Pretty in Punk

DAILY EDITION 8 JANUARY 2016 1
Trump Blasts
Macy’s
The GOP presidential
candidate criticized the
retailer’s performance after
it cut jobs. PAGE 3
London Looms
London Collections: Men
opens today as the city’s
retailers push
trans-seasonal styles.
PAGE 10
Fashion. Beauty. Business.
FASHION
Pretty in Punk
Nicola Formichetti is building his Nicopanda business. His first
pre-collection for the line featured fanzine and logo-fueled
streetwear, such as this “Nicopanda Panic” printed blouse and
skirt. For more, see pages 5 and 6.
A look at Valentino’s
African-inspired spring ad
campaign shot by
photographer Steve
McCurry. PAGE 4
BUSINESS
U.S. Retail Shares
Spared From
Market’s Meltdown
● Stocks experienced heavy
selling as investors began to
fear another financial crisis.
BY DEBRA BORCHARDT
U.S. retail stocks were largely spared from
the continuing bloodbath in global stock
markets Thursday.
As all the major U.S. indices declined by
over 2 percent following steep falls in Asia
and Europe, the S&P Retail Index dipped
only 0.6 percent to close at 4,385.91. The
WWD Global Stock Tracker mirrored the
S&P Retail Index closing at 105.92, down
0.53 cents, or 0.5 percent. The relative
strength of the retail indices was surprising
given that December comparable-store sales
results were just so-so — although not as bad
as generally expected — and that there are
growing concerns that the U.S. economy
might be heading toward another recession.
Two of the poorest comp sales performers
were Macy’s Inc. and Gap Inc. Macy’s shares
actually rose Thursday by 2.1 percent to close
at $36.91 as Wall Street cheered the retailer’s
cost-cutting and restructuring moves.
The Gap had a great day as its stock
moved higher by 5 percent to $26.74, but
then dashed shareholders’ hopes when it
RETAIL
The Gilt Factor
At HBC: What
The Deal Means
● HBC will open Gilt Groupe
concept shops inside Saks Off
5th.
BY DAVID MOIN
Photograph by Thomas Iannaccone
Bridget Foley’s
Diary
Hudson’s Bay Co. sees its purchase of
Gilt Groupe as the ticket to advancing
growth across all channels and banners,
and not just as a relatively inexpensive
deal to boost online sales overnight.
“Gilt is a fantastic brand — a leader in
the e-commerce fashion space. Both the
brand and customer fit very well with
Saks Off 5th,” Storch told WWD. “On the
revenue side, Saks Off 5th will help grow
Gilt and Gilt will help grow Saks Off 5th.”
HBC will continue to operate Gilt
essentially as it is, though there will be
certain integrations to achieve savings
and synergies.
“Absolutely Gilt will be Gilt. It’s a
fantastic brand. People love it,” Storch
said. “We plan to continue to foster Gilt’s
culture of innovation, which has helped
create a strong brand with a loyal and
devoted Millennial following.”
reported that holiday sales dropped sending
the stock plunging by more than 9 percent in
after-hours trading.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. saw its shares rise 2.3
percent to $65.01 even as rival Target Corp.’s
stock dipped 0.4 percent to close at $73.79.
Other retailers ending the day on a positive
note included Stein Mart and Steve Madden,
which both rose more than 3 percent to
close respectively at $7.01 and $30.70. J.C.
Penney jumped more than 3 percent to $7.26
on news of strong holiday sales and The
Children’s Place popped more than 6 percent
to $63.70 after raising its guidance following
strong sales.
Even as many stocks sold off, Chris Christopher, director of U.S. and Global Consumer
Economics at IHS, said, “Looking ahead,
the positives clearly outweigh the negatives
on the consumer front for 2016, premised
on continuing strength in real disposable
income growth, further gains in auto sales,
increasing household real estate wealth, elevated levels of consumer confidence, modest
consumer price inflation and a housing
market that is gaining traction.”
Brad Sorensen, managing director of
market and sector analysis at the Schwab
Center for Financial Research, said, “The
American consumer has shown a remarkable
CONTINUED ON PG.8
Jonathan Greller, president of HBC outlets, will be overseeing Gilt, with various
functions of Gilt, including IT, reporting
into HBC’s shared services arm.
Storch said there are opportunities to
improve the Gilt business by combining
it with bricks-and-mortar. “One is to
provide for physical returns. Starting
in February, customers will be able to
start returning Gilt products at Saks Off
5th,” Storch said. “A major impediment
at Gilt has been the difficulty of making
returns.”
Secondly, “we will be opening Gilt concept stores inside Saks Off 5th stores” for
buying and returning Gilt products. “Gilt
will be physically embodied inside the
Saks Off 5th stores.” Storch said details
of the concept stores and where they are
opening will soon be revealed.
The Gilt shops will help bring extra
customer traffic to Saks Off 5th, which
will become an outpost for signing up
Gilt members, Storch said. “Right now,
the only way to source memberships is
online. With Saks Off 5th, we can get Gilt
memberships much more easily.”
The ceo characterized Gilt as “a leader
in mobile commerce, which is the most
rapidly growing part of the Internet, far
outpacing desktop growth. Over half of
Gilt’s sales are done on mobile. There is
a skill set there that we will be leveraging across our banners. Gilt is expert in
personalization, which is one of the most
important technologies for improving
CONTINUED ON PG.9
3
8 JANUARY 2016 BUSINESS
Round 2: The Donald
Takes Jab at Macy’s
● The businessman leveled
fresh criticism after the
retailer announced layoffs.
BY KRISTI ELLIS
Clearly there is still no love lost between
Donald Trump and Terry J. Lundgren.
The day after Macy’s Inc. said it was
laying off thousands of workers and instituting deep cost cuts, Trump took to his
favorite medium — Twitter — to level fresh
criticism at the retailer and its chairman
and chief executive officer.
Trump said in his tweet that Macy’s was
one of the “worst performing stocks on
the S&P last year, plunging 46 percent.”
He called the retailer a “very disloyal
company” and called the company’s
troubles “another win for Trump.” He
also called for a boycott — although he
didn’t say why a consumer might want to
boycott the store.
The bad blood between Trump and
Macy’s dates back to July when the
retailer decided to stop carrying Trump’s
merchandise, including his branded
men’s wear and fragrance products, in
all of its stores after he sparked a national
outcry with demeaning comments about
Mexican immigrants.
At the launch of his 2016 presidential
bid in June, Trump said: “When Mexico
sends its people, they’re not sending their
best. They’re not sending you. They’re
sending people that have lots of problems
and they’re bringing those problems”
with them. “They’re bringing drugs.
They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.
And some, I assume, are good people.”
Macy’s responded swiftly, announcing
that it would no longer carry Trump’s
products in its stores.
Donald Trump
ON WWD.COM
“Some decisions are very difficult to
make,” Lundgren said at the time. “But
our company’s commitment to diversity
and inclusion in all facets of the business,
including in our relationships with business partners, is a strong guiding force.”
Trump accused Lundgren and Macy’s
of “choking” in the face of political pressure. “I hate chokers,” Trump said.
