Does streetwear influence the runway or vice versa? Tokyo’s runways maintained an eclectic spirit that played to a young style mentality entranced by oversized silhouettes, atypical construction, sportswear elements and a casual sense of deconstruction. Continue reading
KRISTINA FIDELSKAYA 2017
TOLENADO LEFT PUIG
At the head of the Puig Group, hundred pourcent of the management is made of women. The group has just announced the departure of Ralph Toledano from his position as president of the fashion division, as well as the presidency of both Nina Ricci and Jean Paul Gaultier. The only mandate Mr Ralph Toledano will unfortunately keep is the presidency of the Chambre Syndicale, French fashion’s governing body.
Ralph Toledano explained that he left because he had done what had to be done in terms of putting Jean-Paul Gaultier on right track and having introduced all the ingredients for success at Nina Ricci, as Guillaume Henry showed in his latest show this month,”
Toledano is recognized as a brilliant talent spotter. In the late Nineties, he discovered and hired Alber Elbaz at Guy Laroche and most recently he also hired Guillaume Henry for Nina Ricci and Julien Dossena at Paco Rabanne. Continue reading
NEW ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF AZZARO
Azzaro is happy to announce the appointment of the French designer Maxime Simoëns as its Artistic Director. He will be in charge of the couture collections, ready-to-wear lines and men’s and women’s accessories, and will take up his new position with immediate effect.
As head of the Ateliers of the rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, Maxime Simoëns will offer his own contemporary interpretation of the Azzaro look. Like Loris Azzaro in his time, Maxime Simoëns sublimates female beauty with elegance, daring and glamour. He will present his very first collection for Azzaro during the Haute Couture week in Paris in July 2017.
“It’s a great honour to be able to add my own vision to Loris Azzaro’s heritage. His free anticonformist spirit, his avant-garde view of elegance and his uncompromising hedonism are great sources of inspiration for me. Continue reading
HUSSEIN BAZAZA DUBAI 2017
KARLOVSKI COLLECTION
Karl shared the first images of his new jewellery collection with Swarovski. The collection is divided into three groups: Ikonic, with a rock-chic aesthetic; Klassic Karl, inspired by Lagerfeld’s famous cat Choupette; and Essentials, made up of classic key pieces.
Items include personalized charms, ear jackets, pearls, chains and studs encrusted with Swarovski crystals, finished with gold plating, rose gold plating and rhodium plating.
The collection will be launched in Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the US this fall, with retail prices ranging from €50 to €250.
ANN DEMEULEMEESTER PARIS 2017
AMAZON TOKYO FASHION WEEK
At Amazon Tokyo Fashion Week, more than 50 designers presented their creations at the Autumn/Winter 2017-18 collections.
Colorful embroidery, creative batik designs and fearless facial jewelry brightened the catwalks where Asian designers presented their collections.
Traditional Indonesian batik material – which applies wax-resistant dyeing to the cloth was the highlight of designer Michelle Tjokrosaputro’s collection, where it featured in vibrant jacket and skirt combinations as well as dresses.
Thai designer Linda Charoenlab added edgy motifs to colorful tartan outfits and complemented the looks with facial jewelry that dangled from models’ ears to their mouths.
ALEXIS MABILLE PARIS 2017
SAINT LAURENT BY VACCA HELLO
February 28th, rue de Bellechasse, Winter 2017 by Anthony Vaccarello directed by nathalie canguilhem soundtrack by sebastian. This is the new vision on St Laurent underband, or something like that. Blue, blue and blue. Coke excluded.
Yves Saint Laurent is of course one of those houses where everyone has an opinion and no two are alike. It would be impossible to ever reach a consensus on what it should, could, needs to be; everyone is a yay-sayer, or a naysayer, just depends on who you ask, that is Fashion. Continue reading
BULGARI THE MOST IMPORTANT MOMENTS
Last Friday, Carlo Calenda, Minister of Economic Development inaugurated the new Bulgari manufacturing plant and offices in Valenza, the historic jewelry hub located between Milan, Turin and Genoa. The Minister of Economic Development, Carlo Calenda stated that “International investments do help Made in Italy”.
When Bulgari was acquired by LVMH in 2011, Italian media worried about a possible decamping of talent and creativity outside the country. However last year Italy registered “record exports” of 417 billion euros, or $459 billion at average exchange, which were “drivers of development, showing what Italian and international entrepreneurs can do.” Continue reading
SONIA RYKIEL 2017 PARIS
Sonia Rykiel
ISSEY MIYAKE IN MILANO
Issey Miyake has inaugurated yesterday its first Italian flagship. Located in Milan on Via Bagutta, the 5,381-square-foot store is the first commercial space to open in 19th century Palazzo Reina, which was recently restored by a real estate firm.
