THE BEAUTY OF IMPERFECTIONChaos, crowds, hype, digital explosion: Is the system headed for a burnout? THE RAF YEARS A look at Raf Simons’ tenure at Christian Dior as he exits the

THE BEAUTY OF IMPERFECTION

NEW FOR FALL/WINTER 2016/17

KAPUTT DESIGNED BY

Fashion. Beauty. Business.

OCT

2015

No. 4

Overheated!All fashion, all the time. Chaos, crowds, hype, digital explosion:

Is the system headed for a burnout?

THE RAFYEARSA look at Raf Simons’

tenure at Christian

Dior as he exits the

iconic fashion house.

Fashion, p. 8

INDEPENDENTSTREAKMaking their marks

as autonomous

designers in handbags

and eyewear.

Accessories, p. 16

ENTER MR.BURBERRYThe U.K. power brand

is launching a men’s

scent and a capsule

fashion line.

Beauty, p. 30

tk Caption Rate nisque et eserae plitatem quuntion pe voluptae senimus doloribus a natem renimet fugiati squam, ipsus si sum quia

Photograph by ELI SCHMIDT

Edward Nardoza EDITOR IN CHIEF

Pete Born EXECUTIVE EDITOR, BEAUTY

Bridget Foley EXECUTIVE EDITOR

James Fallon EDITOR

Robb Rice GROUP DESIGN DIRECTOR

John B. Fairchild 1927 — 2015

MANAGING EDITOR Peter Sadera MANAGING EDITOR, Dianne M. Pogoda FASHION/SPECIAL REPORTS EUROPEAN EDITOR Miles Socha DEPUTY MANAGING EDITOR Evan Clark NEWS DIRECTOR Lisa Lockwood DEPUTY EDITOR, DATA AND ANALYSIS Arthur Zaczkiewicz DEPUTY FASHION EDITOR Donna Heiderstadt SITTINGS DIRECTOR Alex Badia SENIOR EDITOR, RETAIL David Moin SENIOR EDITOR, SPECIAL PROJECTS, Arthur Friedman TEXTILES & TRADE SENIOR EDITORS, FINANCIAL Arnold J. Karr, Vicki M. Young ASSOCIATE EDITOR Lorna Koski BUREAU CHIEF, LONDON Samantha Conti BUREAU CHIEF, MILAN Luisa Zargani BUREAU CHIEF, LOS ANGELES Marcy Medina ASIAN EDITOR Amanda Kaiser BUREAU CHIEF, WASHINGTON Kristi Ellis SENIOR FASHION EDITOR Bobbi Queen ASSOCIATE EDITOR Jenny B. Fine SENIOR EDITOR, SPECIALTY RETAIL Sharon Edelson SENIOR PRESTIGE MARKET Julie Naughton BEAUTY EDITOR SENIOR FASHION FEATURES EDITOR Jessica Iredale ACCESSORIES MARKET DIRECTOR Roxanne Robinson FASHION MARKET DIRECTOR Mayte Allende EYE EDITORS Taylor Harris, Erik Maza

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LONDON, GENERAL ASSIGNMENT Lorelei Marfil REPORTER LOS ANGELES Khanh T.L. Tran, Kari Hamanaka MILAN, FASHION AND NEWS Alessandra Turra NEW YORK, EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS William Cotto, Tara Bonet-Black, Kelsi Zimmerman Ellen Thomas NEW YORK, FASHION ASSISTANTS Andrew Shang, Ashley Davis, Kayana Cordwell PARIS, EUROPEAN BEAUTY EDITOR Jennifer Weil PARIS, SENIOR FASHION EDITOR Laurent Folcher PARIS, SENIOR BUSINESS NEWS EDITOR Joelle Diderich PARIS, GENERAL ASSIGNMENT Paulina Szmydke REPORTER, NEWS PARIS, EDITORIAL AND WEB ASSISTANT Anne-Aymone Gheerbrant WEB EDITOR, EUROPE Laure Guilbault SAN FRANCISCO, TECHNOLOGY Maghan McDowell

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CREATIVE DIRECTOR Nick Mrozowski SENIOR DESIGNER Christa Guerra DESIGNER Jewelyn Butron

PHOTOGRAPHY

PHOTO DIRECTOR Ash Barhamand PHOTO EDITOR Jenna Greene BOOKINGS AND PRODUCTION EDITOR Oona Wally ASSOCIATE PHOTO EDITOR Katrina Brown

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PUBLIC RELATIONS PR COORDINATOR Christina Mastroianni

The supercharged finale at the Balmain × H&M fashion show.

Overheated! 50 It’s chaotic and crowded, superhyped and on digital overload — is the fashion system heading for a big burnout?

Graphic Novel42 Fresh from collection runways that demonstrated the power of accessories, spring’s crop steals the scene with bold strokes of color and form — and a touch of mystery.

The Features

Contents

4 OCTOBER 2015, No. 4 WWD.COM

6 Social Studies The best and worst in social media,

what’s trending, whom to follow.

38 Eye • Parties Olivier Rousteing’s birthday bash in

L.A. and Fashion Group International’s New

York soiree.

• Report Card Beyoncé with a rare miss . . .

New York Mets slugger Daniel Murphy gets in

on the act.

60 They Are Wearing Attendees on the streets of Seoul Fashion

Week expressed their style, both street and

chic, to the letter.

64 Finale Christian Dior revolutionized fashion with his New

Look, building the foundation for a house still

thriving today.

DEPARTMENTS

Agenda

Bold declarations, hand-scribbled missives and some seriously supersized accessories were among the

street highlights at Seoul Fashion Week.They Are Wearing, page 60

36Runway suits are being

updated for spring with a

rainbow of colors.

Beauty 30Burberry is unleashing its latest

men’s fragrance, Mr. Burberry,

along with a capsule fashion

line . . . Smell Test.

Accessories 16Making a mark as an

independent handbag

designer . . . Bespoke

eyewear gains traction.

Fashion 8Bridget Foley’s Diary: A

look at Raf Simons’ tenure

at Christian Dior, as he exits

the house.

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BIGGER

THE WEEK IN SOCIAL MEDIA

Follow Us @WWD

EDITED BY KRISTEN TAUER


Let’s Follow

Social Studies

#BOOMERANG: Instagram has launched a new stand-alone app. Boomerang takes a burst of photos and animates them into a video that plays forward and backward in a loop. Miranda Kerr, Karlie Kloss, Ashley Graham, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Chrissy Teigen were among the first users to try out the feature.

Trending

@itsjeremyscottFashion designer

@anndemeulemeesterFashion designer

Choreographer Emery LeCrone showed a moving side of Ann Demeulemeester’s collection.

@pamelalovenycJewelry designer

Crystal Renn took a shining to Pamela Love’s ring at the American Ballet Theatre fall gala.

@marahoffmanDesigner

“Favorite coat of the season. Looks good on everyone.” Clearly, the outerwear market has gotten very crowded.

@vfilesBrand

“Thinking about Halloween ”We’re scared already.

“WID DA LADIEZZZ #CUBA”Jeremy Scott and his friends make for a colorful crew.

@gigihadidModel

“When Subway needs a new spokesperson.. ;)”Just what Subway needs — more controversy.

Best Worst

THE ACTIVIST

@viviennewestwoodofficial

Fashion designer

CREATING CARVEN

@adriencaillaudaud

Co-artistic director, Carven

ARTISTIC EYE

@baibakovart

Founder, Baibakov Art projects

@evachen212

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FashionAgendaThe First . . .Raf Simons began his exploration of Dior, showing his fall 2012 couture collection against a backdrop of floor-to-ceiling blooms.

EDITED BY DONNA HEIDERSTADT

The Goodbye

Game

Bridget Foley’s DiaryThe civil exit — fashion’s new way.

Raf Simons lived it at Dior.

. . . and LastSimons closed out his tenure this season with another floral wonder, a mountain of blue delphiniums.

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Simons is the second designer this season to

leave a house following a single contract; Alexander

Wang sprinted his way down the runway and out

the door following his final show for Balenciaga.

The two cases are similar in the obvious context:

designer in, designer out. But the Dior case reso-

nates more dramatically. First, Dior is one of Paris’

Big Two, and the anchor of Bernard Arnault’s

empire. Secondly, despite Wang’s very good work

for Balenciaga, we never got the feeling of a strong

mutual embrace. Though aesthetically 180 degrees

from Galliano, Simons seemed perfect for Dior.

And while he never quite delivered a collection

of the rapture-inducing sort as those with which

he closed his tenure at Jil Sander, he delivered

consistently beautiful clothes while moving toward

claiming Dior as his own. One could see the seeds

of rabid modernism planted in his first collection

in which a ballgown became a sweater and skirt or

a Bar, a sleek smoking. Explorations of M. Dior’s

love of gardens swung respectful (flower-splashed

shirts shown in flower-covered rooms) to bold (a

visit to Bosch’s “The Garden of Earthly Delights”).

He often played with contrast, whether hard/soft,

past/future, nature/urbanity and he incorporated

elements of the modern art he loves into his work.

The point of bravado came in his obvious,

deep knowledge of the legacy, his invocation of

its tenants, and the funneling of that through his

own bold worldview, which became increasingly

more apparent through the past several collec-

tions. As much as Galliano’s vision enraptured at

its pinnacle, Simons dangled an equally powerful

alternative — the promise of experiencing the

splendor of Dior through a current/futuristic

rather than retro lens. During his brief tenure,

he went both powerful and gentle, closing on the

latter note with his October collection, which he

said was a reaction to all of the cacophony going

on in fashion right now.

Backstage before his show, Simons waxed

reflective. “In the context of everything that’s

COUTURE FALL 2012

RTW SPRING 2013

COUTURE SPRING 2013

Raf’s RunwayOne and done. Is that the new contract norm

for designers at major houses? Last week, news broke that Raf Simons had staged his last show as women’s creative director for Christian Dior. Simons exits the post he assumed after the long search that followed John Galliano’s now-infamous implosion.

Backstage at Dior’s spring 2013 couture

show. Below: The fall 2013 ready-to-wear

runway.

►


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Clockwise from top left: Two looks from Dior’s fall 2013 couture collection; on the fall 2014 ready-to-wear runway; an offering from spring 2013 rtw; backstage at the fall 2015 rtw show.

There are differences. With the exception of

Vuitton-Jacobs, the above situations were overtly

acrimonious. But remove the ignominy of the Gal-

liano debacle and the mistrust/anger/outrage (call

it what you will) of the other two, and a glaring

difference remains. Each designer took creative

ownership of the brand. Though in the throes

of addiction and far from his creative best when

he left, Galliano had taken Dior by the Bar and

transported the house and its audience to a new

and magical place. His vision of Dior became Dior.

Ghesquière grasped a dormant moniker, revered

by the few and unconsidered by the many, and

made a marvel of it, a breathless expression of

high-minded uber cool. Jacobs created a sense of

theatrical fancy that played into Vuitton’s tradition

of travel while turning it on its head. As for Ford,

he re-created Gucci into a fashion power while

virtually inventing the notion of mass luxury — and

setting the major house-creative director template

that endured for about 20 years. (Time continues

to prove the Chanel-Karl Lagerfeld pairing is the

template of nothing other than its own highly

envied uniqueness.)

In each case, in the fashion psyche, the brand

became if not always indistinguishable from, then

linked inextricably to the designer’s rendering of

it. That happens not only with talent, but with

time. We thought of those designers as creators

COUTURE FALL 2013

RTW FALL 2013

RTW SPRING 2014

COUTURE SPRING 2014

COUTURE FALL 2014

RTW FALL 2014

happening right now, I’m questioning a lot,”

he said, noting that for his collection he sought

“something that’s calm, calm and beautiful and

sensitive and romantic.” In retrospect, it’s the

same kind of note — a similar palette, even — on

which he departed Sander, though that collection

had more of an elegiac aura.

A statement accompanied the departure news

last week. “It is a decision based entirely and

equally on my desire to focus on other interests in

my life, including my own brand, and the passions

that drive me outside my work,” Simons said.

Sounds like he wants a life — and more power

to him. (The comment plays serendipitously

into the cover story of this issue, “Overheated!”

When WWD posed the query across the industry

we didn’t expect a major event to drop into our

editorial laps as Exhibit A.)

In the same release, Bernard Arnault and Sidney

Toledano acknowledged “Raf Simons’ decision

and very warmly thank him for his exceptional

contribution to the house.”

All-around lucid words, as were those sur-

rounding Wang’s Balenciaga exit. What neither

carries: the resonant emotion of departures past

— Galliano’s from Dior, Nicolas Ghesquière’s from

Balenciaga, Marc Jacobs’ from Louis Vuitton and

the divorce that started it all, Tom Ford’s gloves-

off, still-hard-feelings split from Gucci. ►

It takes all-nighters, moonlighting, and burning the midnight oil to get to where you want to be.

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How is it possible for women to feel loyalty toward a brand when the next designer in might not speak to us at all?

COUTURE FALL 2015

RTW FALL 2015

RTW SPRING 2015

RTW SPRING 2016

COUTURE SPRING 2015

first and employees a distant second, if at all —

even Ford, who proudly paved the way for a new

generation of commercially oriented designers.

(That mind-set was part of the creation of which

he took ownership.)

Each of these designers had an extensive tenure,

time to claim, develop and own the house’s cre-

ative aura. When each left his respective outpost,

the split was fraught with emotion, for him, for his

bosses, for their clientele.

One saw Simons beginning to take genuine

ownership; surely the modernist bent felt right,

as if he’d seen Dior through transition to the cusp

of a new age. Yet that promise didn’t have time

to ferment. Three years into his tenure and less

than three years into his confident takeover of the

aesthetic, Simons’ modernist Dior was still a work

in progress, one that will now get scrapped as a

new creative director will head in.

Fashion has changed wildly since those now

distant Ford/Galliano/Jacobs/Ghesquière appoint-

ments. The short-term designer tenure is yet

one of many manifestations of that change, its

particular fallout just starting to show. Simons’

Dior departure, and Wang’s from Balenciaga,

seem less like emotionally charged schisms than

carefully considered corporate breaks with the

designers moving on, for whatever reasons, to

pursue other interests. Thank you for your service!

Nothing wrong with that; it’s probably a whole

lot more emotionally sound for all involved (not

to mention mature) than agonized splits marked

by finger-pointing and pain. But it’s a clinical

approach that consumers will feel. How is it pos-

sible for women to feel loyalty toward a brand — at

least where clothes are concerned — when the next

designer in might not speak to us at all? We’ll still

feel the tingly excitement of awaiting the new, and

passion when it clicks — Gucci for some; Saint Lau-

rent for others. But loyalty is a different animal.

Hence the megabrands today, at least those with

employee creative directors, increasingly live in

and nurture dual realities. They want the buzz,

the hype, the social media frenzy that comes with

a hot designer; they want the creative validation

that comes when that designer clicks with critics.