A request for comment from Macy’s on
Thursday was not immediately returned,
but Lundgren recently told WWD, when
questioned about his relationship with
Trump: “Macy’s is not allowed to carry
merchandise from politicians.”
BUSINESS
Fast Retailing Q1 Profits Shrink
● Unseasonably warm weather
bit into demand for winter
clothing.
BY AMANDA KAISER
Trump photograph by Scott Olson/Getty Images; Roos by Michel Troyanowsky; People’s Choice Awards by REX/Shutterstock
Fast Retailing Co. Ltd. cut its full-year
earnings and sales forecasts on the back
of a weaker-than-expected first-quarter
performance.
Asia’s largest apparel retailer and
the corporate parent of Uniqlo said it
experienced weak demand for winter
apparel during an unseasonably warm
season around the world. The company
added that it saw a decrease in foreign
exchange gains from the previous year.
Fast Retailing said it expects full-year
net profit to come in flat at 110 billion
yen, or $895.38 million, compared to
its earlier estimate of 115 billion yen, or
$936.08 million. Sales are now seen rising 7 percent to 1.8 trillion yen, or $14.65
billion, down from a previous estimate
of 1.9 trillion yen, or $15.47 billion. The
company said foreign exchange fluctuations are not incorporated into those
new forecasts.
“Our latest estimates take into account
the lower-than-expected performance
in the first quarter,” the company said,
predicting a decline in second-quarter
gross margins at both its Uniqlo Japan
and Uniqlo International business units.
Given its disappointing performance in
recent months, the company is rethinking its product mix. Fast Retailing plans
to launch its spring collection earlier and
introduce less weather-sensitive products, a spokesman said.
The company said net profit for the
three months ending Nov. 30 fell 30.2
percent to 48 billion yen, or $398.4
million at average rates for the period.
First-quarter revenue rose 8.5 percent to
520.3 billion yen, or $4.32 billion. Operating profit slipped 16.9 percent to 75.9
billion yen, or $630 billion.
Uniqlo Japan saw lower profits and
sales in the quarter, hurt by “heavy discounting,” Fast Retailing said. Uniqlo’s
TOP 5
TRENDING
international operations fell short of
its targets with weak performances in
Greater China and South Korea and the
U.S. The company said Uniqlo’s operations in Europe and Southeast Asia fared
better.
The company said Uniqlo’s U.S. operations continued to generate an operating
loss. Fast Retailing said it is tweaking
Uniqlo’s expansion strategy in the
country to focus on major cities rather
than suburban areas and ramping up
its e-commerce efforts. Uniqlo recently
opened in Chicago and Boston.
Beyond Uniqlo, Fast Retailing said its
low-cost fast-fashion brand GU continues
to perform strongly, seeing a double-digit
growth in same-store sales.
But the company said its other brands
did not put in a good performance. A
“downturn” in the U.S. market hurt
Theory and J Brand while the temporary
closure of some stores in France after
November’s terrorist attacks bit into the
business of Comptoir des Cotonniers and
Princesse Tam Tam.
2016 People’s
Choice Awards
Red Carpet
● Fans voted for Kate Hudson,
Melissa McCarthy, Sandra
Bullock and Ellen DeGeneres.
●Givenchy Pre-Fall 2016
● Hudson’s Bay in Deal to
Buy Gilt Groupe for $250
Million
●Paris Fashion Week Street
Style Photos Spring 2016
● Media People: Creative
Artists Agency’s Kevin
Huvane
Global Stock Tracker
As of close Jan. 7, 2016
ADVANCERS
The Gap Inc.
+5.73%
BEAUTY
The Buckle Inc.
+4.58%
Nathalie Roos Named President of
L’Oréal’s Professional Products Division
● She succeeds An Verhulst-
Santos, who will begin
another position at the
company in April.
BY JENNIFER WEIL
PARIS — Nathalie Roos has been named
president of L’Oréal’s Professional Products Division and member of its executive
committee, the French beauty giant said
on Thursday.
Roos, who will take up the position in
the second quarter, succeeds An Verhulst-Santos, who will take up another
position at L’Oréal in April.
Roos became country manager of
L’Oréal Germany in October 2012. She
joined Mars Group in 1989 and worked at
Kraft Foods Group starting in 1987. Roos
graduated from L’École Supérieure de
Commerce de Reims.
L’Oréal said Verhulst-Santos strengthened the Professional Products Division’s
position globally. Under her guidance,
the division successfully integrated the
recently acquired brands Decléor and
Carita, opened new perspectives and
became a major player in the professional beauty market, according to the
company.
“An Verhulst-Santos also led the
development of the Salon Emotions
project and the deployment of SalonCentric in the U.S., further reinforcing the
Pandora A/S
+4.47%
Chico’s FAS Inc.
+3.92%
J.C. Penney Company, Inc.
+3.71%
DECLINERS
Avon Products Inc.
-12.54%
Elizabeth Arden Inc.
-9.93%
Nathalie Roos
relationship with salon professionals,”
L’Oréal stated.
The executive began her current position in 2011 after holding various management positions at the company in Europe,
Brazil and the U.S.
Youngor Group Co. Ltd.
-9.70%
Prada SpA
-8.33%
The Bon-Ton Stores Inc..
-8.02%
4
8 JANUARY 2016
FASHION
Bridget Foley’s Diary:
Valentino’s African Sojourn
Pierpaolo Piccioli enlisted
photographer Steve McCurry
for their spring campaign in a
Maasai village.
BY BRIDGET FOLEY
If you were lucky enough to have been
there, you remember it. You remember
the power of the clothes — their intricate,
captivating graphics. The communal swell
of emotion. The wonder-upon-exit that led
Karen Katz to note, “This is why we’re in
fashion.”
Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo
Piccioli’s spring Valentino show proved one
of those rare fashion jewels, a show that
transports you somewhere else, visually
and emotionally — never an easy trick,
especially at the end of a too-long fashion
season. Inspired by African tribal motifs, the
show felt uplifting in the ephemeral way that
intense beauty of various genres can inspire.
Given the show’s impact, perhaps the
designers felt greater pressure than usual to
deliver a blockbuster campaign. Or maybe
their African inspiration made the campaign’s location a no-brainer. Whatever the
impetus, they knocked on the door of Steve
McCurry, and he said yes.
McCurry is not your average rock-star
fashion photographer. He’s not a fashion photographer at all, but the brilliant chronicler
of far-flung cultures whose work became
famous on the pages of National Geographic.
His most iconic photograph: “Afghan Girl,”
the magazine’s June 1985 cover. She mesmerized the world.
To Piccioli and Chiuri, he seemed like
a natural. “Our emotions about African
culture, the idea of beauty [achieved by]
the interaction different cultures, the idea
of tolerance, this is the message we wanted
to deliver,” Piccioli says. “That’s why
we wanted to shoot in Africa with Steve
McCurry. He’s not a fashion photographer;
he’s a culture reporter…we wanted to shoot
not a fashion vision [of Africa], but more of
a cultural vision — and not in a studio with
an elephant.” The campaign breaks in the
February issues of several magazines.
