Senin, 09 Februari 2009
The Make or Break Season
Daniel Silver and Steven Cox of Duckie Brown; Lisa Mayock
of Vena Cava; Andrew Buckler; Sophie Buhai; The New York Times
By ERIC WILSON, New York Times
Published: February 4, 2009
ONCE upon a time, American fashion was a fickle, brutal business for young designers.
Newcomers would arrive to great fanfare and then disappear in a few seasons. To reverse this pattern, the industry came together five years ago to create a more welcoming environment. Magazines, stores and trade groups began to nourish and heavily promote a new generation of potential Calvin Kleins and Oscar de la Rentas, handing out prizes, sponsorships and mentoring that made it hard for just about anyone to fail. It is no small measure of their success that New York Fashion Week has become a haven for instantly famous unknowns.
Of the more than 200 fashion labels that will begin showing their fall collections in New York next week, at least half came into existence only in the last decade. A full quarter of them are less than five years old. This season alone, during the worst economic environment in decades, no fewer than 10 new companies are vying for fashion’s spotlight.
The age of the young designer, however, may be coming to an end.
As stores reduce orders by 20 percent or more for fall, the toll on small fashion businesses, many without independent financial backing, is likely to be severe. In the last month, two promising designers lost the support of their investors and face uncertain futures: Peter Som, who makes ladylike sportswear; and the Obedient Sons and Daughters collections, quirky takes on tailored clothes made by the husband-and-wife team Swaim and Christina Hutson.
And among designers, there is fear that the fallout will be far worse after the shows, once orders for fall clothes are confirmed. The more stores that close, the more designers will follow.
“To be honest, we’re writing this whole year off,” said Andrew Buckler, the designer of a seven-year-old collection called Buckler. “We’re just trying to survive.”
Like most of those companies started in the last decade, Buckler is small, with sales less than $10 million. But the line, originally based on jeans, was growing; and two years ago, Mr. Buckler sold a minority of his business to a Turkish manufacturing company, Hey Group. The investment enabled him to open four stores, including two in Manhattan, and to have runway shows for a collection that looks like weekend wear for James Bond.
Six months ago, the Hey company said it would pull back its financing.
“We knew things were getting really tough out there,” Mr. Buckler said. “But it’s still a bitter pill to swallow.”
Things began to look bleak, he said, when some of the 30 small stores around the country that carry Buckler $600 military jackets and $116 knitted polos were taking longer to pay for their orders. Payments that once arrived within 30 days took 60 days, then 90 days to collect. Worse, some of the stores, like Brick Lane, in Los Angeles, went out of business, leaving Mr. Buckler with clothes that had been ordered and produced but never paid for. He had to lay off about a third of his 30 staff members.
For his fall collection, he decided to cut back to the bare bones, condensing the number of styles by half and focusing on jeans and underwear and woven shirts — comparatively inexpensive items that have sold well in the past. To save costs, he plans an informal presentation at his store on Grand Street, instead of on the runways in Bryant Park, where even a small show can cost $100,000 for the designer who pays for the space, hair, makeup, models and, of course, the clothes. At least Mr. Buckler has his own stores to sell the clothes, but going forward, he said, “It’s going to be a lot more about relying on personality and experience, instead of cash.”
In the days before Fashion Week, which begins Feb. 13, a similar story has been playing out in showrooms around the city, as designers adapt to a new reality, one in which talking about new clothes means talking about the new economy. You could sense the dread at a meeting last month between show producers and newspaper reporters to discuss the recession’s impact on Fashion Week, when Paul Wilmot, a leading industry publicist, said, “We need to come up with talking points!”
He already knows the question: Who can afford these clothes?
Flora Gill and Alexa Adams have received enthusiastic attention from retailers since they started Ohne Titel in 2006, but so far only a few stores have carried their eclectic knits and architectural suits, which cost $500 to $3,000. Now buyers are even more hesitant to commit to new talent, so the designers are lowering some prices and moving their dress production from Italy to New York. Even so, Stephen Courter, a partner in the business, sees a silver lining. “I think we are still so small, with lower overhead than the established labels, that we have less to lose,” he said.