Yet they also want — and need — to hedge against

implosion, particularly by the brand’s most

high-profile employee. Thus — Hedi Slimane’s

broad creative control aside — many brands

develop not just products, but whole identities

separate and apart from the designer’s role at

the company. Dior has its Rihanna and Jennifer

Lawrence campaigns, its classic handbags, high

jewelry, glam sneakers and tribal earrings. One

doesn’t really feel Raf in their marketing, even

if, of late, the brand imagery has taken a decided

modernist turn.

The result is that, in this era of hypersaturation

when everything operates at fever pitch and there

is a seemingly insatiable global appetite for fash-

ion, much of fashion is, at its creative source, less

emotional and more clinical than ever before. It’s

laudable to see Simons’ Dior run end with such

civility. It’s sad that we won’t get to experience

this great designer take full-on ownership of one

of fashion’s greatest legacies. ■

¬

From the top: An evening grouping from Dior’s spring 2014 ready-to-wear collection; the venue Simons erected for his fall 2015 couture show; a look from the spring 2015 couture runway.

Photograph by SHAWN BRACKBILL16 OCTOBER 2015, No. 4 WWD.COM

AccessoriesAgenda EDITED BY DIANNE M. POGODA

No Man’s (Bag) LandWhen it comes to the latest wave of independent bag designers, infiltrating the Old Boys’ Club is not

among the challenges these women faced when starting their lines. But breaking into a system of established leather goods made by centuries-old European luxury houses does have it ups and downs. Starting a

collection in a saturated marketplace can be equal parts thrill ride and endurance test. As Dee Ocleppo remarked, “It’s been like dragging a refrigerator across a beach,” while Jill Fairchild said of the experience,

“When do we get our lives back?” Jill Haber said her biggest challenge was “Just getting people to understand that I make beautiful bags. Trust me.” ¶ One thing they all agree on is that a big key to success is

establishing a unique product. Here are 10 emerging names and the bags for which they’re best known.

By ROXANNE ROBINSON with contributions from LAUREN MCCARTHY, ALESSANDRA TURRA, PAULINA SZMYDKE and LORELEI MARFIL

From left: Karen Baldwin, Jill Fairchild, Jill Haber, Dee Ocleppo and Marin Hopper.

Battaglia photograph by PIOTR NIEPSUJ18 OCTOBER 2015, No. 4 WWD.COM

Acc

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Sara Battaglia YEAR LAUNCHED: 2010RETAIL PRICE RANGE: $908 to $1,020TOP RETAILERS: Saks Fifth Avenue; Intermix; Matches; Le Bon Marché; Al Ostoura; On Pedder; Lane Crawford; Luisa via RomaKEY LOOKS: Lady Me, a clutch with metal details in gold or silver, made in satin or leather; Bespoke, a clutch with metal details in gold or silver with application of letters, made in satin or leather; Teresa Bag, a shoulder bag with fringe made in leather with triangle application in Plexi.

HOW IMPORTANT IS THE “SIGNATURE BAG” AND WHY?

“With a designer bag, you can have the quality or the creativity and luxury,” Battaglia said. “With mine, you have all of them.”

M I L A N

Jill HaberYEAR LAUNCHED: 2013RETAIL PRICE RANGE: $450 to $2,195TOP RETAILERS: Harvey Nichols; Moda Operandi; Ikram; Chuckies New YorkKEY LOOKS: Modern, vintage-inspired evening boxes; mixed-media clutches and day bags.


“It’s helpful, but it’s not crucial,” Haber said. “I do evening bags, I’m starting to do day bags, I do top handles, metal frames, soft cuts — everything. I just want a woman to think, ‘I want a bag, so I want a Jill Haber bag.’ I don’t want anyone to think, ‘Ugh, it’s that same-old, same-old.’”

N E W YO R K

Delphine DelafonYEAR LAUNCHED: 2013RETAIL PRICE RANGE :$283 to $1,700TOP RETAILERS: Saks Fifth Avenue; Le Bon Marché; Harvey NicholsKEY LOOKS: The bucket bag — most popular in black leather and mixed with python skin, studs and fringes. For spring, the designer is launching her second style, a saddle bag, in a rich mix of contrasting materials, including conventional and exotic skins, embellished and mixed with vintage fabrics.


“All brands have their signature styles for customers to quickly

identify with them,” Delafon said. “But it’s even more relevant for the customer to have a signature of her own. [Parisian] girls don’t dress in designer clothing from head to toe. They like to run around in a pair of jeans to remain practical, so they look at the bag as the cherry on top. There’s a fetish relationship between the girls and their bags, which — unlike the rest of their look — can be a little bit more luxurious; distinctive, but easy.”

PA R I S

Showroom35 l Handbag Showroom 19 West 34th St. 7th Floor, New York, NY 10001

Photograph by PIOTR NIEPSUJ20 OCTOBER 2015, No. 4 WWD.COM

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Elena Ghisellini YEAR LAUNCHED: 2013RETAIL PRICE RANGE: $567 to $2,024TOP RETAILERS: Saks Fifth Avenue; Bergdorf Goodman; La Rinascente; Joseph; Luisa Via Roma; Harvey Nichols; Coin Excelsior; Moda Operandi; Neiman Marcus Direct; Jacques Loup; Boutique 1; J DirectionKEY LOOKS: The Felina Box in scarlet, a metallic box clutch with leather flap and metallic details; the Gabria Sensua Reef leather bowler bag; the Gia P Tiger Jamaica printed leather clutch with detachable fringed strap, and the Mini Leo Sensua, a black leather bucket.

HOW IMPORTANT IS THE “SIGNATURE

BAG” AND WHY?

“The signature bag is a challenge and an achievement,” Ghisellini said. “It’s important to develop a unique item that [captures the brand’s] style and philosophy. A signature bag is a timeless and individual piece that, no matter the season or age of the client, effortlessly fits the time and the woman who wears it. My objective is to create essential bags that are contemporary cool and define a status.”

F LO R E N C E

Photograph by FRANCISCO GOMEZ DE VILLABOA22 OCTOBER 2015, No. 4 WWD.COM

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Dee Ocleppo YEAR LAUNCHED: 2012 in Harrods; expanded globally in 2014RETAIL PRICE RANGE: $595 to $15,000 (main collection); $295 to $695 (upcoming secondary collection, BagBar)TOP RETAILERS: Saks Fifth Avenue; Harrods; The Room at Hudson’s Bay;

deeocleppo.comKEY LOOKS: Classic silhouettes with patented interchangeable covers. Top-selling silhouettes are the Roma, available in mini, medium and large, and the Hong Kong, a cross-body bag that holds the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6+.

HOW IMPORTANT IS THE “SIGNATURE BAG”

AND WHY?

“It’s important in order to make a dent or make

your mark, particularly when you are launching a brand,” Ocleppo said. “It doesn’t matter if you are already a Louis Vuitton or [an established brand] like that. In my case, it certainly helps.”

N E W YO R K

Aevha CREATIVE DIRECTOR:: Alice HorlickYEAR LAUNCHED: 2013RETAIL PRICE RANGE: $765 to $1,540TOP RETAILERS: Graziashop; 1st Dibs; Handbag.comKEY LOOKS: Sculptural silhouettes and hand- carved finishes.


“The signature bag is key in defining and embodying a brand,” Horlick said. “When women purchase a handbag they are investing in a status symbol, and to build the signature bag into this symbol is the most important thing an emerging designer can do. It will remain a constant, despite the changing seasons and trends; it will never go out of style.”

LO N D O N

Fairchild Baldwin DESIGNERS:: Jill Fairchild and Karen BaldwinYEAR LAUNCHED: 2013RETAIL PRICE RANGE: $495 to $1,850TOP RETAILERS: Julian Gold; Peter Elliot; Barbara Katz; Button Down; Saks Jandel; Copius Row; Elements; Amina Rubinacci; Paul Simon; Walin & WolffKEY LOOKS: Evening “O” bag; bags that go from day to night, such as the rucksack, the mini Victoria style and the Arabella tote.


“It is very important — it is the beginnings and the birth of a collection,” Fairchild said. “Once you have that signature bag, then you build around it, and that’s how you build the rest of your collection. Also, that’s how the market identifies you. Once you’ve hit the nail on the head, you can reinvent it over and over again.”

N E W YO R K

Photograph by PIOTR NIEPSUJ

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YEAR LAUNCHED: 2010RETAIL PRICE RANGE: $700 to $2,600TOP RETAILERS: Net-a-porter; Saks Fifth Avenue; Holt Renfrew; Antonia; Lane CrawfordKEY LOOKS: Petite Fay top-handle bag; Tatiana shoulder bag; Alice cross-body; Sylvie clutch.


“Shaping a signature model means making your aesthetic and vision strongly identifiable and different from others,” Cademartori said. “Its value is paramount, for it’s a proof of the right creative sensibility, intuition, and way to create something that is unique, timeless and desirable. As a designer, I must admit that this is surely the most challenging and exciting part of the job.”

M I L A N

Paula Cademartori

Hayward/Marin Hopper YEAR LAUNCHED: 2014RETAIL PRICE RANGE:$500 TO $15,000TOP RETAILERS: Hayward House; Moda Operandi; Farfetch.comKEY LOOKS: Spring cross-body in black-and-white leather, and canvas with pink python trim; hobo in navy suede with caramel veg tan whip-stitched leather handle; box clutch in black alligator.


“As much as I love bags that are unadorned — and we do make them — I do want [our customers] to have a reason to gravitate toward our bags,” Hopper said. “It doesn’t have to be so obvious, but it does have to be something that catches the eye for that particular brand.”

N E W YO R K

WWD.COM OCTOBER 2015, No. 4 25

AD8.3 × 5.625

Little LiffnerYEAR LAUNCHED: 2012RETAIL PRICE RANGE: $350 to $600TOP RETAILERS: Barneys; Tomorrowland; United ArrowsKEY LOOKS: The brand launched with three large styles: tote, clutch and pouch, nicknamed “Power,” before introducing a saddle bag, the main style for the spring. Each bag marries clean Scandinavian lines with Italian craftsmanship.


“I started my brand as a [counter-movement] to the ‘It’ bag. The styles are simple, because I wanted them to evolve with the kind of style a customer likes,” Liffner said. “A signature is important so customers can get to know the brand and get used to it. But it’s also important to evolve and perfect one’s own style. So I wanted to have the notion of a bag that is not branded, which would allow you to wear it longer and in more versatile ways.”

STO C K H O L M


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Photograph by DOMINIQUE MAÎTRE

Artisan and bespoke eyewear makers set themselves apart with unique materials, technology and service.By PAULINA SZMYDKE

IndividualPreference

Independent eyewear brands are gaining

traction.

Their perpetual quest for innovation

and desire to present unique product is

setting the bar high for larger competitors,

as the indies’ premium materials, high

level of technique — including bespoke —

and often groundbreaking design are driving both

price and demand.

Hidden in a small passage behind the Palais

Royal in Paris is one of the last surviving artisans

who has mastered the fine art of bespoke eyewear.

Spanning four generations, Maison Bonnet is a

family affair. Franck Bonnet learned the craft from

his father, much like his ancestors did before him.

All day, he draws new styles, cuts, files, polishes

and thermo-shapes each piece by hand.

No fewer than 30 hours of manual labor, fol-

lowing years of meticulous training, are required

to create one pair of bespoke spectacles. “This is

our asset but also our biggest challenge,” he said.

“It takes a long time to train people, and the work-

shops that were able to do so have disappeared.

We actually cannot do more than 1,000 pairs of

frames per year.”

The artisan is looking to hire. With the revival

of bespoke and a thriving couture business, Mai-

son Bonnet’s sales have been rising by at least 15

percent per year since 2009. In fact, the house

plans to export his savoir-faire beyond the French

borders via a London workshop, opening in 2016.

“We represent less than 1 percent of the market,

but the niche is real,” noted Antoine Weil of Mai-

son Bourgeat, a fellow artisan workshop founded

in 1879 in Morez, France, a valley in the Jura Moun-

tains, known as the cradle of bespoke spectacles.

Weil, who in February revived the bespoke

brand with his partner Guillaume Clerc, said,

“There is a tendency among consumers to return

to what’s authentic, and with sustainability as a

factor. Industrial glasses don’t last. You have to

change them every year, every one-and-a-half

years. That’s how the big groups survive. It’s a

mass market. Bespoke lasts.”

Besides a fastidious technique, durability is

achieved through the use of exceptional materi-

als. Having been named a “maître d’art” by the

French Ministry of Culture, Bonnet’s father has

been entrusted with a precious stock of turtle shell

collected before the ban imposed by the CITES

Convention of 1975, with the goal of preserving

the craft of working with the material.

“What is special about turtle shell is that it is

the closest thing to human skin. It’s composed

of keratin like our hair and nails, it’s ultralight,

extremely stable without the risk of deformation

and it doesn’t provoke transpiration, which also

means that it doesn’t slip,” Bonnet said.

At his workshop, the product is not merely

referred to as frames but “expressive objects,”

“an extension of the clients’ personality,” Bonnet

said. Weight, height and ergonomic factors count

just as much as actual measurements of a client’s

face: the prominence of the cheeks, the distance

between the pupils, at least three different nose

angles, eyelash length, the path of the eyebrows.

Just don’t call it math. “It is not mathematical.

We recently had an American diva here, a super-

strong woman, ingenious. We knocked ourselves

out creating glasses in tune with her silhouette,”

he said, noting that a bespoke eyewear-maker is

also somewhat of a fashion consultant.

Among those who came for a pair were Yves

Saint Laurent, Jackie Kennedy and Le Corbusier

— their names living on in the models they com-

missioned chez Bonnet.

With about 1,100 pounds of the precious stock

left in Bonnet’s archives, the price point ranges

between 5,000 euros, or $5,675 at current

Frames at Maison Bourgeat.

►

“We represent less than 1 percent of the market, but the niche is real.”Antoine Weil, Maison Bourgeat

NINEWEST.COM

Photograph by DOMINIQUE MAÎTRE00 MONTH 2015, No.X WWD.COM

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nda exchange, and 40,000 euros, or $45,405, for a

tortoise shell frame available in a range of natural

hues, from deep black to blond to cherry red.

Acetate and horn start at 1,000 euros ($1,135).

Maison Bourgeat, meanwhile, whose savoir-

faire lies in buffalo horn frames and metal-horn

combinations, is experimenting with alternative

materials such as tropical woods, deer horn, ante-

lope and even mammoth, which due to climate

change has emerged in large quantities in places

like Siberia. Prices range from 700 euros, or $794,

for acetate frames to 3,000 euros, or $3,405, for a

pair done from horn and precious metal.

The artisan is in talks with French couture

houses to craft limited editions, in addition to

designing his own collections, but always with the

goal to keep the quantities small.

“We have a habit of going to an optician who has

2,000 frames up his wall, of which he will show

50 to reassure the client. Reassure him of what?”

asked Clerc. “The number of standard sizes has

already gone down from 5 to 2, which means if

your features are just a little different, you are [out

of luck]. We pick three to four styles, which are in

line with the client’s morphology, and then make

a unique pair based on that.”

Berlin-based eyewear firm Mykita takes a dig-

ital approach to bespoke. It has developed My

Very Own, a manufacturing process that uses 3-D

technology along with an advanced algorithm to

create glasses whose design and fit are tailored to

the individual topography of one’s face.