McCurry, who currently has solo shows
running in New York; Hickory, North Carolina; Forli, Italy, and Singapore, with another
opening in London next month, finds
fascination in fashion, drawn to its narrative
possibilities. “It’s style and elegance and
beauty and creating a feeling, taking, taking
someone on a journey,” he says of what
attracted him to the project.
For the shoot, the designers and McCurry
decided upon Kenya’s Amboseli National
Park and in two Maasai villages for several
reasons. The area is visually spectacular, with
ample natural diversity. The Maasai people, many of whom appear in the pictures,
project a strength and dignity manifested in
their regal appearance, and their native attire
had influenced the collection generally if not
literally. The location met practical criteria
as well. Those involved in the production
deemed it safe (not all areas under consideration were), with sufficient resources (such as
number of hotel rooms) in the vicinity to support the crew. And, as an oft-used location,
permits and professional cooperation would
be easily secured.
A lone creative wolf while working for himself — his entourage typically is typically limited to a translator, driver and perhaps assistant or production person/troubleshooter
— McCurry was drawn to the team aspect of
photographing fashion. “Models, designers,
and hair and makeup, the lighting. Literally,
the crew often rivals the size of a small movie
production. It all goes into creating this
impression, this feeling,” he says.
He also embraced the notion that change
lies at fashion’s core, both the clothes
themselves and their photographs. “When
it comes to advertising in general, it is about
new approaches and new ways of showing
things and surprise and working outside the
box. That’s basically what we were trying to
do,” he says.
In describing Valentino’s African excursion, McCurry speaks not dispassionately, but
with the specificity of an artist-clinician with
a task at hand, while the designers invoke the
language of pure idealism. “With this collection and campaign we wanted to speak about
a different culture,” Chiuri says, noting that
the European notions of beauty are rooted in
classical Greek ideals. “We really believe that
[cross-cultural understanding] improves our
a.m., and there were tribulations including a
massive dust storm that came, McCurry says,
“out of nowhere,” with terrifying fierceness.
He preferred to keep shooting, but expected
someone to suggest a run for cover, lest hair,
makeup and clothes get ruined. No one did,
though “the power of that thing, the dust,
was unbelievable.
“We were all so elated and excited,” he
continues, noting that the resulting picture
is among his favorites. “We thought we did
something really unusual and special. I guess
you can look at pictures and say, ‘oh, it was
a wind machine or Photoshop or done on
post[production].’ It was an incredible event,
and we were so lucky, because we had only
been in that location for 10 or at the max 15
minutes.”
On one hand, McCurry approaches every
project form a similar standpoint. “I think
emotion love, laughter, empathy or somehow
evoking some sort of a feeling is important,”
he says. “With portraiture, you want to get
under the skin of subject. “There’s some
healthy, living in this incredible world,” and
should be “completely open, observant,
curious and let things sort of happen.”
That’s the emotion, the instinct, the soul
of his work. Then there’s the skill. “Generally, with experience you know the right
place, the right time, you see something,
you know how to craft a picture,” he says.
“Usually things happen; you don’t want to
be too pushy. With experience and a sense of
design, shape and composition, you come up
with a number of really good pictures.”
As his body of work indicates, McCurry
is drawn to far-off places, “more inspired
by, say, old Havana than a shopping mall in
Cleveland,” he says. “Not to say I couldn’t get
into that place. [But] that’s one of the things
about going to Kenya, Havana, Calcutta —
you’re delighted, you’re horrified. You see
great things and terrible things, but you’re
never bored. You’re stretching your mind.
New York is interesting. But [it’s] more fun to
go to Kenya, to see how they dress differently, eat differently and live in a different
Valentino spring 2016 campaign shot in Amboseli National Park in Kenya.
cultures...and with fashion it is possible to
open eyes to learn something.”
While that hardly sounds groundbreaking,
Piccioli notes that everyday contact with
people of various cultures is not all that
common in Western Europe. “In the U.S.,
you are more integrated with other cultures,”
he says. “We sometimes worry that Europe is
not so open-minded…we have to learn to live
with different cultures. USA, In Italy, it’s not
so usual.”
For his part, McCurry focused on telling
the story at hand. “Photography is always
about finding the best solution to a puzzle
and creating some wonderful feeling or
scenario, making a great story,” he says. “The
idea of these pictures is to take the viewer
on a journey. The clothes were inspired by
African motifs, [so] to take the shoot to Africa
and show how these things interact and, this
connection of the clothes, the models, the
environment, the local people; I thought it
was a great endeavor.”
The days started early for the light — 4
soulful connection, you’re really getting to
know that person. That there’s a connection
— somehow a person is revealing a bit of
themselves.”
Looking at his remarkable portrait series
“Eloquence of the Eye,” one gets what he
means. These aren’t just beautifully composed, expertly executed pictures of interesting, diverse faces; rather, the viewer buys
into the proverbial windows to the soul. And
there’s no formula. “How that comes about
is a bit of a mystery, even to me,” McCurry
says. “I just think when I’m photographing
people, I want to make a picture that says
something about that person and about their
humanity. I think it’s something I’ve learned
over the years through trial and error and
cultivating a way of working to try and get
something deeper.”
Which is not to say the process is fully
organic. He may start taking a walk with
his camera, whether through the streets of
Havana, Calcutta, [India], or some other
spot of interest, with the attitude that, “I’m
way. That’s what inspires me.”
Yet he is a guy with a camera, and some
beauty is universal. While models can be
too aware of their camera-ready selves,
there’s something to be said for working with
subjects who are “beautiful, elegant and
statuesque.”
Not that those characteristics are limited
to the professional set. The Maasai, McCurry
suggests, are all as fabulous as any runway
casting, their attributes not unlike those of
top models’ — part natural, part cultivated.
“The Maasai have great flair and a great fashion,” he says. “They have a great look, tall,
thin, regal, majestic.”
And like the models Valentino brought
into their community, they’re accustomed
to being in front of the camera. “There are
pictures of Maasai people forever,” McCurry
says. “They’re approached all the time to be
photographed themselves, or by people who
want to photograph in their neighborhood or
whatever. So yeah, I think they’re
pretty savvy.”
Photograph by Steve McCurry/Courtesy of Valentino
● Maria Grazia Chiuri and
5
8 JANUARY 2016
Givenchy
GIVENCHY
Riccardo Tisci’s blockbuster spring collection for
Givenchy — paraded exceptionally in New York last Sept.
11 — ignited a lingerie trend now trickling into pre-fall.
The designer nimbly maintained ownership of lacy
tops and dresses, pajamalike ensembles and bathrobe
coats for his own pre-fall effort — the shapes sharpened,
the colors darkened.
Highlights of this brisk, straightforward collection
were hung in Givenchy’s Avenue Montaigne showrooms
opposite the men’s pre-fall range, highlighting how fluidly
Tisci’s ideas — allover logos, worker denims and necktie
prints — traverse genders and seasons.
Fetish silhouettes — tuxedo suits, bomber jackets, romantic blouses — were reworked with new and reprised
print motifs and couturelike embellishments, including
delicate filigree floral embroideries crawling over flight
jackets and narrow-shouldered suits.
