ARNAUD SUPPORT LAGARDÈRE

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Bernard Arnault has again upped his stake in Lagardère SCA, as a French commercial court is expected to wade into a battle between French industry titans for control of the embattled publishing and retail company.

Acting in concert, Groupe Arnault and Financière Agache, the holding company controlled by Groupe Arnault, together with a group of companies controlled by Arnaud Lagardère, chief executive officer of Lagardère, now jointly hold 15.01 percent of the capital of Lagardère SCA and 16.93 percent of voting rights.

The move, revealed by stock market regulator AMF in a filing on Tuesday, comes as a Paris court is set to rule on Wednesday on a request from Vivendi, a media group controlled by French billionaire Vincent Bolloré, and activist investor Amber Capital for an exceptional shareholder meeting, part of their bid to gain board representation. Continue reading →

SINGLE DAY J’ADIOR

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Dior Releases First Singles Day Capsule for China. For the first time, a top-tier luxury brand like Dior is releasing a capsule collection exclusively for the online shopping event.

With a record-breaking 83.6 million viewership for its spring 2021 collection in China, Dior is looking to cash in with the upcoming annual Singles Day shopping festival.

The capsule, which features accessories, a lambskin vanity bag with canework motifs, and Esperella shoes from its cruise collection, will be sold on Dior’s official website and WeChat store from Oct. 15

ZELLER LEAVES DELVAUX

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Delvaux breaking news the artistic director is leaving the Belgian luxury house after three years at the design head, citing personal reasons. No immediate replacement named, studio team to oversee collections for the time being.

Collections will be designed by the studio team for the time being, with Delvaux adding that Zeller will continue to work with them in some capacity until the end of the year.

Chief executive officer Marco Probst offered his warmest thanks to Christina for her exceptional dedication and for the outstanding creativity that she brought to the company, and for the strong and unique identity she forged for it.

Zeller initially joined Delvaux in 2011 as image and product director, playing a decisive role in redefining the different collections as well as the company’s brand communications, Delvaux said. She took on the role of artistic director in 2017 and in January of this year she was also placed in charge of communications. Continue reading →

PERFUMES AND THE WINNER IS

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A variety of independent brands joined the likes of L’Oréal, the Estée Lauder Cos. Inc. and Coty Inc., taking home several awards. Diptyque, for example, won both of the home fragrance categories, and Gucci took home three awards for three different scents. Kim Kardashian West even joined the webinar to accept her award for fragrance of the year: Popular.

Among the presenters were designer Jason Wu, Rob Smith, Cher, Lionel Richie and Wes Gordon of Carolina Herrera, each of whom introduced several categories.

Fragrance of the Year, Women’s Luxury: YSL Libre Eau de Parfum, L’Oréal, IFF, Anne Flipo, Carlos Benaïm. Continue reading →

MARANT OPTIMISM EXUBERANCE

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The Isabel Marant catwalk show was singled out for optimism and exuberance both for the dance performance and the clothing.

The fashion crowd knew it would be an unusual Paris Fashion Week, with much of the audience following presentations from screens at home often from different time zones and a cloud of uncertainty hanging over the small number of physical shows. With each day, tensions rose as coronavirus cases mounted in France, prompting stiffer travel rules and tightened security measures from local authorities.

In this environment, what emerged came as a display of resilience. Despite ongoing rumblings of frustration with being anchored at home, buyers expressed extra appreciation for efforts to get the show on the road with more successful endeavors carrying extra resonance.

With everyone out for a pick-me-up, bold expressions of optimism were appreciated. The Isabel Marant catwalk show shot past all others, in buyers’ minds, singled out for the vibrant and shimmery clothing as well as the dance performance from (LA)Horde.

“The energy was so fun and vibrant, in contrast to reality. The show was driven by a burning desire to go out and escape, which made you want to invest in every style that walked down the runway,”

PUMA’S HELPS KERING

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Kering is selling 8.8 million shares, representing 5.9 percent of Puma’s capital. Kering said on Monday it was selling about 8.8 million shares that it owns in Puma, representing 5.9 percent of the German sporting good-maker’s share capital, through a placement to qualified investors.