In a virtual fitting, the computer scans the face

in 3-D. The algorithm then calibrates the frame

to the customer’s facial contours by making

micro-adjustments to the width of the frame,

breadth of the nose bridge and the nose pads,

among other parameters. But it’s not just about

changing the width of the bridge.

“Through the virtual fitting, the creative DNA of

the style remains intact. The glasses change pro-

portionally with all [facial] features,” said Moritz

Krueger, chief executive officer and cofounder of

Mykita. “This means that we are also able to adjust

the glass to the frame for ideal comfort, which

hasn’t been done before.”

Krueger said he sees MVO as a laboratory to

individualize all Mykita products, starting with the

Mylon styles, before also including metal frames.

Launched by the brand in 2011, Mylon is based on

selective laser sintering, in which a laser fuses fine

polyamide powder into solid objects, i.e. a partic-

ularly light, flexible and resistant pair of frames.

Krueger said an interdisciplinary approach

is key. “We have hardly any products where a

transfer of technologies hasn’t taken place. Be it

Mylon or metal injection molding, or certain sur-

face treatments, we use technologies that would

not normally be associated with eyewear.” MVO’s

algorithm was developed by Volumental, a Swed-

ish firm with research experience from NASA.

Despite its thought-provoking technique,

Krueger said technology isn’t the only factor that

sets it apart from big groups.

“In eyewear, people feed off each other, so

it’s easy to lose one’s identity. We manufacture

our own products, all under one roof. We have

extremely short times to market, with two months

from development to release, depending on the

material. The recipe is simple: Focus on what is

personally interesting to us,” said Krueger, citing

stable double-digit growth over the last few years.

In the coming months, the brand hopes to add

another retail outpost to its existing network of 10

freestanding units.

“What’s happening right now is that there’s so

much competition, so many people actually doing

pretty nice work, that the only way to stand out

is by taking that extra step. And customers are

appreciating that,” said John Juniper, cofounder

and co-creative director of Dita, in business for 20

years. “In the past it was like: ‘Oh, that’s kind of

expensive.’ But now people are saying: ‘What do

you have new?’ The attitude toward luxury prod-

uct has changed a lot in the last couple of years.”

While the brand’s retail prices range between

$500 and $1,200, Juniper says the higher end is

actually more successful at the moment, which in

turn gives the L.A.-based label the ability to invest

in crafty details such as hand-polished finishing,

laser-edged diamond patterns, custom nose pads,

or its new 2.6 millimeter thin acetate frames,

which are almost twice as thin as normal acetate

and take three times longer to do.

“It’s a pain — nobody does it. We had two

factories say no, only one factory in Japan that’s

a 100 years old said it would do it,” noted Dita’s

other half, Jeff Solorio, adding that because of its

lightweight character, the new style feels deceiv-

ingly like horn.

With double-digit growth across all markets and

expecting to hit $35 million in sales this year, times

are good in eyewear, the Dita founders noted, but

more is possible. The brand achieves 80 percent

of its business in the optical sector and is ready to

go after more fashion accounts. A new team has

been hired for the task.

“Originally, that’s where we were...selling in

fashion department stores. We didn’t have an opti-

cal frame collection until 2005, and then that took

off and brought us a whole new category. We kind

of forgot the fashion boutiques,” noted Solorio.

“Eyewear is one of the most important accesso-

ries, it’s so much of what you are as a person — it’s

in your face. Yet we all suffer in women’s opticals,

because we are too conservative. Women tend not

to wear optical in public, they use them at home to

watch TV, but when they walk out they put their

contacts in. So we figured we needed to do some-

thing that has a bit more character, more fashion,

something they can put on and forget about, like a

statement,” said Juniper, citing its Sunbird frames.

Thierry Lasry, who launched his namesake

brand eight years ago, said he’s got his sights set

on men’s. “It’s still a relatively small market, but

it’s growing fast. Until last season, 85 percent of

our business was women’s, now one-fourth of our

collection is men’s,” he noted.

In 2014, the brand logged $8 million in turnover,

registering a 30 percent increase in sales year-on-

year. “We are not fighting against Luxottica. We

function more like a fashion brand rather than

an optical brand. We do only sunglasses, and our

brand recognition is strong,” Lasry observed,

adding that his recent collaboration with Fendi

definitely helped change the brand’s status.

The biggest challenge, said the designer, who

relies entirely on wholesale, is to bring in new

techniques while staying competitive, price-wise.

“Our average retail price is $475; our most expen-

sive frames cost $525, which is the most compet-

itive price level. Above that figure, it’s a whole

different market, and department stores especially

are very price-driven. So it’s challenging.”

Handmade in France, the acetate frames feature

a range of colored patterns, up to 40 new designs

each season. Using a technique he developed,

Lasry melts the colors into unique patchworks of

shades, instead of simply stacking the colors. The

specs come with artistically sculpted side-parts

and will be upped by chic metal inserts for extra

effect next season. “I’m a child of the Eighties; I

play the frames like Lego,” Lasry said. “Trends?

There is no trend. I do my own aesthetic vision.”

Having acquired its idol brand Christian Roth

and aiming to open another flagship in London

some time next year, Dita’s Juniper agreed there

is still unchartered territory in eyewear.

“I don’t know what it is, but I’m looking for it,”

he said. “Eyewear is always a few steps behind in

technology, because it’s so traditional, but there

is still a handful of new technologies waiting to

come that we are all searching for now. Mykita is

taking it to the next level on the tech side, other

people on the bespoke side, but it’s funny how it

all intertwines. Clients want that fine craftsman-

ship rather than some microwave food. When you

pick up the frame, you can feel the difference.” ■

“Eyewear is one of the most important accessories, it’s so much of what you are as a person — it’s in your face.”John Juniper, Dita

Sunbird frames by Dita.

A work in progress at Maison Bonnet.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT PAMELA FIRESTONE, ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER AT 212 256 8103 OR [email protected]

See the Season’s Distinguished Designs and Defining Moments

I S S U E DAT E : N O V E M B E R 1 8 , 2 0 1 5

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COLLECTIONS

BeautyAgenda

30 OCTOBER 2015, No. 4 WWD.COM Photograph by COREY OLSON Prop styling by MAYA LANAI

EDITED BY PETE BORN

Mr. Burberry is gearing up to launch in April as a needed mate to the My Burberry women’s fragrance.By JULIE NAUGHTON and PETE BORN

Burberry Bets On Romance

Photograph ©2015 Rochambeau

DiscoverSeaport. Shop Now.A Concept Storefor Designers, Artistsand Flavors. 19 Fulton St.seaportstudios.com

New York’s Oldest New Neighborhood

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Beauty revenues rose 4 percent in the half,

which was on top of a 26 percent increase in 2014

to more than 185 million pounds, or $285 million

at current exchange. Fragrances accounted for the

bulk of that number.

“The development of Burberry’s beauty division

is a key driver for the growth of the business as

a whole,” Christopher Bailey, Burberry’s chief

creative and chief executive officer, said last year.

“Within our overall beauty plans, fragrance will

play a leading role in driving revenue and raising

brand awareness.”

The company is moving on multiple fronts to

grow the division as fast as it can. In June, Burb-

erry inked a deal with Shiseido to distribute its

fragrance and makeup products in Japan.

The brand is also following up on its launch on

sephora.com in August of this year with 40 bricks-

and-mortar Sephora

doors across the

globe this year, with a

total of 100 expected

by the middle of

2016, said Simona

Cattaneo, senior vice

president of beauty

at Burberry.

Then there is the Burberry Beauty Box, the

firm’s freestanding store format that was intro-

duced in London’s Covent Garden in 2013. A Hong

Kong unit was added in August. The beauty-fo-

cused stand-alones allow Burberry to showcase

its fragrance and cosmetics offerings, as well as

small fashion accessories, said Cattaneo, adding,

“It’s a way to make concrete our vision of beauty.”

Digital engagement is key in these doors, Cat-

taneo continued. “You have the digital lips and

nails bar, you have the [bottle] monogramming

Burberry is hoping a male lover can help in the ongoing turnaround of its beauty business.

The British luxury brand will unveil its latest men’s fragrance, Mr. Burberry, in April in the latest phase of its strategy to build a major

beauty business in-house after taking back its fragrance and cosmetics licenses two years ago from Inter Parfums. The plan is a risky one — and not without its doubters in both the beauty and financial worlds — but the category was actually one of the few standouts in Burberry’s first-half results earlier this month that were otherwise dismal and saw the company’s shares plummet by more than 12 percent in a single day.

where customers can engage by choosing their

monogram digitally at the point of sale and sharing

it via social media,” she said. Millennials account

for an increased focus on digital. “For the beauty,

we are targeting a Millennial consumer,” she said.

“Not only for sales, but to use them as online

influencers to leverage the power of the brand.”

For all the activity, Burberry still

has work to do in getting its

beauty house in order. Before the

company pulled the business back

in-house, its fragrances were much

more widely distributed, noted

Cattaneo. That’s made plucking

all of the products out of the gray market and

masstige distribution a massive challenge. “We

used the launch of My Burberry to establish what

we thought was the right distribution,” Cattaneo

said. “We want our fragrances to be aligned with

the prestige image on the fashion side, and we felt

My Burberry needed a lover [like Mr. Burberry].

But we didn’t want it to be a masterbrand, just a

consistency.”

An influential retailer, speaking anonymously,

expressed frustration that the store had tried

to make past Burberry launches work, but they

hadn’t been able to quite click.

Pointing to Burberry Body, done under ceo

Angela Ahrendts in 2011 when Inter Parfums SA

still had the license, the retailer said “they tried

to make the brand more aspirational, like Coco

Mademoiselle. But it was too subtle. It was not

something that could resonate with the customer.”

At the time, Inter Parfums chairman and ceo, said

the objective was to create a single fragrance that is

a Burberry fragrance leader in every market. The

fashion house then had about 10 scent franchises

that were successful in different parts in the

world. The company has no current comment.

The retailer, noted that Mr. Burberry presentation

had not been made yet. “Eventually they will get

it right. I think it is a great brand.”

A financial analyst, also speaking off the record,

said taking the business in house from Inter

Parfum “has been a bit trickier than everyone

expected. [The house] should be doing better than

it is in fragrances.”

The Mr. Burberry launch will be accompanied

by a capsule collection of clothing and accesso-

ries — including suits, trenchcoats, scarves, bags,

accessories and shoes — echoing the strategies

for Burberry Brit for men and women and My

Burberry for women.

The woody herbal eau de toilette, which Bailey

created with perfumer Francis Kurkdjian, has top

notes of zesty grapefruit, tarragon and cardamom,

a heart of birch leaf, nutmeg oil and cedarwood

and a drydown of sandalwood, vetiver and guaiac

wood. The ingredients are inspired by the heri-

tage of British male perfumery, noted Cattaneo.

“Mr. Burberry is a structure of a classic aromatic

fougère that has inspired so many famous fra-

grances, but this has been totally remodeled and

remastered to introduce a radically contemporary

creation in its proportions and ingredients,” she

said.

The neck of the bottle is tied with the same gab-

ardine material Burberry uses to make its storied

trenchcoats, and the cap incorporates the Bakelite

Burberry uses for the trench’s buttons.

The scent will be available in 50-, 100- and 150-

ml. sizes, retailing in the U.S. for $68, $88 and

$115, respectively. It will also be offered in a 30-ml.

travel spray for $55 and a 1-liter collector’s edition

for $2,000. A grooming line will also be sold glob-

ally; it includes such things as beard oil, moistur-

izer, deodorant, shower gel and aftershave.

Steve McQueen shot both the print and TV ads,

which feature Josh Whitehouse as Mr. Burberry,

supported in the TV commercial by Amber Ander-

son (who is also the face of Burberry cosmetics),

and a soundtrack put together by Benjamin

Clementine. “It’s a great pool of British talent

that Christopher put together to tell this story,”

Cattaneo said. Both TV and print advertising will

begin running globally in April.

Globally, the men’s scent will be sold in about

25,000 department and specialty store doors.

The brand will also launch a new women’s scent

in February. The fragrance, My Burberry Black, is

intended to be a sensual flanker to the house’s My

Burberry pillar, which was launched in September

2014. Perfumer Kurkdjian worked with Bailey to

create the eau de toilette, which has a top note of

jasmine flower, a heart of candied rose and peach

nectar and a drydown of amber and patchouli. It

will launch exclusively at Harrods and on harrods.

com in February before rolling out to the Middle

East in May and elsewhere globally in September

2016. Customers will have the ability to person-

alize their bottles with up to three initials via

burberry.com or at selected retailers. ■

“Mr. Burberry is a structure of a classic aromatic fougère that has inspired so many famous fragrances, but this has been totally remodeled and remastered to introduce a radically contemporary creation in its proportions and ingredients.”Simona Cattaneo, Burberry

THE ART OF SHOPPING. DISCOVER IT ONLY AT NORTHPARK CENTER. A PLACE WHERE ONE CAN EXPECT THE EXTRAORDINARY.

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THE STORES OF NORTHPARK

Bea

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Michael EdwardsAuthor of "Fragrances of the

World" and "Perfume Legends."

Paul AustinCeo of sensory storytelling

agency Austin Advisory Group.

Jean-Claude DelvilleSenior perfumer at Drom.

Karen DubinFounder and ceo of Sniffapalooza.

Victoria FrolovaFragrance industry analyst and

Bois de Jasmin editor.

Christophe LaudamielMaster perfumer

at DreamAir.

Nathalie PichardOwner of training and evaluation

agency Topnotes.

Chantal RoosCocreator of

Roos & Roos Co.

Luca TurinBiophysicist and perfume critic for arabia.style.com.

Kevin VerspoorFounder of

PerfumeKev LLC.

THIS IS A BLIND TEST: Panelists are given vials of unidentified scent to judge impar-tially. Each of them gives a score ranging from 1 (forgettable) to 10 (unforgettable) and the numbers are computed into a final grade. The judges, led by chairman Michael Edwards, also make critiques, which are unattributed to encourage candor. The most promising scents are picked for judging in an effort to find and showcase excellence. WWD buys the products at retail, like any other consumer.

Esteemed Judges

How would you rate the fragrance? Visit WWD.com/beauty-industry-news to vote.

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Photograph by GEORGE CHINSEE Styling by RACHEL STICKLEY34 OCTOBER 2015, No. 4 WWD.COM

This scent received high marks for sex appeal and a smoky complexity — like incense burning in an ancient

cathedral. Though its strong cedar base is right on trend for niche perfumery, some reviewers considered this a negative. Here are anonymous comments by the judges with their individual scores. By ELLEN THOMAS

The Smell Test:Aedes de Venustas Palissandre d’Or

6.3Avg Scoreout of 10

“Excellent, startling biscuity-

patchouli top note accord

— clever and unusually fresh,

spicy heart.”

Score: 8

“Falls down quickly, lacks body and volume.”Score: 4

“Maybe a bit of sexy coconut would

have made it more original. A no-

brainer to spritz and add freshness

to another deeper fragrance.”