What is amazing is how often designers have taken matters into their own scrappy hands.Continued at nytimes.com
Minggu, 08 Februari 2009
Rani Jones: Fabulous, Eco-Friendly Fashion
Rani Jones is the brainchild of designers Rani Patel and Lucy Jones. While it seems that eco-friendly fashion should be an oxymoron, these designers have managed to meld the two to create a collection that is as fashion-forward as it is socially responsible. Their clothes are sharp, inspired by geometry, and the of the type that can punch up your everyday wardrobe. Read ahead to see how these two designers came to create their unique label, and then let me you what YOU think!
—Rebecca Suhrawardi Austin
Can you tell me a bit about your background and how the two of you became a designers?
We both feel that dressing up and make believe played a huge part in both of our childhoods. We had vivid imaginations from a very young age and so design was inherent in both of us whilst growing up. We graduated in different years, both with First Class Honours in BA Fashion Design from the London College of Fashion, by April 2008 the rani jones label was born.
How would you best describe your label?
Rani Jones is a London based eco-luxury womenswear label. Our designs are based on simplifying and modifying conventional pattern cutting techniques to create strong geometric shapes. This approach combined with our exacting attention to detail produces innovative, progressively designed womenswear and accessories.
I'm curious as to why you went the partnership route rather than to start your own independent labels?
We met a year and a half ago whilst designing for the same company and realised that we had similar beliefs and styles of working. Past work experiences opened our eyes to the reality of fast fashion, we had spent time in India, sourcing materials and working with factories and it became apparent to us that our focus had to be on slower fashion. The partnership developed naturally due to our close working relationship.
The cornerstone of the Rani Jones brand is social responsibility and eco-friendliness. Does staying true to that ever interfere with the final design of a garment?
The Rani Jones philosophy challenges pre-conceived thoughts about ethical/environmental fashion, to prove that great design can be enhanced by an eco-approach. We incorporate socially responsible principles and eco-sourcing throughout all decision making processes. Of course this can be quite limiting but it can also be very exciting as due to our research being much more in depth and considered, it can lead us to discover fantastic fabrics etc and things that we wouldn't have come across otherwise.
What sort of woman do you envision wearing your clothes?
The Rani Jones woman is independent and stylish, edgy and sophisticated.
What sort of inspiration did you pull from for this current collection?
Geometry is the basis for all Rani Jones designs with main inspiration derived from Brutalism. The Brutalist architectural style sees buildings formed with striking repetitive angles to give a raw unadorned concrete appearance. We take the rough blocky Brutalist aesthetic and transform it into something that speaks of luxury-resulting in beautifully constructed wearable garments that retain a sexy feminine edge.
What do you think makes London so special as a fashion capital?
London encourages very expressive, creative fashion which is supported by the amazing fashion colleges which are here. London as a city is saturated in history and has an amazing cultural diversity and so is always bursting with inspiration.
What advice would you give to aspiring designers?
We absolutely support and encourage any avenues that allow people to be creative, generate and share their ideas. Make the most of your surroundings and never take things for granted.
See more at ranijones.com
Sabtu, 07 Februari 2009
Croatia Online - Croatia's Natural Splendour
This week had many highlights, and two will go down as "bests" in the last six years of getting to know Croatia.
Sorry to tease our readers but the full story behind today's photo has to be reserved for the 2009/10 edition of Time Out's Magazine For Visitors' To Croatia, due out in April/May 2009. Suffice to say that we had a very good reason, and an excellent local guide, to help us discover all that is best and unspoilt about Croatia's natural splendour. If there isn't the space to do it full justice in Time Out, amidst all the other competing areas of interest, Croatia Online readers can be assured of many more postings on the subject later on in 2009.
The photo is of the source of the River Cetina, which flows to the sea at Omiš. The pool is around 100 metres deep and fed by the snow from the nearby mountains.
Jumat, 06 Februari 2009
Croatia Online - Royal Visit
Her Royal Highness, Princess Anne, made an official visit to Croatia this week, taking in a number of functions and activities in Zagreb and Split.
According to the Croatian media, the visit seems to have been very well received.
