer Lee Gordon’s book, “Kanaval: Vodou, Politics and Revolution on the Streets of Haiti,” that galvanized his return to form.

Jacmel’s Carnival celebrations are famous across Haiti, and every year thousands of partygoers descend on the city to take part in this fantastic spectacle. Jacmel turns into one giant street theater for the event: it’s a world away from the sequins and sparkle of Carnival in Rio de Janeiro.

Gordon’s images of the carnival in Jacmel, Haiti, in the Nineties depict men smeared in paint or mud wearing dresses, and children in ill-fitting suits gathered to reenact a grisly story from their history. Continue reading →

FASHION CAMPAIGNS 2018

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Spring 2018 Ad Campaigns: Calvin Klein Jeans, Kaia Gerber, 16 and Presley Gerber, 18, children of Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber.

Spring 2018 Ad Campaigns: Dior, Dior’s spring campaign features Sasha Pivovarova, the model and artist who opened Maria Grazia Chiuri’s Spring runway show wearing a T-shirt printed with the title of Linda Nochlin’s essay, “Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?” Continue reading →

TRUMP TAX A BOOM FOR LVMH

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The $1.5 trillion overhaul of the U.S. tax system that President Trump signed into law just before Christmas has put retailers and fashion brands into an unfamiliar situation with some extra cash coming and incentives to put it to work.

The experts agree that legislating a much-lower corporate tax rate, falling to 21 percent from about 35 percent, will give the corporate world of fashion a significant boost and might well help workers, too. The biggest beneficiaries will be U.S.-domiciled corporations that derive a majority of profits in the U.S.

Among the biggest gainers will be the department store operators such as Nordstrom Inc., Kohl’s Corp. and Macy’s Inc., which derive essentially all their profits from the U.S. It has been estimated that the tax overhaul would boost Nordstrom’s earnings per share 25.5 percent for 2018, while Kohl’s may gain 22 percent and Macy’s take would increase by 21 percent. Continue reading →

WHAT NEXT PHILOSOPHY

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According to a source with knowledge of the matter, Philo will not work for another label in the near future and her successor at the LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton-owned house will be named in the coming months.

She wants to take a break, as she has done in the past, after resigning from Chloé in 2006 and noting the emphasis she places on her private life. The fall 2018 collection to be presented in March, as well as pre-fall presented in January, will be the last collections crafted by the designer for the brand, who leaves the company in January.

In the interim, the label’s collections will be designed by Céline teams, “in keeping with the craftsmanship the house is renowned for,”. Continue reading →

DEMMA GVASALIA SPITITUS

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With irony you can ask questions that are delicate, but there’s a thin line between irony and sarcasm so I have to be careful not to overstep it. I made a bag for my first men’s show at Balenciaga, which was based on the classic Ikea bag. It was ironic but also authentic.

I used the blue Ikea bag during my four years as a student in Antwerp, due to its size and its price. Fifty percent of all students had the same bag for the same reasons, When I did it at Balenciaga I recycled leather that the company had on stock from previous collections, and I finished it as a luxury product. I meant it as an ironic gesture in part, taking something really cheap and moving it into the luxury realm. But it’s authentic too, and that’s why it’s been all over the internet by now. People can relate. Continue reading →

MIREN ARZALLUZ

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Congratulation to the Spanish Director Miren Arzalluz who has just been appointed at the head of Palais Gelliera.

She has a dozen years of experience in fashion conservation to the position, including eight years at the helm of the Cristobal Balenciaga Foundation. She has a fashion history degree from the Courtauld Institute of Art in London and worked on a number of fashion exhibits over the years, including “Fashion Mix.”

The Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, whose the french Parisian calls “Notre Drame de Paris” is delighted to welcome a compatriote. We wish her good luck and hope she will be the new “luz” light of the museum. Continue reading →

GUCCI PLACES TO BE

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Gucci reinvents “Instagram”. Earlier this year Gucci has launched an application called “Gucci Places” using geolocation services on user’s phones that sends them a push notification when they are near a Gucci shop. Once in the place, the user can earn corresponding badges and share them on social media.