Score: 4

“Sexy, but at the

drydown [it’s] very

much like a home

fragrance.”

Score: 6

“Genderless, addictive,

intense and provocateur.

Not for everyday but

super elegant.”

Score: 7

“Earthy, dark

[and] damp, hints

of geranium and

rose. Definitely on

trend for niche

perfumery.”

Score: 7

“A wonderfully smoky, spicy [and]

seamless swath of aroma, mysterious…a

‘churchy’ fragrance [that] takes me to

another place and creates an ambiance

to carry me through my day.”

Score: 9

“The never-ending litany of [oudlike]

things is so far past played out…too late to

the party, please do something else.”

Score: 2

“Bold statement, with a woody signature that’s complex and slightly smoky.”Score: 8

“The only small qualm is a polished but not

overly exciting finale.”Score: 8

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EDITED BY JEAN E. PALMIERI and ALEX BADIA

Agenda

True Colors36 OCTOBER 2015, No. 4 WWD.COM

FROM LEFT: Nick wears Berluti’s suit and Sunspel’s T-shirt, both in cotton. Salvatore Ferragamo sandals. Kelin wears Etro’s silk suit and Burberry Prorsum’s cotton tank top. Francesco Russo pumps. Max wears Casely-Hayford’s cotton suit. Gucci sandals. Ted wears Bottega Veneta’s wool suit and silk shirt. Giuseppe Zanotti sandals. Christian wears Boglioli’s wool blazer, American Apparel’s cotton T-shirt and Ralph Lauren Purple Label’s silk gabardine pants. Bally sandals. Nick wears Tommy Hilfiger’s cotton and spandex suit and Oliver Spencer’s cotton T-shirt. Corneliani scarf; Salvatore Ferragamo sandals. Christian wears Paul Smith’s wool suit and American Apparel’s cotton T-shirt. Bally sandals. Philipp wears Ralph Lauren Purple Label’s silk gabardine blazer, Burberry Prorsum’s cotton tank top and Ami’s cotton pants. Giuseppe Zanotti sandals. Kelin wears Hugo’s lyocell and polyester suit and Bottega Veneta’s cashmere sweater. Francesco Russo pumps. Max wears Berluti’s suit and Dries Van Noten’s tank top, both in cotton. Gucci sandals.

Runway suits are being updated for spring with a rainbow of colors, from pastel shades to jewel tones, turning the men’s wear staple into the ultimate attention-grabber. Here, some of the faces of DNA Model Management show this season’s color range. By ALEX BADIA

Photographs by JACOB & CARROL Photographer’s Assistant: ISAN MONFORT Models: NICK REA, PHILIPP SCHMIDT, TED LE SUEUR, MAX SCHLESINGER, CHRISTIAN ZELLERMAYR and KELIN DILLON at DNA Models Fashion Assistants: LUIS CAMPUZANO and KAYANA CORDWELL Hair by RIAD AZAR at Atelier Management Makeup by HIRO YONEMOTO at Atelier Management


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38 OCTOBER 2015, No. 4 WWD.COM PHOTOGRAPH BY JENNA GREENE EDITED BY TAYLOR HARRIS AND ERIK MAZA

Backstreet’s BackTUES OCT 20 & FRI OCT 23

Balmain x H&M Launch Olivier Rousteing’s 30th Birthday Bash 39

THURS OCT 22

FGI’s Night of Stars 40


“Olivier personally asked for us. He’s a huge fan,” A.J. McLean said on Oct. 24. The

boy-bander was winded and slick with sweat, having just performed with his fellow Backstreet Boys at the Balmain x H&M blowout in New York. The retail behemoth had poured mega-marketing bucks into celebrating its latest high-low mash-up and apparently, the Backstreet Boys’ appearance was requested by Olivier Rousteing himself. “He’s a big fan,” Nick Carter confirmed.

The designer was, in fact, front-and-center during the per-formance, swaying with his gag-gle of “It” girls to the three-song set of “Everybody,” “Larger Than Life” and “I Want It That Way” — all, by the way, his requests.

Backstage, before the Boys posed for selfies with guests — mostly Gigi Hadid and Kendall Jenner fangirls sporting gelled-back hair and takes on big-shouldered, military-inspired Balmain — Carter was asked about the hashtag used to promote the event: #hmbalmaination. What, pray tell, is Balmain nation? A principality occupied only by those with more than a million followers on Instagram?

“It’s nice to be part of some-thing so powerful and elegant and something that actually stands for something,” Carter said with the sincerity of a fash-ion outsider. If he couldn’t quite put his finger on the founding principles of #hmbalmaina-tion, the competitive postshow shopping scene painted a

clear picture of its constitution of conspicuous consumption. Rousteing stood at the center of it all as the citizens of his Balmain nation happily stuffed their bags with sequined minidresses and Lurex tops.

“I’m so happy. I’m so proud. It’s like a big achievement,” the designer said. “Tonight is just the pop-up store, on Nov. 5 it’ll be available to the whole world. This is just the beginning.”

A few days later, the scene switched from the masses to his nation’s aristocracy: Hol-lywood. “I’m ready to relax. I had an amazing show for H&M. I was really, really happy with it. Some people didn’t get it, you know? But some people got it,” said Rouste-ing, seeming to sum up his entire tenure at Balmain.

Naturally, the Kardashians got it. “We love Olivier,” said Kim Kar-dashian, perched on a couch. The rest of the clan was scattered around the property along with other celeb loyalists — Jennifer Lopez, Justin Timberlake, Jessica Biel, Mary J. Blige, Rosie Hun-tington-Whiteley, Kate Hudson, Cara Delevingne, Angela Lindvall, Jourdan Dunn, Jaime King, Tyga and Chanel Iman. They were at a private manse in the Hollywood Hills, there to celebrate the designer’s 30th birthday.

“Tonight is just about love, fun and friendship,” Rousteing said, pausing. “Can I swing at the same time?” he asked, midinterview, perched on a swing dangling beneath a large tree. “I want to. It’s my b-day, so I’m free to do whatever I want.” — TAYLOR HARRIS,

ERIK MAZA AND LINDZI SCHARF

OCT 20 & 23

Dirty ThirtyOlivier Rousteing’s celeb clique turns out in Hollywood for his birthday bash.

Alessandra Ambrosio with Olivier Rousteing

at his birthday party.

Martha Hunt at the Balmain × H&M launch party.

Kendall Jenner and Cara Delevingne

Kris Jenner, Kourtney

Kardashian and Kim Kardashian

Jennifer Lopez

Jaden and Willow Smith at Rousteing’s birthday party.

Tyga and Kylie Jenner

Chelsea Leyland, Harley Viera-Newton and Laura Love at the Balmain × H&M launch party.

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Oh, Starry Night Fashion Group International stirs up the crowd. Photographs by Steve Eichner

The Fashion Group International’s request for a two-minute acceptance speech didn’t fly with Alber Elbaz

at Thursday’s Night of Stars. “I said, ‘I need more time.’ And I think everybody in fashion these days needs just a little more time,” the designer said after picking up his Superstar award from Meryl Streep. In what was pretty much a mini-manifesto spanning 16 minutes (but who was counting?), Elbaz challenged how the ever-accelerating fashion system is chipping away at creativity, camaraderie and an all-around good time. “I was asked the other day if I have a personal Instagram [account]. I said, ‘Not really’ and they said, ‘How come?’ I said, ‘I don’t really have photogenic friends.’” Though plenty of the designer’s highly photogenic celeb fans were dotting the dining room of Cipriani Wall Street, including Justin

Timberlake and Jessica Biel, Allison Williams, Katie Holmes, Jason Wu, Pinterest’s Evan Sharp, eBay’s Marcelle Parrish, Bulgari’s Daniel Paltridge, Jonathan Anderson, Bruno Frisoni, Angela Missoni, Ronald Lauder, Diane Kruger, Tamara Mellon, Neil Barrett and Simon Doonan, many of whom were undoubtedly Instagramming their dinner plates as Elbaz questioned the merit of documenting such activities. “I also do not take photos of the food. I eat food,” he said. Elbaz wasn’t the only one lamenting fashion’s social media obsession and withering attention span. Fashion Star honoree Anderson referred to fashion “moving at the speed of boredom,” and fellow winner Wu said, “I came into this industry passionately playing on eBay buying dolls. It’s a bit embarrassing and creepy, but anyway — whatever. Fashion’s too serious.” — ROSEMARY FEITELBERG WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM JESSICA IREDALE

THURSOCT

22

Tori Kelly Zachary Quinto and Miles McMillan

Allison Williams in Lanvin.

Justin Timberlake in Givenchy and Jessica Biel.

Diane Kruger in Jason Wu, with the designer.

Katie Holmes in Zac Posen, with

Bruno Frisoni.

Alber Elbaz, with Meryl Streep in Lanvin.

Report CardThe Mighty Have Fallen The empress of avant-garde chic and Queen Bey fall short this week.

It’s considered industry sacrilege to question the patron saint of highly evolved, held-to-a-different-style-standard’s sartorial choices, but no one is infallible.

We like the severe hair, but she needs blotting papers and eyebrows.

Gender fluidity is super on trend, but does it extend to leprechauns? The bow tie and glitter-green shoes take glitzy, but otherwise acceptable, androgyny to the end of the rainbow, where she found a pot o’ silver, not gold.

We’re happy she ran her fingers through her blowout. It gives her a wind-blown, natural look and plenty of volume.

A peach cheek and tasteful smoky eye is her go-to beauty combo but it might be time to mix it up.

There’s something nice about the clean, pseudo-colorblocking of this look. The pitch-black turtleneck, gloves, clutch, tights and boots match perfectly. The peacoat is a little too Crayola Blue, but navy wouldn’t read on camera.

His ostensible weight gain seems to be under control. He has regained some angularity in his face. But

the clean shave does nothing for his jawline. A 5 o’clock shadow would give him some edge.

Men with worked-up bodies should stay away from boxy suits with strong shoulders

Things get worse with the

shiny fabric and peak lapel. He’s channeling the look of a bouncer from a strip club in south Florida.

The full beard is apparently working as a lucky charm, yet he keeps it groomed and clean around the cheeks

and neck area.

Functional and clearly

a winning combo, the

orange and blue work

super well on the second

baseman. The shiny blue helmet and white fitted leather gloves add an edge to the uniform and play well with the layered blue Nike T-shirt.

As all of her 48.7 million Instagram followers know, Bey loves a little fun in the sun with Jay. Apparently she forgot the sunscreen and the tomato red/orange velvet suit is not helping.

Not only is it not her color — whose is it? — but the pants are pulling in the wrong places and they need to be hemmed. It’s all over her like a cheap suit. Her body language suggests that even she doubts her outfit. On the plus side, her manicure is a spot-on match to the buttons.

We feel like she got pulled to the carpet before she got in the makeup chair. Her hair is glam, very Veronica Lake, but she hasn’t got a speck of makeup on. She needs some under-eye concealer and mascara.

The dress has movement and ease, and the floral bouquet keeps it from being generic. It looks like she coordinated her hair — parted and sweeping down the same side as the floral action on the dress — to complement the look. Points for foresight.

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B+

We all know he loves a hair dryer and a round brush yet the subtle volume and thin beard work well together, helping to highlight his piercing blue eyes.

The modern tuxedo fits him

well without overpowering his thin frame. But the black-and-white graphic element of the shirt is too affected and screams fashion victim.

The hint of pocket square shows a more mature and elegant side.

Justin Timberlake

BHilary Swank

We’re all about textured hairstyles but this dry, messy look is closer to cat hair than the beachy look he is going for.

Cooper loves a three-piece suit — he wears them constantly and he can pull them off, most of the time. But the traditional men’s wear style clashes with the modern polka dot shirt and ultraskinny patterned tie. Too many things at once.

The clean pant break works great with the sleek lace-up shoe.

B-Bradley Cooper

B- Duchess of Cambridge

Beyoncé

CVin Diesel

DTilda SwintonDaniel Murphy

(and if they win the World Series, he’ll upgrade to an A)B FAIL

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Graphic

CHLOÉ’S metal and acetate sunglasses.DIOR’S metal with palladium finish and resin disques earrings.LANVIN’S leather and silver metal safe-lock bracelet.

OPPOSITESTELLA MCCARTNEY’S Plexiglas clutch.LOUIS VUITTON’S stingray case bags.

Novel

FRESH FROM SPRING’S READY-TO-WEAR RUNWAYS,ACCESSORIES STEAL THE SCENE WITH

BOLD STROKES OF COLOR AND FORM — AND A TOUCH OF MYSTERY.

By ROXANNE ROBINSON

Illustrations by MATHILDE CRÉTIER

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WWD.COM MONTH 2015, No.1tk 00

VALENTINO GARAVANI’S hand-painted leather handbag.

OPPOSITETORY BURCH’S silk and cotton satin and mirror metallic slingback sandal.

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WWD.COM MONTH 2015, No.1tk 00

PRADA’S leather bags.RALPH LAUREN’S calfskin handbag.

OPPOSITEGUCCI’S leather top-handle bag with embroidery and tigerhead detail.LOEWE’S acetate duck brooch.

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GIORGIO ARMANI’S calfskin clutch with chain detail. MARC JACOBS’ suede pixie boot.

OPPOSITECHANEL’S printed cotton toile and aged ruthenium metal bag.

00 JULY 2015, No. 2 WWD.COM WWD.COM OCTOBER 2015, No. 4 51

OVERHEATED!

“FASHION IS A SPORT NOW. YOU HAVE TO RUN.” — KARL LAGERFELD

With its chaotic fashion weeks, torrents of tweets and Instagram posts, accelerating prod-uct cycles, and hype machinery in overdrive, the industry seems to have embraced warp speed as the new black.

Is this a sign of fashion’s rude health, its pop-ularity spiraling with the aid of new technology and tight ties with Hollywood, music and art royalty? Or is the system simply spinning out of control and heading for a big burnout?

The answer depends on whom you ask.VValid questions all, with no easy answers. WWD polled a wide swath of designers, executives, editors and others to weigh in.

DOESN’T APPLY ONLY TO

ZARA AND H&M ANYMORE.

“FAST FASHION”

Karl Lagerfeld, who powers

through his crushing work-

load with glee, is at ease

with whatever the fashion

world might throw at him.

“If you are not a good bullfighter,

don’t enter the arena,” he says. “Every-

body is allowed to show a collection.

There may be too many — but that is not

my problem.”

Livia Firth, founder of Green Carpet

Challenge and creative director of Eco-

Age, the brand consultancy that focuses

on sustainability, has another viewpoint.

“Since I started focusing on the

fashion industry a few years ago, I keep

hearing the voices of designers and

journalists all saying the same thing:

The fashion cycle has become mental.

Too many shows, too many collections,

too many looks, styles, pressure. The

result? Designers’ creativity is compro-

mised, journalists are running on empty

and we — the famous consumers — are

bombarded day and night with the ‘latest

thing we must have’ if we want to be

cool,” she said.

To be sure, the recent round of inter-

national collections generated lively dis-

cussion about whether the overload and

fatigue many professionals acutely feel

will start infecting consumers, who are

increasingly witness to the same frenetic

spectacle via the Web and social media.