To a Croatia loving Brit it's a source of great pride that "the powers that be" have organised a visit to Croatia from such a senior member of the Royal Family. It's also a matter of continuing amazement as to how the British Royal Family, in general, manage to fit so much into a short space of time, and still appear genuinely interested in everyone they meet and everything they see.
President Mešić’s present to the Princess Royal was also of some interest - a pair of earrings made from "Šibenik Buttons". These are very ornate traditional buttons, often used on Klapa singers' costumes, and revived as an original souvenir of Croatia.
You can see more about the visit on the following links:
Finally, for Royalty and Croatia lovers, below is an extract from a small book Croatia Online's editor wrote, on Croatia, for Boat International.
Royalty in Croatia
In the early 1100’s Biograd was the crowning place of Hungarian Kings, but fame gave way to devastation not once, but twice. The Venetians razed it to the ground in 1115 and it was demolished again in 1646 as the inhabitants retreated from the Turks.
British Royalty has many links with Croatia, starting with Richard the Lion Heart who was shipwrecked off the coast when he returned from the Crusades. Zadar’s Royal significance is by virtue of its Maraschino, the cherry liqueur made by Maraska. Queen Victoria and George IV sent warships for it and the Prince of Wales, later to become King George VI, made a personal visit to the distillery in 1887 to collect his. More recently Rab became notorious when King Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson allegedly took full advantage of its naturist beaches in 1936, before the abdication.
In the early 1100’s Biograd was the crowning place of Hungarian Kings, but fame gave way to devastation not once, but twice. The Venetians razed it to the ground in 1115 and it was demolished again in 1646 as the inhabitants retreated from the Turks.
British Royalty has many links with Croatia, starting with Richard the Lion Heart who was shipwrecked off the coast when he returned from the Crusades. Zadar’s Royal significance is by virtue of its Maraschino, the cherry liqueur made by Maraska. Queen Victoria and George IV sent warships for it and the Prince of Wales, later to become King George VI, made a personal visit to the distillery in 1887 to collect his. More recently Rab became notorious when King Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson allegedly took full advantage of its naturist beaches in 1936, before the abdication.
Today's photo shows Princess Anne at the Regent Esplanade in Zagreb meeting Martina Žubčić, a Taekwondo Expert, accompanied by Tomislav Kaznačić of the British Embassy in Croatia - source www.javno.com:Pixsell.
Kamis, 05 Februari 2009
The It bag is over. Cue the hit shoe
By Suzy Menkes, International Herald Tribune
Balenciaga shoes, farfetch.com
PARIS: Like an attention-grabbing wild child who finally grew up, the handbag has resumed its former role as a polite appendage to the family of fashion.
After its decade in the limelight, the It bag is finally over. That does not mean that purses, holdalls and totes are finished. How could we live without them? But that the focus is on other accessories: designer jewelry, broad bangles, wide belts and madly creative shoes.
The bag is now blending with an outfit as though it no longer wants to show off its voluptuous shape, rattle its heavy metal chains, or be a one-season wonder that is then auctioned on eBay to pay for the next hot design.
The deflation of the bag's status is partly from fashion fatigue. When a Victoria Beckham, a Paris Hilton or any reed-thin Hollywood star wears a uniform of skinny jeans and sexy top, jazzed up with a vast bag, there has to be change to entice customers to buy.
Judging by the designer offerings displayed in post-sale shop windows, shoes are out to steal the limelight, with mighty platforms, carved heels, cages of straps and all sorts of decoration, from feathers to beading.
Since the "model wobble" was a feature of the recent runways, the concept of "falling for" a pair of these pricey pieces is going to take on a whole new meaning. Yet, to some extent, the It shoe makes sense, in that it is a rare piece of footwear that survives the assaults of uneven sidewalks, heel-trapping grids and wet weather. Only flats - and they are the least fancy styles on offer - tend to linger in the closet.
A bag can give lasting pleasure, maybe even be passed down from mother to daughter, as were the Hermès Kelly, Chanel's classic quilted purse or even - in the pre-Tom-Ford era - Gucci's bar-and-bit bags.