Now entering his second decade at the Paris house,
the first marked by plenty of fashion fireworks, Tisci
seems poised to now build and articulate the Givenchy
wardrobe, segmenting the collection into legible gangs.
He also introduced a new concept for his look book:
Postcards from edgy cities. First up? Berlin: an austere
yet fitting backdrop to showcase the designer’s inimitable blend of maturity and daring.
— MILES SOCHA
BOSS
In the words of the Boss pre-fall press release, Jason
Wu’s collection was “comprised of luxurious staples….A
collection of new classics, with no noise.” The lineup
delivered on what was promised in the release. A
knee-length, pale pink tuxedo jacket was simply pretty,
it’s novelty factor a matter of a slightly A-line silhouette.
A slipdress in an abstract floral that kind of looked like
camouflage was the most embellished item. Otherwise,
the staples were as interesting as good black pants and
spare shifts can be. Yes, these are clothes women need.
But as for no one needing noise, when presenting what’s
being billed as a fashion collection, sometimes it’s nice to
hear something.
— JESSICA IREDALE
NICOPANDA
By his own admission, Nicola Formichetti hasn’t always
taken business seriously. But taking on the pre-seasons
for the first time, as he did for Nicopanda pre-fall, is a
solid indication that his attitude has changed. “This is
much more personal,” Formichetti said of the venture,
now in its fourth season. “I really listened to the buyers,
which I never did before.”
Photographs by Thomas Iannaccone and Dominique Maître
Nicopanda
Fans of Formichetti’s cartoonish fringe creativity,
which has been tapped by Diesel, Uniqlo, Mugler and
most famously Lady Gaga, needn’t fear — Nicopanda
is not a sellout collection. The buyers aren’t interested
in that. “They don’t want simple things that you can buy
anywhere,” said Formichetti.
Pre-fall was a focused outlet for his semi-unisex,
neo-street subculture stylings that filter his imagination
without flattening it. Inspired by the photocopied and
stapled fanzines Formichetti used to collect in London in
the Nineties, hoodies and sweatpants featured strange,
newspapery prints by Sam Roth, an artist the designer
scouted on Instagram, where he also found his models.
Ruffled blouses and long drawstring skirts with oversize
pearl details bore a “Nicopanda panic” print — essentially
the logo maniacally repeated. There were silver leather
“jeans” and a cropped jacket with convertible sleeves, as
well as colorful Muppetlike faux furs. Mixed together, it
merged goth, punk and raver in an accessibly cool way.
Formichetti doesn’t want to go mass, but he does want
to sell. He said there are plans to expand into accessories, small leather goods and other consumer categories under the name Nicopanda World this year.
— J.I.
NINA RICCI
Guillaume Henry’s first pre-fall collection for Nina Ricci
was his most successful attempt to modernize the
house’s overtly feminine ethos with his vision of bourgeois minimalism that is both delicate and rough. “I like
to design feminine clothes that are not so proper, a bit
scruffy, mixing the poor and the rich,” said Henry, noting
the crinkled effect on a dress or the shaggy texture
of a deep green fur coat in a patchwork of Mongolian
sheepskins and mink.
Working from a made-up narrative about an actress whose mysterious allure inspires men to follow
her through the streets of Paris, Henry thought about
movements, gestures and textures more than silhouette,
which he prefers to be plain, almost generic. He captured
the contradictory appeal of women in men’s coats,
lingerie lace mixed with men’s wear checked wool on
dresses, and pajama jacket worn with a ballgown. Yet the
palette was purely feminine, derived from classic makeup colors like the terra-cotta color of a pantsuit with a
crinkled chiffon blouse with a big, floppy Pierrot color, and
the rusty rouge of a leather dress.
If the overall impression of the collection was subtle,
the details impressed. Creased pleats gave ultrasoft
tailoring structure; a glossy leather coat had a cool,
papery touch; and the light dusting of sequins and subtle
patchwork on a black, smocked chiffon dress took it
beyond the little black dress.
— LAURENT FOLCHER
Boss
Nina Ricci
6
TRINA TURK
Brazilian Carnival proved an ideal state of mind for
Trina Turk this season, what with her label’s eternally
sunny, optimistic ethos and signature punchy colors.
The spirited, South American flair played out in festive
prints — vibrant ikats and tropical, hand-painted florals
— and tassel and eyelash fringe embellishments. The
label’s staple silhouettes (Turk loves a caftan) were
well represented, and she covered the now ubiquitous
contemporary trends of military jackets and cropped
flared pants, indoctrinating them into the Turk universe
via floral-printed linings and hot pink topstitching.
8 JANUARY 2016
Trina Turk
Rebecca Minkoff
Ulla Johnson
Mantu
PHILIPP PLEIN
Dark romance coursed through Philipp Plein’s maximalist, sexed-up lineup for pre-fall. Hearts, roses, skulls
and graffiti prints featuring declarations of love — motifs
carried over from his spring 2016 collection — toughened
up Plein’s ladylike minidresses and leather motorcycle
jackets. Tight black viscose gowns were festooned with
crystal embellishment, transparent mesh cutouts and
leather accents. Nothing was subtle, but Plein exercised
relative restraint with suiting.
— K.G.
— KRISTI GARCED
ULLA JOHNSON
Rebecca Minkoff’s hipster girl loves to rock fashion.
For pre-fall, the designer envisioned her in a Penny
Lane-music festival look with floral dresses, off-theshoulder ruffled tops and cute little suede dresses, their
girliness tempered when topped by oversize leather
jackets. The lineup had both charm and range. Worn with
cool boots, the bohemian party dresses could hit the city
streets; swap the boots for a heel and the same looks
would charm at late-summer weddings. Minkoff’s bags
also reflected the spirit of the Sixties, done up with embroidery, pom-pom tassels and removable guitar straps.
Ulla Johnson tweaks her modern-folk aesthetic each
season, although the ruffled, embroidered peasant
blouses and easy bohemian dresses on which she’s built
her brand — scoring her a department store exclusive
with Barneys New York — are always the core of her
collections. For pre-fall, the blouses and dresses came
in endless iterations, with Johnson citing turn-of-the-century inspirations, such as Victoriana, the American West
and Impressionism. Those staples remained wearable
and well-crafted, but it’s difficult to make them feel new.
More fresh was the amped up denim — in particular,
Johnson’s braided-waisted denim trousers and overalls
that offered a utilitarian antidote to all the bohemia.
— MAYTE ALLENDE
— K.G.