Raf Simons, who dropped the bomb-

shell last week that he would exit Dior

after three-and-a-half years as creative

director of its women’s collections, said

his decision was “based entirely and

equally on my desire to focus on other

interests in my life, including my own

brand, and the passions that drive me

outside of my work.”

The Belgian designer had hinted fash-

ion was at a breaking point just before

Dior’s Oct. 2 show, which would be his

last for the house.

“I’m questioning a lot,” he said, refer-

ring to the now palpable sense that the

overheated runway system has reached

a volatile tipping point. “I feel a lot of

people are questioning. We have a lot of

conversation about it: Where is it going?

It’s not only the clothes. It’s the clothes,

it’s everything, the Internet.”

Are overlapping fashion shows — and

fashion weeks — in anybody’s interest?

Should runway shows just go direct

to the consumer, in line with spectator

sports, theater and other entertainment?

* * *Karl Lagerfeld

“I HAVE NO PROBLEM, but not every-

body may have dream teams to do all

that work. It goes with the times we live

in. There is no way to look back. For

some people and smaller companies, it

could become too much but big compa-

nies like Chanel, Dior, Vuitton, etc., are

organized to face the speed.

There are so many different levels of

business and so many different possibili-

ties today. The thing that I hate most are

designers who accept those very well-

paid jobs and then think the demand is

too strong, that they are afraid of ► Col

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principal actors on the vast stage of

communication and, as always happens

in these cases, the same elements that

decree its success can provoke its crisis.

The feeling that there is too much of

everything and that everything goes

too quickly has long been clear to me.

Technology and the current lifestyle lead

to an increasingly stronger acceleration.

Fashion also needs pauses, and some-

times silence, to be fully appreciated.

Opening runway shows to the public

would be confusing in terms of timing

and would amplify and accelerate the

system: you would see in March shows

for fall and winter and you would imme-

diately want certain outfits that are not

yet in production. This would require us

to work as in fast fashion, reorganizing

the entire pipeline, also surely changing

the quality and especially the creativity,

which is what fashion feeds on.”

* * *Donatella Versace

“I LOVE THE PACE of fashion. Fashion is

about moving forward, and moving fast.

One of the greatest pleasures of my life is

how the new generation has connected

with Versace. If you complain about the

pace of fashion today, you are closing the

door on the future of fashion. We should

not be talking about limits, but about

opportunities.

That’s the world today and fashion

is about change and evolution. I love

the immediacy of life today and how

the doors of fashion are opening up so

everyone can feel part of a global tribe.

We started with a revolution at Versus

Versace, transforming it into a ‘see-now,

buy-now, wear-now’ brand; it has been

the most extraordinary success, finding

a whole new audience who lives their

lives online. At my most recent women’s

wear collection, we put the sequined

leopard-print Palazzo backpacks in

some key Versace flagships and e-com-

merce, because I wanted our customers

to get a taste of the catwalk right now.

Why should they wait till next season? I

believe rules are there to be broken.

We should be excited that there are

more people around the world who want

to be part of our world. It’s amazing that

the world has fallen in love with fashion,

and has a hunger for more. It makes me

want to work harder than ever.”

* * *Jonathan Anderson

“I THINK THE speed at which the fash-

ion industry is going is fundamentally

what we expect of fashion today, as ulti-

mately, this is the way the world works.

It is about the chase against boredom.

We have to adapt to the speed like we

have had to adapt to other media. I think

it is a sign of the times and it is not just

fashion experiencing that; music, film

and art are all experiencing this thing

where we need to keep up with the pace

of the world. So I don’t think it is an

issue. You have to be able to manage it.

It depends on the person. I think if

you are an individual who takes care of

the situation, then you are fine. You have

to protect yourself. It is about strong

teams and good management that helps

to maintain that you don’t overheat. I

think you have to keep very insular and

very focused on what is important to you

and to not listen to the outside world.”

* * *Renzo Rosso

President of Italian fashion group OTB

“FASHION IS NOW full of people doing

social networks, crazy things, just to

make people talk. I don’t want to be part

of this system. I just want the beauty and

the dream.”

* * *Paul Smith

“A LOT MORE people are fishing from

the same pond, and so therefore there

is an overdistribution of product in the

world. There is far too much product

and there are far too many shops that

have the same or similar appearance,

and I think in the next 10 years, you will

see big adjustments in a lot of the large

corporations. They will have to rethink

their strategy and maybe they will have

to understand that leveling out their

* * *Michael Kors

“IS FASHION OVERHEATED? Listen, the

reality is that we have never in history

had more people more interested in

fashion and style than we do today.

[Never] a more diverse group of people

— all incomes, all ages, all nationalities,

small town, big town, medium town.

So for me to say is it overheated — I

just think it’s actually more compel-

ling to more people. I wouldn’t say it’s

overheated. I would say there’s more

attention on it than ever before; it’s not a

private little insiders’ game anymore.

Today, people are interested in every

part of the scene of the fashion world.

I think maybe it’s — if you want to say

overheated — sometimes when you have

the lights on you, it’s hot.

It’s the excitement that the public has

about fashion in general. I think that’s

why you see more people getting into

the game in one regard or another, how-

ever they decide to show. Ten years ago

it was a much smaller show calendar….

The reality keeps changing. Someone

being able to shop online in the middle

of Montana — they weren’t in the game

before and now they’re in the game. I

think that if anything, that’s why we have

more shows. More, more, more.

I’m not an editor so I don’t attend….

You have to realize designers feel the

same way, if you do men’s or the design-

ers that do couture collections or design-

ers that do more than one brand. It’s just

the nature of the world today... people

are more engaged than ever. As a retailer

or editor, you could travel across the

globe and always go to a fashion show. I

don’t say it’s good or bad. Just different.

It’s tremendously different.

I’m calendar-crazy. I’m talking about

when you buy something. Most peo-

ple today want the gratification. Quite

frankly, if you buy it on Friday afternoon

at 4 o’clock, you want to wear it on

Friday at 7. I feel that now with the idea

of immediate gratification, we probably

are shipping clothes too early. We’re also

promoting them too early.

We’ve pushed everything early. The

consumer is actually shopping closer to

need. That is my biggest concern. When

I do pre-fall, we ship cotton dresses and

bathing suits because I think it’s insane

[not to]. I don’t think that I can organize

the entire global fashion calendar, but

I certainly think that everyone would

benefit from having fresh product in the

store when the consumer wants it.”

“IT’S NOT A PRIVATE LITTLE INSIDERS’ GAME ANYMORE.” – MICHAEL KORS

OVERHEATED!

burnout, etc. It’s a full-time job, not an

occupation between others. Fashion is a

sport now: You have to run.

I have no ideas how to improve an

industry that suits me perfectly. One has

to be well organized with good people.

But that may be the most difficult.”

* * *Ralph Lauren

“MY COLLECTION fashion shows have

always been like movies, but in a subtle

and nuanced way. It’s never been about

producing a larger extravaganza for me,

as then it becomes too much about the

theater. The clothes should be para-

mount, and the press and retailers need

to see the detail and how the clothes

breathe and move. My first shows were

held in the living room of my offices,

which had been converted from apart-

ments in a brownstone. I would walk the

small group through the line, in some

cases with one or two models. I have

always believed in that intimacy and

personal connection. To see, touch and

feel the workmanship and fabrics is so

important. I still believe a designer must

never lose sight of the real message — the

clothes themselves.

Having said that, the importance of

influencers, new media and the use

of innovative technology to expand

viewership of a show is clearly a reality.

This past season we worked with Twitter

to live-stream our Collection show

via Periscope to 10 million users and

simultaneously on a video billboard in

Piccadilly Circus in London, one of our

most important markets. Last year we

used the most innovative digital spe-

cial-effects technology to produce a 4-D

fashion show in Central Park for our Polo

brand, creating billions of impressions.

Expanding the number of eyes that can

see a collection is definitely good for

increasing the designer’s message and

helping enhance brand awareness and

visibility.”

* * *Giorgio Armani

“FASHION HAS BECOME one of the

“A DESIGNER

MUST NEVER LOSE SIGHT OF THE REAL MESSAGE – THE CLOTHES THEMSELVES.”

– RALPH LAUREN

businesses is acceptable, because they

are being so aggressive about wanting

more, more, more all the time and it’s

like if you keep blowing up a balloon:

eventually it will burst. And so I think

there has to be a time of readjustment in

the next 10 years. People will have to just

calm down a little bit.”

* * *Rick Owens

“I DON’T REALLY see a problem: I tend

to look at these things as evolutionary.

The fashion calendar is just having a

cultural moment like the Sunset Strip in

L.A. did with rock bands in the Seven-

ties. In retrospect, we might look back

and see this period as a breeding ground

for a golden age of design. The energy

will eventually dissipate and the crowd

will move on to something else. As for

myself, I feel stimulated and the volume

of stuff I see that I don’t really agree with

stimulates me to react, which probably

makes me work harder. And busy hands

are happy hands.”

* * *Diane von Furstenberg

“FASHION IS BY definition a reflection

of what is going on in the world. We live

in a moment of total disruption as our

tools change and the speed increases.

Everyone is surfing a tsunami, trying to

understand how to deal with waves of

so much information, so many images.

As always when in periods of change,

clarity and quality become imperative.”

* * *Dan Lecca

Photographer

“WHAT MATTERS the most today is how

many front-row seats a certain fashion

show could have in order to accommo-

date not the most important editors/

buyers of our industry but the VIPs,

socialites, bloggers (who, by the way,

have earlier backstage access than the

photographers who cover backstage)

and certain celebrities who are more

important than the clothes in the show.…

It is a disgrace.”

* * *Anna Sui

“I AGREE [that fashion is overheated].

But I don’t know really what we can do

at this point because it’s where we’re at

right now. It’s not just fashion, it’s every-

thing. It’s the movie industry, the music

industry; it’s sports. Everything has got-

ten to this point and celebrity, too. It’s

all so immediate, all so in your face, you

can’t calm it down anymore. I was at din-

ner the other night and somebody was

looking at their phone and it was like,

‘breaking news!’ And it was like, what

Kardashian did what. That’s just kind of

how it is now. You used to have to wait

for that monthly magazine or tabloid to

tell you who was sleeping with who, and

now it’s just in your face. That’s what’s

happened with fashion, too. It’s just

different. It’s the new now. I don’t think

you can really do anything except adapt.

That’s what we’re all trying to do.”

* * *Viktor Horsting and

Rolf SnoerenDesigners who stopped ready-to-wear to focus on

couture and perfumes

“WE SOMETIMES SPEAK about the fash-

ion industry, or at least the business of

fashion, as a puzzle that we keep trying

to solve. The speed at which it has to be

done does not help us: We are reflective

people and we need time to create. We

tried very hard to follow the rules, but

more and more felt that our creativity

functioned differently and was at odds

with the demands of the industry.

For many designers it works and they

make beautiful clothes, but for us it just

didn’t work. Focusing on couture and

fragrance gives us a breather and brings

us back to our personal basis: the joy

of creation. But creativity is not what

sets the pace — fashion is an industry

that is driven by money. Money is the

motor, and the bar gets raised by those

players with big distribution networks

that need constant refreshment. Fueled

by (social) media constantly looking for

something ‘new,’ sometimes regardless

of quality. Ultimately, there is always

space for something new that is truly

outstanding and amazing. But quality

and real, authentic talent are rare. So

something really new just doesn’t come

about that often. Having said that, the

market for beauty products as well is

often said to be saturated, but somehow

our fragrances made a difference. So it is

possible to make an impact.

We try to listen more to our feelings,

even if they say that we should not do

what we are expected to do. So more

generally speaking: creativity is the fuel

of the machine. We think we need to

take very good care of the fuel.”

* * *Stefano Pilati

“I BELIEVE PARTS of fashion have

shifted from being something ‘aspira-

tional’ or a ‘way of being,’ to a ‘form of

pure business,’ and lately, most egre-

giously, ‘entertainment and spectacle.’

Fashion designers might adapt their

instincts to fulfill the latter, but not with-

out compromise; especially for those

designers who still believe in fashion as

a form of artistic expression for valid

solutions to enrich people’s lives.

The fashion industry is saturated, and

in my opinion, imploding as a form of

evolution. Imploding isn’t necessarily

negative (in science negative is as valid

and significant as positive). The question

is: Where is this implosion leading us?

This is a very difficult question to answer

with any certainty. ►

* * *Marc Jacobs

“I LOVE FASHION. I enjoy putting on

shows and creating collections and

designing. And I question: Who is it all

for? Where does it all go? I question all

of it. But I continue to do it because I

continue to love it and that’s it.

I think all of those things [digital

access; social media] become additional

things to think about. But it’s not like, a

does-this-tick-every-box sort of thing….

There’s more on that list to look at and

try to make sense of and utilize….These

are questions. There are more constants

and yes, it is more exhausting.

We — meaning myself and the design

team — we don’t say, ‘will this work on

Instagram? Will this work on our Web

site? Will this work on the sales level?

Will this work on the show level?’ We

work on a show and we work simul-

taneously on things that we think are

versions of that show, but geared toward

different markets…

I don’t know how to do it any other

way [than to focus on the creative pro-

cess]. I can’t do this by calculator. It is an

emotional and autobiographical process.

It is about responding to something in a

certain moment and continuing to edit

and add to one response throughout

the process as you experience different

things. What you end up with is the

result of the time period, which could

include memories, experiences, a litany

of things like this.

Last time, there were a lot of things

I was trying to figure out; yes, the Ins-

tagram thing was stimulating and yes,

there was the equality of gay marriage

and other things on my mind.…It still

came from the same place it always

comes from, which was, what are we

going to make, and let’s go through this

as a creative process.

So we’re just coming from the same

place [as always], which is, I like to make

things and show them in a way that takes

people somewhere and entertains them.

And takes on the next life, which goes

to a store and people can’t resist them;

they’d pull their heart out wanting them,

rather than that they need them. It’s a

form of entertainment.

This is all I ever wanted to do. Then

you think, I don’t want to do a lot of

the things I end up doing in a week,

but they’re part of the job. It seems the

scale has tipped. There’s a lot more

stuff I don’t want to do than I do want

to do. But what affords me the time and

the luxury to do what I want to do is by

doing all of the other stuff, things that

require a different part of my brain and

a different type of energy. That’s reality.

It’s still called work; it’s not called fun.

But the pleasure I get out of the creative

part, the part that I really love — even

with its pain and stress and obstacles, I

still love it.

Yes, the balance of time for that is so

little compared to all of the other stuff.

But again, I still would rather deal with

all of that just to have that moment, to

work on those six weeks of shows that

are intense and those nights that are

around the clock, and the reward of

having created something that lasts for

seven minutes that feels right. It’s still

all worth it.”

“FASHION ALSO NEEDS PAUSES, AND SOMETIMES SILENCE, TO BE FULLY APPRECIATED.”

– GIORGIO ARMANI


“WHO IS IT ALL FOR? WHERE DOES IT ALL GO?”