Inevitably, classicism is on the way back in a jittery financial climate that is encouraging customers to look for lasting value. So there is also an emotional and intellectual reason to look for a fresh fashion start after the dramatic end of the bling-bling era.
Clothes themselves, after taking a modest position during the era of star accessories, have become more substantial. So bags become polite partners, not flashy competition, to a leather dress or to black and white patterned pajamas, both color and texture folding in together.
The concept of sustainability, a conscience about a wasteful society and the pertinent problem of finding the money for new purchases, all contribute to a mind-set where the It bag seems frivolous.
Yves Saint Laurent Spring 2009 shoe
photo: International Herald Tribune
Luxury companies have anticipated the change. Where there are logos, they tend to be quiet and classic - the Stephen Sprouse collaboration with Louis Vuitton excepted. And the more familiar LV logo canvas or Damier patterns make up the main stock.
Bags have also become smaller, with the clutch or traditional purse competing with the vast empty space in which a woman's life - phone, wallet, makeup, scarf, sneakers, change of hose, food and water - is hurled.
It all adds up to good sense, and sensibility to changing times. And if there is also a history of a recession producing wild design, well, those fantasy shoes, where design and craftsmanship are compressed into such a small space, could add a springtime fillip to clothes recycled from the closet for another season.
Balenciaga shoes, farfetch.com
PARIS: Like an attention-grabbing wild child who finally grew up, the handbag has resumed its former role as a polite appendage to the family of fashion.
After its decade in the limelight, the It bag is finally over. That does not mean that purses, holdalls and totes are finished. How could we live without them? But that the focus is on other accessories: designer jewelry, broad bangles, wide belts and madly creative shoes.
The bag is now blending with an outfit as though it no longer wants to show off its voluptuous shape, rattle its heavy metal chains, or be a one-season wonder that is then auctioned on eBay to pay for the next hot design.
The deflation of the bag's status is partly from fashion fatigue. When a Victoria Beckham, a Paris Hilton or any reed-thin Hollywood star wears a uniform of skinny jeans and sexy top, jazzed up with a vast bag, there has to be change to entice customers to buy.
Judging by the designer offerings displayed in post-sale shop windows, shoes are out to steal the limelight, with mighty platforms, carved heels, cages of straps and all sorts of decoration, from feathers to beading.
Since the "model wobble" was a feature of the recent runways, the concept of "falling for" a pair of these pricey pieces is going to take on a whole new meaning. Yet, to some extent, the It shoe makes sense, in that it is a rare piece of footwear that survives the assaults of uneven sidewalks, heel-trapping grids and wet weather. Only flats - and they are the least fancy styles on offer - tend to linger in the closet.
A bag can give lasting pleasure, maybe even be passed down from mother to daughter, as were the Hermès Kelly, Chanel's classic quilted purse or even - in the pre-Tom-Ford era - Gucci's bar-and-bit bags.
Inevitably, classicism is on the way back in a jittery financial climate that is encouraging customers to look for lasting value. So there is also an emotional and intellectual reason to look for a fresh fashion start after the dramatic end of the bling-bling era.
Clothes themselves, after taking a modest position during the era of star accessories, have become more substantial. So bags become polite partners, not flashy competition, to a leather dress or to black and white patterned pajamas, both color and texture folding in together.
The concept of sustainability, a conscience about a wasteful society and the pertinent problem of finding the money for new purchases, all contribute to a mind-set where the It bag seems frivolous.
Yves Saint Laurent Spring 2009 shoe
photo: International Herald Tribune
Luxury companies have anticipated the change. Where there are logos, they tend to be quiet and classic - the Stephen Sprouse collaboration with Louis Vuitton excepted. And the more familiar LV logo canvas or Damier patterns make up the main stock.Bags have also become smaller, with the clutch or traditional purse competing with the vast empty space in which a woman's life - phone, wallet, makeup, scarf, sneakers, change of hose, food and water - is hurled.
It all adds up to good sense, and sensibility to changing times. And if there is also a history of a recession producing wild design, well, those fantasy shoes, where design and craftsmanship are compressed into such a small space, could add a springtime fillip to clothes recycled from the closet for another season.
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