Since 2018, the group gradually reduced its stake in Puma after spinning off 70 percent of the company to its shareholders as part of a plan to refocus on its luxury division. That move left the Pinault family’s private investment arm Artémis with a 29 percent stake, and Kering with around 16 percent.

“The proceeds of this transaction will be used for the general corporate purposes of Kering and will further strengthen its financial structure,” the French luxury group said in a statement.

Kering’s share price has recovered to its levels at the start of 2020, after plummeting by as much as 39 percent in March as the coronavirus pandemic shut stores and brought factories to a halt. Continue reading →

KENZO A FLOWER DIES AT 80

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Japanese fashion designer Kenzo Takada, famous for creating the world-renowned Kenzo brand, has died from complications linked to COVID-19 at the age of 81,

Known especially for his signature floral prints, Takada came to France from his native Japan in 1965 by boat, landing in Marseille before making his way to Paris.

He had planned only a short stay in the city, but Paris eventually became his home. Takada created his first collection for women in 1970, his first show for men in 1983 and his first perfume, Kenzo Kenzo, in 1988.
LVMH’s Chairman and CEO Bernard Arnault said in a statement that Kenzo had “infused into fashion a tone of poetic lightness and sweet freedom which inspired many designers after him”.

Ralph Toledano, chairman of France’s fashion federation, credited Takada with contributing to writing “a new page in fashion, at the confluence of the East and the West”.

ISABEL MARANT PARIS 2021

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Tonight, Isabel Marant celebrated love, joy, celebration and human warmth. The tent she usually erects in the Palais Royal gave way to an outdoor parade in free placement. No millimetre front row, no hierarchy, just love and a good dose of energy, which devotees like Lena Mahfouf, Kim Chapiron and Tina Kunakey came to celebrate with her. The (La)Horde dance collective shared the podium with a diverse and joyful cast, in an ultra dynamic choreography: the dancers ran, jumped, hugged each other, forming human pyramids that punctuated the passage of the mannequins.

Inspired by the icons of the 1980’s like Debbie Harry or Kim Wilde, the collection was full of shiny pink and silver pieces, micro shorts and mini dresses with ruffles, the perfect attire for the party. American artist Amber Goldhammer signed the print of the season: an accumulation of graffiti-like pink and blue hearts, which blossomed on an oversized jumpsuit or men’s pants. Hearts and stars also hung on the ears of the models, attracting the light like these mini party dresses in lamé agent or these pumps laced at the ankles. Continue reading →

RICK OWENS SPRING 2021

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That Owens showed in front of the Lido Casino with no audience and not in Paris was a function of the coronavirus pandemic. Venice is two hours away from Owens’ Italian factory, where he’s been holed up. And incidentally, the word quarantine originates from the Venetian language and the region’s response to the bubonic plague in medieval times.

For all of these reasons, his spring collection felt like the defiant fashion act we’ve all been waiting for, what Owens dubbed “an exaggerated middle finger to doom” expressed with major shoulders, thigh-high boots, “lurid” colors, crisp tunics, flowing robes and sculptural capes.

The display was exhilarating, and the free-flowing clothes newsy for Owens, especially the simple yet architectural tunics and the chiffon shrouds in bubblegum pink with trailing ribbons. As he did for his terrific men’s collection for spring, Owens revisited some old, but still good ideas: fishnet tank dresses and hoodies that wink back to the masks used for his fall 2012 show. Continue reading →

CHIURI FASHION VICTIMS FOR DIOR

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Spring 2021 show, which was held in a vast white box in the Tuileries Garden. Chiuri has been one busy bee in recent months: creating a couture collection in miniature, and a lavish film that continued her narrative, and staging a massive open-air show in Lecce, Italy, for cruise that involved scores of collaborations with local artisans. Here she continued the thread and the toil for spring, linking with women in Indonesia for original Ikat prints, and turning out 86 exits in a dark room punctuated with stained-glass-like windows bearing magazine collages by artist Lucia Marcucci.

With all the loose shapes duster coats, short kimonos and wide culottes and the scarf prints in dusty colors, the clothes felt like old friends or heirlooms, far from the slick and glossy luxury goods of yore.