OSMAN
MANTU
Osman Yousefzada’s elegant pre-fall collection was
filled with generous proportions, rich fabrics and the
dandy frill of a scarf here and there in a nod to Little Lord
Fauntleroy’s wardrobe. Known for his sleek, flattering
shapes, this season Yousefzada added extra zing via
pattern: graphic black-and-white stripes, an abstract
bubbling sulphur pattern in cobalt or gold against black,
and a pink silk brocade leaf design inspired by Victorian
stained glass windows. He toyed with proportions, too,
showing wide-leg sailor pants with big cuffs held in place
by buttons, fat rippled cuffs for shirts and structured ruffles on laminated black wool pieces. — SAMANTHA CONTI
Osman
Mantu, the in-house label from Italian manufacturer
Castor Srl, was optimistic and colorful for pre-fall. The
work of Ukranian-born, French artist Sonia Delaunay,
known for her signature bright palette and geometric
shapes, influenced artsy, printed pajama-like jumpsuits,
polka-dot suiting and color-block knits. Outerwear was
a big focus for the brand, with styles including an army
green belted trench, multicolor tweed coats and a great
dusty pink wool coat. On a dressier note, a black, tie-neck
dress with lace sleeves gave the lineup an on-trend
dandy touch.
— M.A.
Philipp Plein
Mantu photograph by Thomas Iannaccone
REBECCA MINKOFF
7
8 JANUARY 2016
THE MARKETS
BUSINESS
Marks & Spencer Changes CEO
● Steve Rowe will succeed
Marc Bolland as the retailer
struggles to revive its clothing
business.
BY SAMANTHA CONTI
LONDON — Marks & Spencer plc, which for
years has been struggling with a shrinking
clothing business, is hoping that Steve Rowe,
its new chief executive officer and the man
who ramped up the retailer’s food division,
can lend his touch to its beleaguered apparel
offering.
On Thursday, M&S said its 56-year-old ceo
Marc Bolland had decided to “retire” after six
years at the helm, and that Rowe, a 26-year
veteran of the store, would succeed him at
the start of the new fiscal year in April.
M&S shares on the London Stock Exchange
were flat in midday trading following the
announcement, and later edged up 0.1
percent to close at 4.39 pounds, or $6.43 at
current exchange.
On the back of his success as executive
director, food — where he stuffed the stores’
fridges and shelves with gourmet ready meals
and healthy takeaways; organic and fair trade
products, and a host of M&S branded holiday
gift items — Rowe was promoted last July to
executive director, general merchandise.
In that role, Rowe succeeded John Dixon,
who became ceo of the Australian department store David Jones.
Sales of general merchandise in the third
quarter fell short of analysts’ expectations,
tumbling 5 percent in the three months
ended Dec. 26 due to “unseasonal conditions and availability,” M&S said Thursday.
The store has consistently been blaming the
weather for its underperformance in clothing.
By contrast, M&S said it had its “best ever
Christmas” with regard to food, with sales
up 3.7 percent and record sales growth of 17
percent in the key Christmas week.
Group sales in the quarter were flat against
last year.
Rowe previously worked in a range of
senior positions across the business, including director of retail and e-commerce, and in
various positions in general merchandise.
In 2012 he was named executive director
of food and led that business to produce 12
consecutive quarters of like-for-like growth,
grew its margin, and all its key performance
metrics, and set out a path for further profitable growth, according to the store.
But industry observers said while Rowe
may be a safe pair of hands, he’s not the person to restore M&S to its glory days — if that is
even possible.
“Rowe, an M&S ‘lifer,’ has significant
experience across the whole business…and
his appointment is likely to be well received
in our view,” said retail analyst Kate Calvert of
Investec in a report following the announcement Thursday.
Jamie Merriman of Bernstein Research said
in her report: “The key question is whether
RETAIL
Jacobs Signs
Paris Lease
Jacobs photograph by John Aquino
● The new-look boutique on
Rue Saint-Honoré is to open
in the spring.
BY MILES SOCHA
PARIS — Marc Jacobs is joining the Rue
Saint-Honoré juggernaut, signing a lease
to open a new-look unit this spring, WWD
Global
Brands Taps
La Perla CEO
To Lead Joe’s
● Suzy Biszantz was named as
president of premium denim
brand Joe’s, a newly created
position.
BY ARTHUR ZACZKIEWICZ
The Marks & Spencer flagship store in Beijing.
and how Rowe’s leadership and strategy for
M&S may differ from Bolland’s, and what he
can do to stem the tide of share losses and
negative like-for-like sales in clothing.”
George Wallace, ceo of the London-based
consultancy MHE Retail, said it’s time for
people to recalibrate their vision and expectations of M&S. He said the store’s fundamental
problems were already there before Bolland
arrived, and that it’s unrealistic to think Rowe
can restore the retailer to its gloried past.
“Steve Rowe is probably the best of the
bunch at M&S. He’s a good guy with a steady
pair of hands, but like Bolland he doesn’t
have a fashion background,” Wallace said.
Fashion and clothing have been troublesome for M&S, which has failed to compete
with Primark on price or with the high street
giants — Zara, Hennes & Mauritz, Next and
Topshop — on a compelling style offer.
“Whatever changes may have been made
at M&S under Marc Bolland, the customer
still does not see them. What the customer
sees is virtually unchanged — good food and
a moribund fashion offer,” added Wallace.
“M&S clothing is not cheap, not expensive,
not old, not young. There are a few good
pieces in a sea of mediocrity.”
He said the best solution going forward
would be for M&S to accept that its business
is in decline and to manage that decline profitably. “There is still value in the brand, but it
is in decline.”
Indeed, M&S has begun taking steps in that
direction with trials planned for certain stores
to expand their food areas and cut back on
the square footage devoted to clothing. Over
the past five years — nearly all of Bolland’s
tenure — the store has notched just one quarterly increase in clothing sales.
Philip Benton, senior analyst at Euromonitor International, believes there is still hope
for a more profitable clothing business.
“Steve Rowe’s first objective must be to
decide on a clear strategy for its women’s
wear collection. M&S should create a streamlined source strategy that enables the company to capitalize on successful best-selling
lines and reduce orders/stock of poor sellers
in order to actively compete with fast fashion
while providing core products that its loyal
consumers know and love,” Benton said.
He said women’s wear has been an Achilles’ heel for the store because in its attempts
to compete with fast fashion and the high
street, M&S has alienated its loyal, middle
England customer base.
“To make matters worse, due to a lack of
efficiency in their supply chain, they have
failed to fulfill demand when they have had
success. New kids on the block are able to
design and launch fast-fashion pieces in a
matter of weeks, something that M&S are
unable to compete with,” he said.
During the conference call to reveal both
the third-quarter results and the management
change, Bolland said the general merchandise
margin was up “significantly” in the quarter
although the store “recognizes that we have
more to do to drive the general merchandise
performance, and a new team is focused
on three priorities: availability, ranging and
design. We continue to be affected by the
macros.”
Bolland, a Dutch national, was headhunted by M&S after turning around the U.K.
supermarket chain Morrisons. He joined M&S
in May 2010, replacing Stuart Rose, who had
served simultaneously — and unconventionally — as chairman and ceo.
Bolland will remain in his role and as a
member of the board until the end of the
current financial year on April 2, when he will
hand over to Rowe. He will also assist in the
transition until June 30.
During the conference call early Thursday,
M&S group chairman Robert Swannell said
categorically there was “no pressure” from
shareholders or the board for Bolland to step
down, and that succession planning had been
robust ever since he and Bolland took up
their roles in 2010.