– MARC JACOBS

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Nowadays, the success of a brand

is left less and less in the hands of the

designer, who in most cases is deviated

by ambitious marketing achievements

and entertainment ‘scripts.’ From a per-

sonal point of view, integrity of the ‘soul’

of fashion is what can make fashion sur-

vive for what it is and not what it isn’t.

Currently, people use a form of com-

munication, or use their communication

tools to entertain ‘their audience’; the

ones that follow them and respond to

them, even if not necessarily belonging

to their amicable sphere.

We should direct our work to an

‘audience’ who truly understands and

is able to enjoy it actively, and not just

passively even within the social structure

that it generates. An audience, inside

and outside the fashion-business arena,

who supports the message that designers

offer, with due respect, without mistak-

ing them for cash machines.”

* * *Alexander Wang

“WHEN I TOOK on Balenciaga, it was an

incredible opportunity at the time when

I thought, ‘Well, I never wanted to define

my own brand by price point, by just

being a New York brand.’ The idea that I

wanted to speak to different customers

and see how I can communicate with

them and where my audience lies was a

great opportunity to do Balenciaga. At

the same time, H&M came. It was really

an incredible three years where I had

so much exposure on so many different

levels. After that, coming back here, it’s

given me so much more discipline and

focus into where I want to go.

Specifically speaking about the show

system, I think that’s something every-

one is challenged with — the immediacy

of things, and the idea of how to deliver

in this system, where the attention span

has become nonexistent.…Our brand,

as opposed to Balenciaga, or even a

much bigger brand where you own all

your own retail, portions of your supply

chain, they can dictate a lot more in

terms of changing certain things. We

were looking at the calendar the other

day and were like, what are the hard

deadlines? It’s the show. That’s some-

thing that we cannot control. We have to

have the collection ready, etc. Those are

pillar dates we work toward.

There are very few exceptions.

Whether you’re a lot smaller or you’re

completely outside the system like

[Azzedine] Alaïa, or if you are someone

like a Chanel or a Dior, where I feel like

they have the financial, they have the

infrastructure — like what they did with

the resort shows, where they can fly the

whole industry, make their own deliv-

eries all that, we’re more in a situation

where we have to follow the system.

We’re realizing a lot more, at the end of

the day, it’s becoming much clearer that

fashion is a business and the first priority

is the consumer. That’s why everyone

is trying to go omnichannel, direct-to-

consumer through social media or their

own magazines and building into their

own retail. It’s not just the journalists

but the buyers. Their position is being

reevaluated. I don’t have a hard feeling

or answer, but it’s definitely something

we continuously talk about in terms of

who we invite to the show.”

* * *Glenda Bailey

Editor in chief, Harper’s Bazaar

“DIANA VREELAND famously said, ‘The

eye has to travel,’ but these days, the

eye gets really tired. There are so many

images being flung at us — as editors

and consumers — it makes you crave

simple beauty and great design. Look at

the success of Valentino and Gucci, for

example. Maria Grazia Chiuri, Pierpaolo

Piccioli and Alessandro Michele are

consummate designers who prioritize

sensitivity, artfulness and craft. Well,

craft with an Instagram account.”

* * *Bruno Pavlovsky

Chanel’s president of fashion

“CONSUMERS ARE increasingly busy,

and there are a lot of brands that are

able to provide them with more and

more information. So you have to put

yourself in the position to offer more.

That doesn’t mean you have to interfere

all the time with customers. It’s more

about what I call a luxury positioning.

You have to be there when they want

you, and you don’t have to be there

when they don’t want you. It’s more an

invitation that we give them. It’s more

up to them than up to us. The level of

expectation is higher and higher, which

is good news for everyone. But it’s not

that we need to be aggressive with our

customers. I think that Chanel is about a

dream, and we have to position our-

selves keeping this dream alive.”

* * *Thom Browne

“I AGREE THAT the fashion world in

general is moving very fast. But for me,

it’s always been about doing things my

own way. In recent years, I’ve added

pre-collections to my business, but I only

did so when I was ready. Fashion shows

for me have never been just for the con-

sumer, but to create an experience and

to provoke and to simulate the mind.”

* * *Jean-Paul Goude

Photographer and art director

“THE MORE EXCITEMENT there is, the

more work there is. But the challenge

is to keep up the quality. Excitement —

even hysteria — slipped through fashion’s

fingers and was captured by entertain-

ment, with sometimes unfortunate

results and a dash of vulgarity. There’s

an opportunity for fashion to reappro-

priate the excitement and raise fashion

shows to the level of the opera or ballet.”

* * *Pierre Rougier

Founder of PR Consulting

“I THINK IT’S an age-long problem

about the shows and the system. That’s

never going to be resolved. Shows work

somehow. Are there too many? Probably.

I think because it’s working and it gets

you a lot of publicity, and if you get the

right people in the front row, it creates

more and more publicity because of

social media. More and more brands

maybe should not be showing and are

having shows and I think that’s part of

the problem. What’s very complicated is

the pace for designers, and that, I think,

is a huge problem. From the designers’

standpoint, it’s maxed out, it’s too much,

and too many seasons. We have to find a

way to feed that ever-hungry machine. I

don’t know what the solution is. A lot of

houses that can afford it have different

teams that work on pre-collections and

resort. It’s great for houses that can

afford it. For smaller houses, I don’t

know what to say about that. It’s way too

much. It’s killed a lot of young talent, a

lot of young houses. They just can’t feed

the beast anymore and are left behind.”

* * *Livia Firth

Founder of Green Carpet Challenge and creative

director of Eco-Age

“BASICALLY NO ONE can keep track

anymore. So what’s the solution? Could

we ever go back to how it used to be, to

fashion actually being a source of inspi-

ration for all? The answer is a huge ‘yes.’

If every designer, every journalist and

every woman and man could commit

“THERE ARE SO

MANY IMAGES BEING

FLUNG AT US…IT MAKES YOU CRAVE SIMPLE BEAUTY AND GREAT DESIGN.”

– GLENDA BAILEY

* * *Alber Elbaz

“THE MORE I TALK with people, I

see everybody looking for a change,

everybody. There is not exhaustion but

almost like a confusion of what we are

and who we are in fashion. I ask editors

‘how are you?’ and they say, ‘I cannot

see 60 shows in one week.” I ask writers

and they tell me, ‘I cannot keep writing

reviews in a taxi and between shows

having an apple and not being able to

digest what we saw. We need to think.’

I’m asking retailers, ‘what about you,’

and they say, ‘you know, we used to be

buying a lot, but we also used to be on

the floor to see the clothes. But now we

see numbers and shows.’

Is this industry only about numbers

and shows? That’s a question. And we,

the designers, did we change? Our title first was designer and

then chief creative director, because we have to be creative,

we have to direct. Now we have a title, it’s image-maker. Image

became a huge part of our job. Now, when you are a designer,

and you went to a fashion school, FIT or Parsons or the Royal

College, you learned about cuts and the body and innovation

and about newness, and this is what we were trained to do.

We did not go to a school of communication. We went to a

school of fashion. We didn’t learn business and we didn’t have

concepts of communication.

Today, I have a feeling that people come to see a show or they

see a show on the Internet, and they’re looking for entertain-

ment. Are we turning into an entertainment business? Is that

the fashion business? I’m questioning. I’m not criticizing, I’m

only reflecting. I feel that today in order to have a voice, it has

to be loud. You have to be loud, otherwise you cannot exist.”

“I SEE EVERYBODY LOOKING FOR A CHANGE, EVERYBODY.”

– ALBER ELBAZ

54 OCTOBER 2015, No.4 WWD.COM

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to slowing down, we would really end

once and for all the fast-fashion machine

which has destroyed all. This revolution

must start from each one of us, from

the wonderful designer who refuses to

create more than four collections a year,

to the talented journalist who refuses to

write about every single show on earth,

and from us wanting to buy ‘the latest.’

Fashion is hugely powerful and we need

to claim that power back.”

* * *Jason Wu

“IT’S A LOT. But for me, I love what I do.

For me personally, it doesn’t feel like too

much. But it’s a lot. I think you can say

that about everything. I myself am a con-

sumer of media and I am always looking

for more and want more. I guess until

we all slow down, we all have to keep up

the pace.”

* * *Ed Filipowski

Co-president and chief strategist at KCD

Worldwide

“AS AN INDUSTRY, in the past decades

we have been transformed by globaliza-

tion and now digitalization, the latter of

which is really just an iceberg with the

tip showing. Why can’t we embrace this

time now as a golden age of fashion, a

time in our history where we have more

abundant opportunity than ever? We

are a desired industry, wanted by the

art world, tech and the digital sphere,

all forms of entertainment and celeb-

rity — theater, music, film. The collab-

orative lines are blurred, we all inform

each other. Yes, there is undoubtedly

great change and with that comes some

new questions and challenges, but my

advice to clients is it is shortsighted and

a no-win situation to look back at what

‘isn’t.’ A true visionary or an industry

that breaks new ground is one that

doesn’t look to the past, but just keeps

moving forward. Fashion is a small part

of a larger cultural transformation we

are all part of, and to think we need to

‘fix it’ is myopic to say the least. I won’t

even have a conversation about old

formulas of what has worked in the past.

This is the time for pioneers, keeping a

few steps ahead.”

* * *Oliviero Toscani

“FASHION IS NOT overheated. In the

world where everything is violent and

war and money and finance and those

idiots on Wall Street.…I think it is very

useful. It’s a very good antidepressant

in a way, but at the same time, there are

women, especially, who get depressed

because they don’t look so good, they

don’t accept themselves, they don’t like

themselves. That’s a pity. I think there

have been fantastic designers who accept

all kinds of women, who could make

any kind of woman look great because

of their personality. I think it should be

more and more like that instead of dis-

criminating — I think that’s the limitation

of fashion. But otherwise it is necessary

in the world we are living. Somehow, it’s

like music. You don’t really know if it’s

necessary — of course, it is more than

necessary.”

* * *Umit Benan

“SOCIAL MEDIA IS controlling fashion

now. And I don’t like it. The attention

to workmanship is disappearing. It’s

all about marketing. I absolutely think

someone should stop this. Attention is

good. But I think it’s time for the brands

to control the final [customer]. Slow

down a bit. As long as the big brands

serve in such a fast way, the final [cus-

tomer] gets spoiled, [wanting] more and

more and faster, newer things every two

weeks. But also, if the big luxury brands

slow down, then the mass market will

take the opportunity to steal a piece of

the cake as seen by Zara, etc. So yes, it’s

too much!! Too fast! Change? Hopefully.

How? Have no clue!”

* * *Dean and Dan Caten

“THE FASHION SYSTEM is like a

machine: it goes fast, there is no slowing

down for anyone. Designers and brands

have to create and show at least six col-

lections per year in order to satisfy the

retail and wholesale expectations, but

you cannot just give it to consumers; you

need to consider all the entertainment

around it even if in today’s economic

situation, maybe it is more important

to focus on new ways to use fabrics and

use new technology to show fashion in a

new light.

Keeping an eye on heritage, focusing

on innovation: maybe this is the winning

key for today’s success.”

* * *Anya Hindmarch

“ON THE CONTRARY, I think there is a

growing and increasingly widespread

appetite for fashion as another art form

in the way that people queue up for the

latest exhibition in all the art galleries

around the world. It’s not going away. By

contrast, I think that the delivery of ►

* * *Tommy Hilfiger

“WITH SOCIAL MEDIA, with the Millen-

nials who are crazy over their heroes like

Gigi Hadid and Kendall Jenner and all of

these girls, [fashion is] red-hot. Our suc-

cess is proving that, because we gener-

ated more than 845 million impressions

on the last show. We had 290,000 new

followers the next day from Facebook,

Instagram, Twitter and were trending

globally on Twitter and Instagram — all

over the world, all news; we’ve never

had that kind of press. It’s all because

of social media. Having Bella Hadid and

Hailey Baldwin, all of these girls tweeting

and Instagramming from backstage,

doing selfies with each other and all of

the craziness with all of the social media

takes it to a whole different level. Fash-

ion shows have been fun and interesting

and we’ve used them for marketing and

positioning of the brand over the years,

but nothing like it is today.

We’ve also integrated programs like

social concierges, the [Twitter] Halo,

we did the Vine booth, we’ve got all of

these bloggers coming to the shows, they

reach millions of fans. We’ve launched a

virtual reality experience. We’ve led the

social media conversation during New

York Fashion Week the past five seasons.

You can’t buy that with an advertising

campaign, a media campaign. It pro-

vides a global media platform to launch

our brand story. It amplifies our brand.

It’s entertainment, and the way we’re

doing shows now is really about creating

unique experiences for the audience,

whether they’re students or [other]

people watching the live-streams in real

time.

I love the idea [of opening shows up

to the public]. It’s figuring out how to do

it so the editors don’t feel that they’re in

some public spectacle because they have

to do their jobs. But I love the idea. We

have people calling us wanting to buy

tickets; we have people e-mailing us for

tickets. We could open it up to the public

and it could be a phenomenon. If we

were to sell tickets, we would probably

donate the money to charity; it wouldn’t

be a profit. But I like the idea. It is enter-

tainment and it’s an experience. People

want experiences nowadays.

I think we need both [audiences]. I

just have to figure out how to do both

because it would become extraordinarily

expensive. The shows we produce now

are incredibly expensive, and they’re

just for editors, buyers, influencers.

If we’re going to do something for the

public [how to do it] where it wouldn’t

be a double cost?

We’ve selected items that can be

bought on tommy.com directly off the

runway. It’s our ambition to increase this

because it’s been so successful. Shoppers

don’t want to wait anymore. They see

something on the runway, they want it

that day. It’s immediate gratification,

especially for young people.

The world of social media and celeb-

rity is on fire because young people

are so attracted to it. Look, people love

fashion, entertainment, music, festivals,

they like experiences that have this pop

culture element to them. I would like

to make [shows] even more democratic

because there’s so many people out

there who are followers, they want to

become more a part of it.

Live-streaming was really the first

step, allowing the public to see the show.

Now we have 845 million impressions

after the show. That truly is because of

social media, bloggers. Two hundred

ninety thousand new followers that

week on Facebook. It’s incredible. These

numbers are wild. Whether or not they

translate into sales, we don’t know yet.”

“IT’S INCREDIBLE.

THESE NUMBERS ARE WILD.” – TOMMY HILFIGER

OVERHEATED!

“THE MORE EXCITEMENT THERE IS, THE MORE WORK THERE IS.”

– JEAN-PAUL GOUDE

00 MONTH 00, 2015 WWD.COM

fashion content, be it shows, digital or

events, will morph into a very direct

conversation with the consumer. I think

it’s an exciting time.”

* * *Joseph Altuzarra

“IT’S TWO SEPARATE issues: One is p.r.

and one is retail. The interesting thing

to me in this era of social media and

celebrities as brand ambassadors and

fashion as entertainment is, through all

of this, clothes still sell because someone

puts it on their body and they like how

it fits and it’s the right price and feels

unique….I think a lot of the focus is on

the intensity of the public relations effort

and the intensity of the public arena

that fashion has become entertainment.

Sometimes I think that it’s really discon-

nected from what people actually buy.”