Chiuri remains committed to physical runway shows even as restrictions on daily life are mounting along with COVID-19 cases in France deeming them the best way to display haute craftsmanship, and a fashion message.

She had a chorus of women singing a lament by avant-garde Italian composer Lucia Ronchetti that added another somber, occasionally dissonant layer to the proceedings. Continue reading →

VUITTON SHOW ON ROOF TOP SAMARITAINE

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It only took 15 years for Nicolas Ghesquière’s next runway venue to finally be ready: Louis Vuitton will cap off Paris Fashion Week on Oct. 6 with a fashion show at La Samaritaine.

Ghesquière will parade his spring 2021 women’s collection on the top floor of the not-yet-completed complex under a glass dome known as La Rotonde; while those tuning in to the livestream will have a completely different experience thanks to green-screen technology and other digital razzmatazz.

Nicolas’ goal is to create a connection with the guests, according to Vuitton. It is a fashion show that has been designed for digital, but based on a live experience.  Continue reading →

CHANEL A PARIS

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A new exhibition in Paris aims to redress the balance, providing the most extensive overview so far of the creations of Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel, who revolutionized fashion with her sleek, fluid designs that helped to liberate women from their corsets.

Tweed suits, the little black dress, two-tone shoes and quilted handbags: Chanel’s signature codes are as synonymous with French luxury today as they were a century ago, at the risk of obscuring the woman who launched the brand.

“Gabrielle Chanel. A Fashion Manifesto,” which opens on Oct. 1, coincides with the reopening of the Palais Galliera fashion museum and the inauguration of its new basement space for permanent exhibitions, sponsored by Chanel. Surprisingly, it’s the first major Chanel exhibition to be staged in the French capital. Continue reading →

SUKEINA OUTSIDER 2021

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Omar spent his childhood traveling and living throughout Europe. Initially believing that words were the best way to communicate with the world he started studying film but later realized that he could tell more intricate and vibrant stories through fashion. “Clothing is a language within itself,” he says. Omar graduated from Parsons School of Design with a degree in fashion. In 2001, he started working for Sonia Rykiel in Paris and became Visual Director for the New York City office. He spent seven years with Madame Rykiel fostering a meaningful relationship with the designer. In 2010, he joined Christian Lacroix and spent two years with the house.

In 2012, the designer established his own fashion house called SUKEINA after his late mother, meaning “bright light.” “Light is what reconciles us with the value of everything, and without it, all goes missing,” the designer says. Omar’s passion for making women look and feel special along with a unique worldview shaped his approach to fashion in a way that is progressive, innovative, and powerful while still elegant. Continue reading →

KHAITE RTW 2021

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While many designers have opted for escapist, feel-good fashion or tried their best to include clothes that work for life at home, Holsten showed a compelling lineup rooted in what one might call power dressing, and worn by models whose determined attitudes approached defiance, as though they’re up to whatever challenges 2020 and beyond throws at them. Continue reading →

FONDATION ELBAZ

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Laurent Malecaze joins Paris-based AZ Fashions from The Webster in New York, and so Alber Elbaz Finds CEO for Fashion Startup. Laurent Malecaze as chief executive officer of his fashion startup, currently ceo of luxury retailer The Webster in New York.

Elbaz confirmed his arrival exclusively and described an instant personal and professional rapport with Malecaze, who helped The Webster accelerate and widen its digital operations. AZfashion touted the hire in a brief statement, noting the two men would develop the overall strategy of AZfashion and oversee its implementation across the venture.

The development comes almost 11 months after Elbaz announced his comeback to fashion in a joint venture with Compagnie Financière Richemont, and should accelerate AZfashion’s launch, which has been delayed due to shutdowns and slowdowns related to the coronavirus crisis. Continue reading →

VIVIENNE HU NYFW 2021

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Hu later moved to the United States for her professional development. She worked at an investment bank for over three years, then attended Parsons School of Design and gained industry experience with Oscar de la Renta and Yigal Azrouel. Hu established her brand and debuted her spring/summer collection in 2012.[The label has two stores in Soho, New York, that opened in 2013 and 2016 respectively,[and its first China store opened in 2015.