During the call, Bolland said his term at
M&S “rounds off 10 years in U.K. retail. I’ve
worked 20 years for Heineken and this year,
I’m 10 years in retail in U.K., and I’m probably the longest-serving ceo in the U.K. For
myself, it’s a nice rounding off. You’re never
completely finished, you’re never completely
ready, but on the other hand, it’s a fantastic
milestone for me after 10 years, and a chance
to do something else.”
has learned.
A trio of Jacobs stores on nearby Place
du Marché Saint-Honoré — showcasing
the women’s resort collection, women’s
accessories and the American designer’s
Bookmarc concept —
are to go dark when the
new boutique opens
in the place of a Dior
Parfums pop-up at 368
Rue Saint-Honoré.
The approximately
800-square-foot unit is
Marc Jacobs
slated to showcase the
spring 2016 women’s
range, and may be
expanded during a second phase, according to a brand spokesman.
Last June, Jacobs shuttered his Collection store in the picturesque Palais-Royal
after a nine-year run to pave the way for
a new brand architecture uniting his top
line and the Marc by Marc Jacobs range.
The company ceased production of the
Marc by Marc Jacobs label and assimilated that collection’s product range
and price points into the signature Marc
Jacobs collection. It’s all part of a plan
to grow the company in anticipation of
a possible initial public offering at some
point.
Rue Saint-Honoré has become one of
the hottest and most coveted retail strips
in Paris with Coach, Alexander McQueen,
Tory Burch, & Other Stories and Mulberry among other relative newcomers.
Global Brands Group Holding Ltd.
named Suzy Biszantz president of
premium denim brand Joe’s, a newly
created position.
The Hong Kong-based company said
Biszantz “will be responsible for leading
Joe’s in its next phase of growth, working
closely with the brand’s founder and
creative director Joe Dahan.”
Joe’s is launching its first collection this
spring.
Prior to joining Joe’s, Biszantz served
as chief executive officer for the Americas
at high-end lingerie brand La Perla. Her
two decades of industry experience also
include serving as president and chief
executive officer of the Greg Norman
Collection, which was then a division of
Adidas/Reebok. At Reebok, Biszantz was
an executive officer as well as a charter
member of the Reebok International
executive women’s leadership team.
Dow Famulak, president and chief
operating officer of Global Brands Group,
described Biszantz as an “accomplished
industry executive with a proven track
record in leading and growing renowned
retail brands.”
Jason Rabin, president of North America
and global chief merchandising officer at
Global Brands Group, said Joe’s has “strong
consumer appeal as a premium lifestyle
brand” and that the company believes
the brand has “great potential to resonate
globally.” Rabin said the firm is “confident
that [Biszantz] brings the right vision and
expertise to execute our plans for the
brand’s growth and expansion.”
Joe’s was launched in 2001 by
Dahan, and has since grown to include
premium denim as well as collection
pieces, accessories and footwear. Joe’s
is positioned as a “casual chic lifestyle
brand” for women, men and kids. The
brand has distribution in specialty and
department stores in the U.S. and North
America as well as in Europe, Asia and
Latin America.
Last September, Sequential Brands
Group Inc. bought the Joe’s brand and
related assets for about $67 million and
inked a long-term licensing agreement for
the brand’s main product categories with
Global Brands Group. As part of the deal,
Sequential oversees the brand’s global
marketing strategy.
Suzy
Biszantz
8
8 JANUARY 2016
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
ability to overcome obstacles and we’re optimistic that will
continue to be the case. However, we believe the consumer
discretionary sector’s performance will be more muted in
coming months.”
In Europe, fashion and retail shares had a mixed
performance. LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton saw
its stock dip 0.1 percent to 136.60 euros, or $139.33 at
current exchange, but competitors Kering’s shares fell 3.5
percent to 144.95 euros, or $147.85; Compagnie Financière
Richemont’s dropped 1.5 percent to 67 Swiss francs, or
$67.41, and Burberry’s fell 3.3 percent to 1.06 pounds, or
$1.55. Yoox Net-a-porter Group’s shares bucked the trend,
rising 2 percent to 31.41 euros, or $32.03.
The day overall was another seesaw ride as steep
declines in the Chinese market spurred selling worldwide.
U.S. stocks trimmed their early market losses around
noon, but then the buyers headed to the exits and selling
resumed with a vengeance.
All the major indices declined over 2 percent as the safe
haven of gold moved higher by 1.4 percent to sell at $1,107
an ounce. Oil broke below $30 a barrel at one point, but
was last trading at $33 a barrel. That is the lowest level since
2004. Saudi Arabia, in what is best described as a “Hail
Mary” pass, floated the idea of an initial public offering for
its state-owned oil company Saudi Aramco.
The S&P 500 closed down over 2 percent or 47 points to
1,943 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the day
down over 2 percent losing 392 points to 16,514.
The Nasdaq suffered the most, closing down over 3
percent or 146 points to 4,689 as technology stock shareholders decided to take profits. The Nasdaq has now lost
10 percent of its value since July, which puts it officially in
correction mode.
There is rumbling about a return to the financial crisis
of 2008. That’s because the market is off to its worst start
since that year. That fear was compounded as several
investment banks began cutting their U.S. GDP forecasts
earlier this week, following a downward revision by the
Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
The World Bank cut its 2016 forecast saying that the
global economy could not run off of America’s strength
alone. The World Bank warned that oil exporters such as
Russia would see its economy contract to just 0.1 percent.
The report suggested that it was a low probability that
China would have a “disorderly slowdown,” but just the
mention of such a scenario is worrisome.
Last August, when the Greek fiscal concerns shook the
market along with the crash of China’s stock market, David
Levy, economist at the Jerome Levy Forecasting Center,
said China’s woes were part of a larger, more troublesome
issue that would likely rear its ugly head again. Levy said
the fiscal issues in China “virtually guarantee that sooner or
later, China will undergo a crisis, profound retrenchment
and enduring adjustment problems. [The excesses] are
interconnected by a complex web of causality. No single
part may seem to be a large threat to national or global
stability, but as part of a broad global balance sheet correction, each part looks much more ominous.” Levy said at
the time that China’s stock bubble is “one of many excesses
that make up a Chinese bubble economy, along with
severely overextended export capacity, real estate markets,
bank debt and shadow banking debt.”
In addition to the Chinese stock market crisis, investors
are getting nervous that China will continue to devalue its
currency, the yuan, in an attempt to jump-start its exports.
The yuan is down 6 percent against the dollar over the past
year, with some discussion that the country is willing to let
it go down 10 percent. It gives the country a competitive
advantage, but the downside is that in might lead to panic
selling in the currency.
Looking ahead, China is suspending its circuit breakers
in its stock markets, so there could be continued selling.
In the U.S., December non-farm payrolls report is released
at 8:30 Friday morning and the Briefing.com forecast is
for an addition of 230,000 jobs, while the overall market
is expecting 200,000. A strong number from this report
could help the U.S. stock market recover.
A trader sits after the closing
bell on the floor of the New
York Stock Exchange.
RETAIL
Gap Comps Drop as
Others Report Gains
● In spite of talk of a
disappointing holiday
season, same-store sales
results in December for some
were better than expected.