“It’s exciting to see the synergy creating between the historic building and the Issey Miyake collections,” said Issey Miyake designer Yoshiyuki Miyamae, who highlighted that the Milanese flagship carries seven of the company’s lines, including the Issey Miyake label for both men’s and women’s, as well as Pleats Please Issey Miyake and Bao Bao Issey Miyake. “It’s a wide offering and it will be fun to see how customers will mix the different labels.” Continue reading
VÉRONIQUE LEROY 2017 PARIS
BALENCIAGA
Lionel Vermeil is back at Balenciaga, as director of communication and image, effective Tuesday. He continues as director of fashion and luxury intelligence at Kering, Balenciaga’s parent, a role he’s held since September 2014.
Vermeil had been director of communications at Balenciaga between 2007 and 2014. In his expanded role, he is to define the communication strategy and image in concert with Balenciaga’s artistic director Demna Gvasalia.
He reports to Balenciaga chief executive Cédric Charbit and joins the house’s executive committee.
The top communications job has been vacant since mid-2015 when Demetria White rejoined Nike as senior director of global communications. Continue reading
AT THE CULTURAL CROSSROADS IN FRANCE
Catherine Le Yaouanc, General Manager, Franco-British Chamber of Commerce & Industry.
I have now been at the Franco-British Chamber of Commerce and Industry for 24 years. I was recruited as an Administrative Assistant and being alone, I learned the ropes quickly, soon becoming General Manager.
My counterparts, who at the time were all men, quickly trusted me, and as a young woman, it was a pleasure to be in command of such an institution, and at the same time lead a business, participate in its development, have the pleasure of creating, exchanging, learning and helping enterprises. Most of all, I was lucky to work between two countries and two cultures that are so different, yet so close – especially since, at the time, the chamber was in great financial difficulties and everything had to be created and re-created. Continue reading
LEONARD PARIS 2017
JUNKO SHIMADA 伎 IN FASHION
In transit at the Palais de Tokyo today, Junko Shimada literally delivers a collection picked up from her suspended garden between Paris and Tokyo.
Lover of joyful contrasts Junko Shimada makes everything rhyme, day and night, long and short, hot and cold, matte and shiny. Enjoying the delightful shifts, she brings together the cool and the chic, the city and the countryside, the simple and the rich …
Perfecto suits, impeccable overcoats, pencil skirts in woolen cloth stripes, marine sneakers exacer- bated by sinuous pythons. Pristine crepe blouses and dresses with black pleated ridges. Continue reading
CHANEL 2017
This season, Karl Lagerfeld chose to celebrate the French spationaut Thomas Pesquet and invited his guests to take board on the International Space Station. “Fly me to the moon in other Chanel World”
Staged in Grand Palais, the Chanel version of Apollo even appeared to take off at the finale – as booster rockets lifted the 30-meter high structure off the ground, as the rocket retracted into itself.
Karl Lagerfeld stated that “It’s in the spirit of times. Chanel joining a Frenchman in outer space. Besides it’s bound to be better than what we are experiencing down here,”
The runway was amazing as Lagerfeld injected a hipster technological edge into lots of the house’s classics. From the legendary four-pocket suit reimagined in stars-at-night shiny anthracite wool to the sleek super-heroine cocktails finished with mini capes, or coal-black galactic warrior sheathes done with white ruffles – like the Catherine de Medici style much admired by Gabrielle. Continue reading
BALMAIN 2017 PARIS
MANISH ARORA PARIS 2017
LANVIN PARIS 2017
EMPORIO ARMANI MILAN 2017
LA MODE AIME PARIS
Paris Fashion Week starts on Tuesday and ends the marathon of the ready-to-wear Winter-Fall collections 2018. This season seems to be less intense than the previous session of September which had seen a wave of new artistic directions.
Paris Fashion Week expects 5000 visitors, 83 catwalks vs 91 last September and 1 500 foreign journalists which is less than 20 years ago. The collections of ready-to-wear will last 8 days instead of 9, an average of 12 catwalks per day. We will certainly be exhausted by the end.
The big names of the parisian fashion houses will be present except Givenchy which decided not to present a collection further to the departure of Riccardo Tisci. Emanuel Ungaro house has also cancelled the presentation because of a problem of producer. Continue reading