The aim is to invite aficionados to discover unexpected stories about these places, and to form a community. The first Gucci Place was the Chatsworth in Derbyshire, England, where Gucci was supporting an exhibition of clothing and memorabilia baptized “House Style”, as well as where it realized its Cruise 2017 advertising campaign.

The latest Gucci places to discover include: The Angelica Library, in Rome, Italy; the Castello Sonnino, in Montespertoli, Italy; The Assouline House, in London, England; the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), in Los Angeles, California; Bibo restaurant, in Hong Kong; and the Waltz store in Nakameguro, Tokyo, Japan. Continue reading →

THE KORS OF MY ENNEMY

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After years of intermittent protests against Michael Kors, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals said the company is going fur-free. Kors chief executive officer John Idol confirmed that the brand would indeed be going fur-free by December 2018, noting the decision “marks a new chapter as our company continues to evolve its use of innovative materials.”

Kors has produced a small collection dedicated to fur for several years, but chief creative officer Michael Kors echoed Idol’s sentiment, adding: “We now have the ability to create a luxe aesthetic using nonanimal fur.”

With the advances in faux fur and the introduction of other innovative materials, it’s becoming clear that there is simply no reason to continue using a product that causes so much pain and suffering.

Michael Kors is the second major designer to reveal a fur-free policy in recent months, following in the footsteps of Gucci, which unveiled its plans in October. The decision marked a significant change by Gucci and its creative director Alessandro Michele. The decision aligned the Italian brand with the practices of its Kering stablemate Stella McCartney, who has long eschewed the use of fur and leather. Continue reading →

ALAIA GRAVE IN LONDON

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From May 10th to October 7th an exhibition planned by Alaia himself will be presented by the Design Museum as Azzedine Alaia. The exhibition will explore his passion and energy for fashion as he himself intended it to be seen showcasing more than 60 pieces personally selected by the iconic designer.

Azzedine Alaia was recognised throughout his life as a master couturier who expressed the timeless beauty of the female form in the most refined degree of haute couture.

Alaia was born to a farming family in Tunisia in 1940 and studied sculpture at the fine arts school in Tunis before working at a modest neighbourhood dressmaker’s shop. He rose to fame in the 1980s, refusing to march to the beat of international fashion weeks and instead releasing his collections, like Franck Sorbier in his own time, with scant concern for publicity. Continue reading →

FERRAGAMO WAREHOUSE

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Salvatore Ferragamo has inaugurated a new advanced artisanal laboratory inside his Osmannoro plant.

The 12,916-square-foot space, which is dedicated to the development and realization of men’s and women’s leather good samples, will enable the company to further expand its leather accessories offering through the combination of a traditional artisanal approach and the use of innovative machineries and techniques. The new laboratory has been realized with eco-friendly materials and was designed to reduce the environmental impact of the manufacturing processes.

“In keeping with the brand’s philosophy, focused on the development of artisanal products celebrating Made in Italy craftsmanship, the new leather goods laboratory will enable our artisans to grow their passion and skills with an approach based on innovation and research, always in the respect of tradition,” said Salvatore Ferragamo chief executive officer Eraldo Poletto. Continue reading →

SCHEDULE PARIS MEN’S WEEK

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Tough the dates and times have not yet be confirmed, the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode on Monday released the list of the official runway schedule for Paris Men’s Fashion Week from January 17th to 21th.

The maverick fashion label as well as France’s Niuku, Germany Gmbh and Britain’s Dunhill London plan to stage at the next show for the fall 2018 season on Jan. 19 in the French capital.

New highlights on the official presentation lineup, meanwhile, include Myar, the solo project of Andrea Rosso, son of entrepreneur Renzo Rosso and the creative director of Diesel licenses, as well as cult Japanese label Takahiromiyashita the Soloist, which earlier in the month will stage a runway show back-to-back with Undercover as fellow guest designers of Pitti Uomo, marking its first show outside of Japan. Continue reading →