BY VICKI M. YOUNG
Gap Inc. didn’t get any holiday cheer.
While the few retailers still reporting
same-store sales displayed results that
weren’t as bad as expected, Gap wasn’t one
of them. The San Francisco-based retailer,
which reported same-store sales after the
stock market closed, registered December
comps that were down 5 percent, compared
to a 1 percent increase in December 2014.
By brand on a global basis, Gap posted a 2
percent comps decline on top of a 5 percent
drop a year ago; Banana Republic was down
9 percent versus flat comps a year ago, and
Old Navy — once the standout division in the
group — was down 7 percent against an 8
percent gain the year before.
Gap said net sales for the five weeks
ended Jan. 2 fell 4 percent to $2.01 billion
from $2.10 billion in the same year-ago
period. It said that on a constant currency
basis, December net sales fell 3 percent
compared with a year ago. Gap said current
year foreign exchange rates were applied to
both current year and prior year net sales in
calculating the change in constant currency
to enhance the visibility of underlying sales
trends, while excluding the impact of foreign
currency exchange rate fluctuations.
The company didn’t comment on holiday
sales results, although Sabrina Simmons, its
chief financial officer, said, “As we bring the
holiday season to a close, we look forward to
delivering new spring collections across our
brands.”
Although Gap’s shares rose 5.7 percent
to $26.74 on the New York Stock Exchange,
they plunged 7.6 percent to $24.72 in afterhours trading.
While comps dropped at other retailers,
most outperformed expectations.
L Brands Inc. posted a gain of 8 percent
instead of the expected 4.9 percent gain in
consolidated comps. It’s Victoria’s Secret
division posted an 8 percent gain, while its
Bath & Body Works was up 6 percent. Each
Old Navy, once the standout at Gap
Inc., was down 7 percent.
was expected to report same-store sales
gains of 4.3 percent and 4.5 percent, respectively, according to Thomson Reuters.
R.W. Baird analyst Mark R. Altschwager
said gains at L Brands was due to “continued
strong performance at Pink, in lingerie at
Victoria’s Secret and in seasonal collections
at Bath and Body Works.”
Stein Mart eked out a comps gain of 1.8
percent on top of the 5.8 percent gain a year
ago. Cato Corp. saw a 6 percent increase for
December, although noted that the company’s year-to-date same-store sales were flat
to last year. Both retailers were expected to
report flat same-store sales for December,
according to Thomson Reuters.
Signet Jewelers Ltd. said its same-store
sales rose 4.9 percent, on top of a 3.6
percent gain a year ago. Mark Light, Signet’s
chief executive officer, cited “broad-based
success across strategic store brands, merchandise categories and selling channels.”
Wells Fargo analyst Ike Boruchow said the
strong holiday comp delivery was due to a
“robust result from Kay [Jewelers], as well
as comp accelerations at both Jared [The
Galleria of Jewelry] and Zales.”
On the big-box front, Costco Wholesale
Corp. saw a 1 percent gain in December
comps on a consolidated basis, with its U.S.
operation gaining 3 percent for the month.
Those figures were boosted by a 4 percent
comps gain in its U.S. business, excluding
gas sales, and a 5 percent increased in its
international business, also excluding gas
sales.
According to Thomson Reuters, analysts
were expecting comps to be down 8.8
percent for The Buckle, but the decline
RETAIL
Drexler Parts With Warhol Property
● The J. Crew ceo sold a 5.7-
acre beachfront that once
belonged to Andy Warhol.
BY SHARON EDELSON
Millard “Mickey” Drexler, chairman and
chief executive officer of J. Crew, has sold
his 5.7-acre beachfront estate in Montauk,
N.Y., for $50 million, setting a record for the
hamlet located at the tip of the South Fork of
Long Island, in terms of residential sales.
The property and an adjacent parcel
was initially listed at $85 million last year.
Adam Lindemann, an investor and heavy
hitter in the art world, purchased only the
oceanfront compound, declining to buy the
24-acre horse farm.
The estate, which includes a main house
and five cottages, was owned by Andy
Warhol, who with his sometime collaborator, Paul Morrissey, in 1972 bought what was
then the fishing camp of the Church family
of Arm & Hammer baking soda fame, for
$225,000.
Drexler purchased the compound for
$27.5 million in 2007.
The retail ceo declined to comment on
the sale. Paul Brennan, Douglas Elliman
Millard
“Mickey”
Drexler
executive manager of sales for the Hamptons, who was the listing agent for the
property, said Drexler won’t be a stranger
to the area since he already has a place in
Bridgehampton.
“They only used the [Warhol] house in
August,” Brennan said of Drexler and his
family. “It was just a tradition.”
Drexler reportedly also owns a 22-acre
cattle ranch that’s close to the Warhol estate,
but not contiguous.
Brennan called the Warhol compound
“one of the most unique spots in the
country.”
The estate is extremely private, hidden
from public view by a 200-acre reserve that
surrounds the property. It has 600 feet of
ocean frontage with wide beaches that are
was down just 5.4 percent, while Zumiez,
expected to report a 14 percent decline, saw
comps falling 8.9 percent.
J.C. Penney Co. Inc. didn’t report comps
for December, but did say that comps for the
combined nine-week November and December period saw a 3.9 percent gain from last
year. That gave the retailer the confidence to
reaffirm its full-year adjusted EBITDA target
of $645 million. The company also said it
“plans to generate positive free cash flow in
fiscal 2015.”
Marvin R. Ellison, ceo of J.C. Penney, said,
“Despite unprecedented warm weather
that significantly affected apparel sales
across the company, our focus on private
brands, enhanced omnichannel execution
and compelling gift-giving selection resulted
in strong holiday sales.” Ellison noted the
“accelerated comp sales improvement from
November to December” and “record online
sales for the company during the holiday
season.”
In contrast Macy’s Inc. said Wednesday
that comps for November and December fell
by 5.2 percent. Terry J. Lundgren, Macy’s
chairman and ceo, said, “The holiday selling
season was challenging, as experienced
throughout 2015 by much of the retailing
industry….About 80 percent of our company’s year-over-year declines in comparable sales can be attributed to shortfalls in
cold-weather goods such as coats, sweaters,
boots, hats, gloves and scarves.” The company also said it would cut 4,000 jobs and
shed 40 stores.
Brick-and-mortar analytics firm RetailNext Inc. said its monthly Retail Performance Pulse indicated stronger store
performance in December than in preceding
months in every key performance metric.
Sales in December slipped 0.4 percent on a
decline in store traffic of 8.5 percent, with
November and December having a 2 percent
decline in sales on a 6.4 percent drop in
traffic.
According to Shelley E. Kohan, vice
president of retail consulting at RetailNext,
“The real news and somewhat of a surprise
was the minimal sales drop in the month of
December, well improved from a trend this
year of around negative 7 percent.” She said
retailers worked hard to make noticeable
changes in the store environment, such
as enabling technologies and having more
knowledgeable sales associates. Those
changes take into account the growing
importance of the online channel, while
recognizing the need to adjust the shopping
experience in the physical channel.