* * *Daniella Vitale

Executive vice president and chief merchant of

Barneys New York

“THE BIGGEST ISSUE is there is so

much pressure on designers and emerg-

ing brands to put on a show or presen-

tation. Their money and energy should

not be spent on this. They should be

spending money on getting the product

right, quality, production and do what

they do best — which is design. We spend

so much time going to presentations and

shows that fall flat because they do not

have the resources to do it properly. That

is so defeating for a small brand. We try

and see everything, but more inspiring

is when you get into a showroom and

see amazing product. Nowadays, press

and brand awareness comes in many

forms and the use of technology and

social media can be as effective as a

presentation.”

* * *Nick Knight

Photographer and founder of ShowStudio

“I THINK IT’S a really good pace. I don’t

find it fast, because life is fast. I don’t

find it fast in a detrimental way. I think

it’s about emotions. It’s about you falling

in love with a piece of clothing and it

happens straight away. I always felt

frustrated before the Internet, because

you pour your heart into your work and

nobody sees it for three months, and

by that time you’ve moved on and you

don’t have direct contact with your audi-

ence. So I like that sort of spontaneity

of Instagram and I like the fact that it’s

happening live. It’s like you see a dress

walking down, and immediately you

have a reaction.”

* * *Damir Doma

“IT STARTED WITH the introduction

of pre-collections, which meant more

drops, more communication and a

change of communication via social

media. Social media doesn’t have time

to go deep into the subject, it’s maybe

exciting for the viewer, but it takes value

away from creativity. It’s not just about

the clothes anymore — their construc-

tion and fabrics — but how the brands

present themselves. Too much stays

on the surface, and that’s a pity. The

market is definitely overheated, which

also renders it unstable. My solution was

to take myself out of the system. I was

a hamster in a spinning wheel, creat-

ing one piece after the other — it lost

substance. Now I create my own tempo,

having gone down from 10 collections a

year to four or six. I prefer for my brand

to be niche with a smaller turnover but a

stable customer base, instead of playing

the game.”

* * *Marco de Vincenzo

“OVER THE YEARS, we saw a crazy

acceleration in the timing of the

business. In the past, there were some

quieter moments when you had the

chance to reflect on your work, which

was something extremely useful. Even if

sometimes being under pressure pushes

us to give the best, I also think that if

the whole system doesn’t slow down a

little bit, we risk to start recycling old

ideas and not creating anything new.

Creativity is in danger. It’s becoming

a war, where we are bombarded by a

million ideas and finding room in the

market is pretty tough, especially for

small brands that cannot do an extensive

communication. In addition, I think that

cutting time lapses between when you

show something and when you sell it,

you kill that sense of waiting, which is

actually exciting. We are living a kind of

schizophrenic time where it’s very hard

to make a long-term plan.”

* * *Katie Grand

Freelance stylist and editor in chief of

Love magazine

“EVERYONE CERTAINLY feels the pres-

sure of delivering more. Marc ( Jacobs)

now goes into the resort collection with

a different mind-set. It’s not clothes on

a rack anymore, but a show. And shows

themselves have become such a specta-

cle, with all the extra material that can

be generated. There are very different

goals now. You find yourself at 2 a.m.

doing a whole fashion shoot before a

show — on top of working on the looks

and the fittings.

Designers — like Marc and Thomas

Maier — are also getting very interested

in their own social media accounts. Marc

has become obsessed with Instagram

and Thomas has caught the bug, too.

Designers are choosing to add more

noise, they’re giving themselves an extra

layer of something to worry about and

iPhones generally are making people

more easily aware of what’s going on.”

* * *Julie de Libran

Creative director of Sonia Rykiel

“FASHION IS quicker than ever before.

We sometimes feel we don’t have that

time to reflect, explore and experiment

enough with new directions. I would

love and have tried to slow down that

process. We have made the customer

and markets used to seeing new mer-

chandise in shops frequently. I believe

this is not just in fashion, I have this

feeling of things moving so fast and I

wonder sometimes if we are forgetting

all the work that is behind every piece

we see and how those pieces have a

certain value and are actually timeless.

That is what I am interested in creating

more and more.”

* * *Massimo GiorgettiDesigner of MSGM and Emilio Pucci

“THE FASHION world is spinning very

fast; we have to work on collections

and pre-collections and those today

are important for the business, like the

main ones. We also have to think about

and work on the fashion shows and ad

campaigns, without disregarding all the

creative process of a collection (from the

inspiration to the show). Therefore the

timing is very tight, and the work for the

“I DON’T FIND IT FAST, BECAUSE

LIFE IS FAST.”

– NICK KNIGHT

OVERHEATED!

* * *Derek Lam

“IT DEFINITELY feels like a moment

of reckoning, only because we as an

industry have been talking about this for

quite a few years. The pace just seems to

accelerate, as opposed to making a con-

scious effort to address what needs to be

addressed, which is this oversaturation

of design, especially in fashion, and all

the information. It’s almost out of our

control, meaning the industry, because

there are so many moving parts, and

where do you start?

We made the decision for pre-fall not

to do a look book shoot. We’re just going

to show it in the showroom for sales.

Obviously, we’ll have a press day, but I

wanted to dial it down, that necessity of

constantly having something up online.

It makes me feel more comfortable that

we’re not just pushing things out there. I

think sometimes, especially for someone

like me, the client is not looking for,

every four months, some kind of new

proclamation. So why do I need to feed

into that?

When you look at the movie industry

and the studio blockbusters, they’re not

going away and each year one or two

movies hits that ‘made more money

than ever,’ a bigger audience, you know?

But there’s a huge turn to independent

filmmakers and more interesting televi-

sion. So you see that whole shift. I think

there’s probably a parallel with fashion.

What is the client looking for, the

ones who are not looking for revolu-

tion? They’re looking to be excited, but

they’re not looking to have to think too

much about it. They want to be satisfied

and entertained and nourished by fash-

ion, but they don’t need it to be a huge

seven-course meal.”

THE CLIENT IS NOT LOOKING FOR, EVERY FOUR MONTHS, SOME KIND OF

NEW PROCLAMATION.

— DEREK LAM

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designer and his team is getting harder.

In my opinion, all these new opportuni-

ties represent a big business, but it has

to be positive for the people working

on the project, and it has to naturally

respect the DNA of the brand. Today the

Web offers customers the possibility to

share the magic behind a fashion show.

It’s a very democratic tool for all the

people not involved in the fashion world.

But I think that a show should only be

for people working in the fashion arena

because even if fashion shows are full

of glamour and allure, they still are a

working moment. During the 15 minutes

of a show, buyers can already have a

first idea of what they can buy for their

clients, and the media can express a

point of view.”

* * *Sarah Rutson

President of global buying, Net-a-porter

“WE AT Net-a-porter.com not only

embrace changes in our industry, we

encourage them. Change is what forces

you to innovate, and innovation in our

business is critical. The level of attention

afforded to the fashion industry by the

customer is at an all-time high, but this

is an advantage for us. Now more than

ever, we must look, listen and respond

in true dialogue with our customers,

and indeed we have the technology

and tools to do just this. It has to be a

conversation, not just between retailers

and customers, but between brands and

retailers, and brands and customers. We

must address the needs and wants of

the customer in order to succeed. This

means being where she is, giving her

what she wants and serving as the ulti-

mate zeitgeist who leads her toward the

direction fashion moves. E-commerce is

the fastest way to directly engage with

and respond to the customer, and she

relies on the ease and speed of accessing

fashion through the click of a button.

The modern customer is hot-wired to

focus on the now, and wants things

quickly, with the luxury service for

which Net-a-porter is renowned. I think

there has never been a more exciting

time to be in this business, especially

in luxury e-commerce, where we are

excited to continue creating the future of

fashion.”

* * *Yeohlee Teng

“I DON’T THINK there will be a breaking

point. Human beings are very sustain-

able creatures — they just evolve. I can’t

be gloom and doom about it because I

don’t feel that way. This is what it is —

deal with it. It will evolve into something

else and be ready for that. It’s just life

today.

There’s the old school who says, ‘Limit

the shows.’ Who are we to tell somebody

they can show or they can’t show? That

is so elitist. It goes against my grain. If

you set up a group that says just 100

shows, that is so undemocratic.

Instantaneous communication is what

drove it to its pace today. Whether it’s

good or bad is hard to weigh. I don’t

think it’s specifically the arena of the

designer who has to crank out a lot of

work. I think everybody does. It’s like

circles — rings around each person. Like

in any circumstance, survival of the

fittest applies to some degree. It takes

a certain amount of will and gumption

to be able to think clearly when there’s

such cacophony going on around you. I

don’t think whether it’s really good or it’s

bad, I just kind of think how best to deal

with it. I like to try to understand what is

going on and hopefully respond appro-

priately. But there’s no getting away from

it. If you don’t learn how to deal with it,

you die or you get crushed.”

* * *Cindi Leive

Editor in chief, Glamour

“I UNDERSTAND it’s a problem, but it’s

a pretty good problem to have.…Every-

one needs to decide if fashion shows

are intended to be consumed on social

media…as a marketing campaign…or if

they are for editors to review them for

retailers.…There’s a hunger for seeing

and consuming fashion. The alternative

is if it’s an industry no one cared about.

Even if it’s a problem, it’s a good prob-

lem to have.”

* * *Garance Doré

Blogger

“A FEW YEARS ago, we saw a change in

behavior in our readers, who are very

hungry for fashion, but started engag-

ing much less during fashion week. I

already could feel that fashion weeks felt

overcovered and didn’t feel so new and

exciting anymore, but for the first time,

the readers were telling us directly.

It also followed an editorial question-

ing about what we want to bring to our

readers, and I answered very fast by

choosing to cover precise moments and

key events, as well as brands that reso-

nate, and in a very personal way. Very

quickly it picked up and engagement

toward fashion covered that way has

never been that strong, as well as trust

toward what appears on the blog.

So my answer would be yes, there is

too much of everything and it has had

an exhausting effect. And in that kind of

environment, bringing a different point

of view and setting a different tempo was

a very good move for us.”

* * *Jean-Marc Loubier

Chief executive officer of First Heritage Brands

“FASHION AS a whole is just mirroring a

world where speed, congestion of images

and instant everything are consumed —

too often without consideration and a

long-range view. We must expect more

from the fashion world and its leaders if

we do not want to go out of fashion.

Fashion has become a huge global

business based on the tremendous global

development of middle/upper classes

with the related mass consumption made

possible by the availability of relative

low costs to supply mostly disposable

products.

I believe in the future of our industry

as soon as we recognize the real ‘costs’

of what we propose, meaning the values

of what we propose. This is a call to

rebalance our focus more upstream and

not just trying to impose ‘obsolescence’

through huge communication budgets,

store networks or omnichannel.

I believe in our fashion shows, in their

intense moments when they are part of a

chain, not just an instant communication

blast. A whole industry gathers and each

member plays its demanding role: The

companies propose creation and prod-

ucts, the media play their role of filter,

giving background and perspectives, and

the buyers make their choice and secure

diversity. The key structural moment in

the industry should not become just a

trivial communication tool.”

* * *Massimo NicosiaHead designer, Pringle of Scotland

“FASHION HAS become the fastest-mov-

ing design discipline, and part of the

social pop-culture in the most inclusive

sense. Once fashion was exclusive and

elitist and it was targeting a niche of

insiders. Fashion is now moving at Insta-

gram speed and has to generate content

at a frenetic pace, sometimes flirting

with the ‘quantity-over-quality culture.’

We should allow ourselves more time

to create something truly considered ►

* * *Fern Mallis

“AT THE END of the day, of course it’s

good that people are so interested. Fash-

ion is to be consumed, and if customers

don’t wear it and buy, all the hoopla

and all the money spent is really a big

waste. When I was at the CFDA, I was a

big proponent of trying to create a more

consumer-driven fashion week that was

about collections when they’re in the

stores, way before there was a Fashion’s

Night Out, trying to do something that

generated business for the customers.

That’s really the endgame, and those

are the people who we really need to get

excited about the stuff. You want them to

see a show and then put their hands in

their pockets with their credit cards and

go shopping. Macy’s did a show this year

at the end of fashion week at the Theater

at Madison Garden. I thought it was great.

It was a great attempt at owning that

opportunity. You take advantage of the

runway and all the publicity that happens

that week and then create a consumer

event for people to go shopping.

It’s all out of hand, but it’s all in your hand. You’re taking on

the world in your hand. Nobody claps anymore because they’re

busy taking pictures. Even at concerts, all you see are cameras

in the air. It’s changed everything we do. You can complain

about it, but it’s not going to get any better.

Sure, too many people are showing, but how do you know

who the next talent is? Who wants to play that role, and play

God, and say you can’t show? Everybody deserves a chance.

There needs to be a lot more information and inform people so

you know what you’re going to see.”

“IT IS A DISGRACE.”

– DAN LECCA

“YOU WANT THEM TO SEE A SHOW AND THEN PUT THEIR HANDS IN THEIR POCKETS WITH THEIR CREDIT CARDS AND GO SHOPPING.”

– FERN MALLIS

58 OCTOBER 2015, No.4 WWD.COM

and resolved; the time you are able to

spend on things is becoming the ultimate

luxury in fashion.”

* * *Chiara Ferragni

Blogger

“IT’S A GREAT moment for fashion and

a lot is changing and growing. Internet

and social media made it all faster and

easier somehow...and of course, more

accessible. Fashion is not that secret

or elite thing it was before. Nowadays,

there are not only fashion weeks as

main events (which anyway run all year

long on the worldwide calendar). [Now

there is] the sensation that there is an

unmissable event I could attend every

day. I think this is not something that is

going make the system collapse, but it

allows to strongly affirm who you are or

what a brand is. There are a millions of

occasions, but maybe just a few of them

are good for yourself or for your prod-

ucts. I guess everyone (including fashion

clients) know it, too. There could be

millions of bags or brands, but there will

always be that one that you somehow

truly desire and feels like yours.”

* * *Ruth Chapman

Executive chairman Matchesfashion.com

“I THINK LIFE is overheated! We are all

working and traveling and consuming

information more than ever before,

which can be overwhelming — and the

fashion industry is reflective of this. But

the growth in the global appetite for

fashion is a positive, as is the way more

people are turning to fashion as an outlet

for their creativity and to express their

individuality. Technology has enabled

this, and we all need to embrace the

positives that it brings, which is a deeper

understanding of the customer and the

global market.

As customers are more digitally

engaged, we also have more information

than ever about them, so brands need

to use this to really understand their

customer demographic — know your

woman or man and then think outside

the box to find the most relevant way to

engage them. For example, a younger

brand may not need to do a catwalk

show, but social media is key to their

customer so they can serve up content

and engage their customer in the right

way — which sometimes will be more

directly.”

* * *Jason Basmajian Chief creative officer, Cerruti 1881

“THE FASHION industry is moving faster

than ever before, both from a product

perspective (fast fashion) as well as mar-

keting, media and hype. We are starting

to see a slight backlash to this. The

recent documentary, ‘The True Cost’ by

Livia Firth, raises some interesting and

fundamental questions on the price we

may pay at the end of the day.

Authentic and great work still takes

time to develop organically and quality,

not quantity, will endure in the end.

The fashion system today may expedite

accessibility and enhance visibility, but

in the end, the product and brand has

to deliver. There are no shortcuts and

consumers have become increasingly

demanding and savvy. The trend for

direct-to-consumer shows will continue

because it makes business sense and

allows companies to get a jump on a

season.

I believe that the fashion industry like

many others will go through self-cor-

recting cycles and the spinning wheel

will also be a test of which designers and

brands can stick, and stay the course.

Honest and quality journalism is still

important, as is end performance at

retail. Developing a company and brand

takes time and unfortunately, patience

is a virtue often overlooked in our

industry.”

* * *Marios Schwab

Designer who canceled his runway shows earlier

this year and opted instead for one-on-one

appointments in a more intimate setting.

“WHAT IS THE point of inviting 500

people to a catwalk show when I have a

niche label? I felt like the handwork, fab-

rics and details were getting lost on the

catwalk. I wanted an intimate dialogue,

not a circus, and a show that was man-

ageable for me and for my business.”

* * *Lisa Armstrong

Fashion director of The Telegraph

“COMMON SENSE would suggest this is

a crazy way to run an industry, espe-

cially since so many of the clothes we

see, style and write about don’t even

make it into the stores. I was sent a sur-

vey this week saying that most consum-

ers can’t relate to most of what they see

on the runway, and are more influenced

by what they view on Instagram.

In the end, it’s down to editors to edit.

You can already see that many editors

have learned to focus in on the outstand-

ing shows and collections that count and

stopped trying to cover everything. I’m

hopeful that eventually the industry will

get wise and work out what is and isn’t

worth doing and how much all of that

publicity is genuinely useful, and how

much is simply white noise.”

* * *Paul Alger

Director of international affairs at the

U.K. Fashion & Textile Association

“THERE IS TOO MUCH supply and

not enough demand. Not everyone is

going to succeed. Buyers are getting

barraged by brand-new companies each

season, and there is a limit to the time

and investment they can make in small

brands.”

* * *Marie de ReyniesDivisional merchandise manager

for women’s wear, Printemps

“IT IS A QUESTION we have been asking

ourselves, especially from the per-

spective of our customer. How can she

understand? Even for those of us who

work in fashion, it’s becoming so fast, it’s

difficult to follow, so for someone on the

outside, it cannot be easy. At the same

time, we have observed that brands with

an accelerated rhythm of delivery and

proposition are those that meet with

* * *Ralph Toledano

President of Puig fashion division and the

Fédération Française de la Couture, du Prêt-à-

Porter des Couturiers et des Créateurs de Mode

“THE INDUSTRY has seen tremendous

change in the last 20 years. It used to be

designers/artisans designing ready-to-

wear lines distributed through whole-

sale, and now you are talking about

giant global brands with their own retail

networks and a much broader product

range.

Yet some things are exactly the same.

There were pre-collections back then,

but they were not presented to the press

because they were incorporated into the

shows, which had 60 to 90 exits. I pulled

out a Paris Fashion Week schedule from

15 years ago and there were the same

90 shows. We have not increased the

number. New York has expanded. Milan

has shortened. This is the reality.

Of course, there’s some disconnect

between the time we show and the time

customers can find it. On the other hand,

consumers are very educated and they

know that. Even if we wanted to show

when the garments are shipped, we

would have to show it to the press and

to the customers several months before.

I don’t know any designer who would

put a collection on ice for four or five

months. You have to adapt to the times

and look forward.

Burnout is something that can happen

in any industry. In my opinion, it’s a

management responsibility to make sure

that doesn’t happen. I don’t think the

shows are the problem — they are even

a reward for the whole design team. It’s

true that we see competition increasing

and pressure increasing, but this is not

specific to the fashion industry. It’s the

manager’s responsibility that this doesn’t

happen and to make people happy.

Fashion shows are very, very import-

ant in terms of creativity, of commit-

ment, of execution, and of dialogue

between the press and consumers,

between vendors and their clients. I

make a lot of decisions after a show

because you see much, much better your

strengths and weaknesses. We can’t just

blame an anonymous system. There is a

dual responsibility. The responsibility of

management is to protect designers and

make sure they handle the demands.

On other side, the designer is respon-

sible when he takes the job to do what

is needed to meet the demands of the

market and remain competitive. It’s a

management tool for sure.”

“YOU HAVE TO ADAPT TO THE TIMES AND

LOOK FORWARD.”

— RALPH TOLEDANO

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– RICK OWENS


strong commercial success. So, I’m not

worried in terms of business, because

it’s quite positive in terms of business.

I’m concerned about the consumer’s

comprehension, but she seems receptive

to it, it is after all the Zara model that has

been put into place. But afterward, the

question we could ask ourselves is, can

the whole industry in the background

keep up? I worked for the fashion houses

before I was at Printemps. It is a rhythm

that is extremely intense, because as well

as the brands, there is the whole produc-

tion chain, product development behind

that. I think it will go on for some time

still, because it has shown such positive

results in terms of growth. In the short

term, the houses are structuring them-

selves and have more and more mer-

chandised rhythms for their collections.

In the longer term, will the whole value

chain be able to keep up? For a certain

length of time, yes, in the longer term, I

don’t know. We find solutions, because

it generates activity and creates jobs, the

problem is the ever-increasing speed.”

* * *Beatrix Ong

“AT SOME POINT, someone has to make

the leap of faith to change, to stop doing

collections by season, for example. It

comes down to an individual’s choices.

The fashion industry is not evil, but

certain practices have become the norm.

People are under pressure, they may not

have time, but hopefully better practices

will become the norm.”

* * *Serge CarreiraLecturer at Sciences Po Paris

“FASHION IS a reflection of society. It’s

schizophrenic because the consumer is

[schizophrenic]: He is looking for both

authenticity and coolness. The main

challenge for designers is to make sense

while they’re being asked to send out

five or six collections per year. Fashion

has always been a show. It’s its essence.

What changes today is the immediacy in

the Internet age.”

* * *Scott Tepper

Director of fashion buying and merchandising,

Liberty

“THE VELOCITY and amount of infor-

mation and photos instantly available

live from the shows has totally rocked

the fashion industry. Fashion shows have

evolved from industry-focused events to

branding events, which is actually great

to encourage the level of interest in the

brands we sell. The only downside is that

shows totally built for Instagram, such

as a Moschino or Kenzo, run the risk of

making such a splash that the customers

have already moved on to next season’s

big splash by the time the spring product

actually arrives in store and online.”

* * *Tina Craig

Blogger behind The Coveteur

“WITH HIGHER volume and nearly

instantaneous exposure, luxury fashion is

accessible to everyone — and that’s a posi-

tive. Luxury fashion shouldn’t be a clique

of ‘mean girls’ (and boys) but an alluring

force in which everyone who’s interested

can potentially take part, even if by only

voicing their appreciation of a newly

released bag on their favorite form of

social media. Aspirational consumers are

becoming more educated, as a result of

rapid-fast, ever-expanding technology and

the resulting democratization of fashion.

Inevitably, the woman who invests in

a $3,500 bag is automatically worried it

will become ubiquitous by the time she

carries it, and for good reason. Thanks to

the consistent gifting of goods to celeb-

rities, social media saturation, and high

fashion’s consequent overexposure, a

special purchase is potentially less likely

to feel quite so special anymore.

There’s an unarguable need to slow

down. Designers are churning out four

to six collections a year, and trends are

jutting in and out of style as quickly as one

can blink. The answer is simple. I think

cutting out a lot of the noise and relegat-

ing access to true experts who can process

the information and translate it for the

consumer is an important strategy.”

* * *Ariel FoxmanEditorial director, InStyle

“I’M MOST interested in the consumer

and the enthusiastic fashion participant.

When you look at the spike in interest

during fashion week-month, for the

woman who is engaged, I don’t think

it’s overheated. There’s conventional

wisdom that says, is this sustainable? I

would argue that we’re exciting more

women than exhausting more women.

I suspect there’s an aspect of the

question that is: Is it losing its exclu-

sivity? If the clothing is great and the

ideas are standouts...opening it up to as

many people who are interested doesn’t

make a difference. The most directional

designers are some of the most socially

engaged people in the field.

I think that fashion is an industry that

has always incorporated aspiration and

a little bit of a cloak of it being out of

reach. Now you see it, now you’ll buy

it in six months. I think there is still a

myopia around this understanding that

simply because people are Instagram-

ming or Snapchatting about it — this

democratization of fashion — means

everybody knows about it. It’s still a very

small group of people who are engaging

in this content. It’s still a very, very small

core group of fashion enthusiasts.”

* * *Lynn Tesoro

Founding partner of HL Group

“IT’S CRAZY because there’s a launch

of an app, an online retail site…there’s

something happening every single day.

You’re getting bombarded. I think it’s

going to find its balance. I don’t think

it’s 100 percent bad, and I don’t think

it’s 100 percent good. I do really honor

the design process and do respect how

clothes are shown. Online is great, and

I get a lot of information when I’m not

in Paris or Milan. But for people who

are journalists and are critics, there’s no

replacement to the [live] fashion show or

presentation.

Celebrities brought a lot of attention

to the runway shows. Now the celebrity

thing has died down tremendously.

Some designers are picking models that

have huge Instagram followings. Every-

one is thinking a little differently than

they ever thought before. At New York

Fashion Week, you had Lauren Conrad

doing a show, you had Kanye West,

people were running out of the more

traditional shows to get to them. Adam

Levine has a clothing line now. I do think

fashion has become entertainment. Peo-

ple are fascinated by the process. I don’t

know if fashion has eclipsed entertain-

ment in terms of consumer fascination,

but it’s a very big part of it. Fashion has

become entertainment. I watched DVF’s

TV show the other night. Who wouldn’t

want to be in that industry?

Before, you had to worry about your

critics, and you had to make the editorial

side happy, now there are so many other

conversations going on. Right after the

show hits, it’s already posted, an hour

afterward you’re seeing your reviews, it’s

a far greater reach. Someone critiques

it on Instagram, and has a point of view.

We’ve created wonderful personalities on

Instagram and Twitter. Are they truly the

voice of authority and experience?” ■

* * *Ken Downing

Fashion director and senior vice president at

Neiman Marcus

“I FEAR THE fashion fatigue is beginning

to slowly move through the customer

psyche, because she and he are follow-

ing the collections with the immediacy

that we as retailers, editors and fashion

insiders are following it. They are as

excited and stimulated in the here and

now as we are and there’s the sense that,

six months from now, when clothes and

accessories arrive in stores, she’s becom-

ing a bit bored. She feels that she’s seen

it before on social media, online, on

celebrities. We’re telling the customer

far too much too soon in a society when

people have a short attention span and

are hungry for the next thing. It begs the

question, how much is enough and how much is too much?

We’re all guilty. I’m Instagramming from every show.

It’s fast-moving and I don’t want to be the voice of a jaded

fashion person, but fashion is a visual feast, and when I’m not

being fed, it’s easy to lose interest. Also, the marketing machine

has taken some of the soul out of the beauty of the craft.

I look to the Hollywood model of launching a movie. They

don’t open the set and let in the customer and the media to

Instagram and report on and talk about their latest production.

It’s held tight and as it becomes closer to a release date, then

you hear more about the actors, more about the role. Then

you see a teaser and people stand in line for hours for a ticket

to a movie. We, the fashion industry, are throwing all of it out

in front of the world as it’s happening and then scratch our

heads when the customer becomes disengaged because they’re

living the same cycle we fashion professionals are living.”

“EVERYONE FEELS THE PRESSURE OF DELIVERING MORE.”

– KATIE GRAND

OVERHEATED!

“I FEAR THE FASHION FATIGUE IS BEGINNING TO SLOWLY

MOVE THROUGH THE CUSTOMER PSYCHE.”

– KEN DOWNING

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Photographs by SIMPSON KIM60 OCTOBER 2015, No. 4 WWD.COM

Attendees at Seoul Fashion Week in the trend-conscious

South Korean capital expressed their style, both street and chic, to the letter — as in English letters. Lots of them. And with a nod to individuality, they did it with bold declarations, hand-scribbled missives and some seriously supersized accessories.

SEOUL FASHION

WEEK



SEOUL FASHION

WEEK

Hurry! Advance

registration discount

ends December 2

FINALE


Creating a new look in fashion is no small feat, and Christian Dior unleashed his in 1947 — and in capital letters. His waist-cinching, fan-skirted New Look caused a sensation, and set the foundation for an empire that continues to thrive today. In Paris, women on the street tried to attack models being photographed in lavish Dior dresses, enraged by such extravagant use of fabric in the austere, postwar period. “I never guessed what an explosive quality my modest formula would prove to have in an age of compromise and laissez-faire,” the designer said at the time.

Although his glorious career was cut short with his death in 1957, Dior cut a wide swath in fashion history, innovating with a business built on the principles of luxury and craftsmanship. His successors — a new one arriving soon, in the wake of Raf Simons’ exit — continue to interpret his influential silhouettes. The founder certainly felt the pressure of leading fashion, and embraced the need to provoke with bold creativity. “To manufacture emotion,” he once said, “a man must have a working agreement with madness.” — MILES SOCHA

Capital Idea

Christian Dior in his Paris studio, 1952.

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WWD.COM OCTOBER 28, 2015 65

M A R K E T P L A C E

For advertising inquiries, please contact Shannon Fitzgerald | 323-617-9094 | [email protected]

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A. Total no. copies 29,402 24,234B. Paid circulation (1) Mailed outside-county paid 13,687 12,005 Subscriptions stated on ps form 3541 (2) mailed in-county paid 0 0 Subscriptions stated on ps form 3541 (3) paid distribution outside the 10,012 10,443 mails including sales through dealers and carriers, street vendors, counter sales, and other paid distribution outside usps® (4) Paid distribution by other 0 classes of mail through the usps C. Total paid distribution 23,699 22,448D. Free or nominal rate distribution (1) Free or nominal rate 2,060 64 outside-county copies included on ps form 3541 (2) free or nominal rate 0 0 in-county copies included on ps form 3541 (3) free or nominal rate copies 0 0 mailed at other classes through the usps (4) free or nominal rate 2,194 387 distribution outside the mail E. Total free or nominal 4,254 451 Rate distribution F. Total distribution 27,953 22,899G. Copies not distributed 1,444 1,335H. Total 29,397 24,234I. Percent paid 84.78% 98.03%J. Paid electonic copies 34,983 34,001K. Total paid print copies (line 15c) 58,682 56,449 +Paid electronic copies L. Total print distribution (line 15f) 62,936 56,900 + Paid electronic copies M. Percent paid(both print & 93.24% 99.21% electronic copies) 7. I certify that all information furnished on this form is true and complete. (Signed) Danielle Romero, financial analyst

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Documents

THE BEAUTY OF IMPERFECTIONChaos, crowds, hype, digital explosion: Is the system headed for a burnout? THE RAF YEARS A look at Raf Simons’ tenure at Christian Dior as he exits the