According to RetailNext’s data, the strongest weeks in December for brick-and-mortar retailers were the week of Christmas and
the week after, in which strong conversion
resulted in sales increases of 10.8 percent.
reached from a steep bluff.
The 3,800-square-foot main house and
five cottages are completely hidden. The
estate has a total of almost 15,000 square
feet with nine bedrooms and 12 baths.
Drexler hired French architect Thierry
Despont to restore the estate in a rustic-chic
style with faded wood paneling, exposed
beams and plaid accents.
Asked why Drexler sold the estate,
Brennan said, “This is sort of what he does.
He does this all over the country. He used
to live in San Francisco, he had a house on
Martha’s Vineyard and something down in
the Caribbean. He buys and sells a lot.”
Warhol, who transformed contemporary
art as a leader of the Pop Art movement,
might be surprised at the popularity of
the estate, which he is said to have rarely
used because the high winds blew his
signature white wig off his head. He might
be even more surprised that several of his
paintings surpassed the selling price of the
compound. For example, “Silver Car Crash
(Double Disaster),” painted in 1963, sold in
2013 for $105.4 million and “Triple Elvis,”
also painted in 1963, fetched $100 million in
2008.
Brennan said the Warhol provenance
appealed to Drexler, as it does to Lindemann. “Anybody who bought the [compound],” is interested in the Warhol connection, he said. “That’s why Lindemann
bought it. He only lives six doors away.”
Trader photograph by Brendan McDermid /Landov/REUTERS; Old Navy by Thomas Iannaccone
U.S. Retail Shares Spared
From Market’s Meltdown
9
8 JANUARY 2016
The Gilt Factor at HBC:
What the Deal Means
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
conversions.”
HBC will extend the Gilt City component of the Web site possibly to other
HBC Web sites, Storch said. Gilt City
posts a range of services and experiences, such as spas, restaurants and
Pilates classes. Gilt specializes in fashion
and accessories for women, men, children and home decor.
Expense savings are seen through
operational efficiencies attained by combining the businesses including reduced
shipping costs, increased purchasing
power and shared inventories across
Gilt and Saks Off 5th.
The purchase of Gilt extends HBC’s
string of acquisitions of the last several
years, including Galeria Kaufhof last
year, Saks Fifth Avenue in 2013 and
earlier, Lord & Taylor and Hudson’s Bay
department stores.
Storch declined to comment on how
Gilt was performing, but in an indication of pressures on the business, the
brand last fall laid off 45 staff members
as part of a restructuring of operations
to be cash-flow positive. In recent
seasons, Gilt has been working hard to
increase its international business.
Storch disputed the idea that the
flash-sale format has been losing popularity. “There is more flash business
being done than ever before,” he said,
citing Best Buy and Saks Fifth Avenue as
well as some competitors that have flash
sales on their Web sites.
The purchase, expected to close Feb.
1, will contribute about $500 million to
HBC’s 2016 sales and about $40 million
of adjusted earnings before interest,
taxes, depreciation and amortization by
2017.
Reports that the two companies were
in talks began circulating in mid-December. Gilt was launched in 2007 and
had rapid growth through the Great
Recession when it and similar flashsale sites were able to snap up excess
inventory and develop significant scale.
Gilt expanded into women’s and men’s
apparel and accessories and subsequently added travel, home furnishings
and food. Kevin Ryan cofounded the
firm and led it as ceo from 2010 to 2013,
eventually passing the baton off to
Michelle Peluso.
But as retailers gained better control
over inventories — and began opening
their own off-price stores — growth of
the flash-sale model began to slow. The
price HBC is paying for Gilt represents
a major drop for the once high-flying
firm. Last year, Gilt was believed to be
working with Goldman, Sachs & Co.
toward an initial public offering and at
its peak had reached the elusive “unicorn” status, being valued at $1 billion.
General Atlantic, the private equity
company that has a stake in Tory Burch,
has invested in the company during
three rounds, mostly recently giving it
$50 million in a February private placement. Other investors include Goldman
Sach’s merchant banking division and
“Gilt will be physically embodied inside
the Saks Off 5th stores. We see tremendous
potential to enhance our mobile and
personalization strategies by leveraging
Gilt’s advanced capabilities.”
— Jerry Storch, Hudson’s Bay Co.
Partners.
Other flash sites have been sold, but
not at the high valuations that once
seemed possible. Nordstrom paid $270
million for HauteLook in February 2011,
while Groupon last year paid just over
$43 million in cash to purchase fashion
flash-sale site Ideeli.
The Gilt purchase represents the first
acquisition HBC has made in the purely
digital space. It has up until now been
focused on brick-and-mortar purchases
in order to leverage the real estate.
“We see tremendous potential to
enhance our mobile and personalization
strategies by leveraging Gilt’s advanced
capabilities,” said Storch. He added that
Gilt will help accelerate the growth of
HBC’s digital business across all of its
banners, which include the Hudson’s
Bay, Saks Fifth Avenue, Lord & Taylor
and Kaufhof department stores.
Said Michelle Peluso, ceo of Gilt,
“HBC understands our proposition and
is committed to positioning our business
for further success. Our members will
find having a brick-and-mortar presence
valuable and a positive addition to the
Gilt experience.”
HBC expects to fund the $250 million
purchase price plus transaction costs
using cash on hand.
Scotiabank is acting as exclusive
financial adviser to HBC. Willkie Farr &
Gallagher LLP acted as M&A legal counsel, and Stikeman Elliott LLP served as
company legal counsel. Lazard is acting
as exclusive financial adviser to Gilt and
Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr
is acting as its counsel.
Jerry Storch
RETAIL
Smartphones Top Tablets in Retail Sales
● A study by Shop.org, Forrester
Research and Bizrate Insights
examined 2015 sales.
BY SHARON EDELSON
Smartphones have become the top drivers
of sales and traffic for retailers, eclipsing tablets for the first time, according to the State
of Retailing Online 2016 study by Shop.org
and Forrester Research and Bizrate Insights.
Retailers surveyed said smartphone sales
accounted for 17 percent of their total online
sales in 2015, moving ahead of the 14 percent
generated by tablets. Overall, sales from
smartphones grew 53 percent over the previous year, while tablet sales rose 32 percent.
But while their consumer use might be
slowing, the role of tablets is growing for
store associates. Forty-four percent of retailers said their associates use tablets to show
customers products that aren’t available in
stores. Four out of 10 retailers said associates
use tablets to send e-receipts to customers,
23 percent use them to check inventory in
warehouses and 21 percent check actual
store inventory with tablets.
Retailers indicated that they made minimal investments in smartphone technology
last year, with 47 percent saying they spent
$50,000 or less on smartphone platforms.
There’s more investment on the horizon.
One-third of retailers surveyed said they plan
to grow smartphone investments by more
than 20 percent in 2016, and 34 percent said
they’ll increase their investments between 1
percent and 20 percent. One in five retailers
plan to increase their tablet investment more
than 20 percent in 2016.
“Retailers are now recognizing that
customers may not need a bigger, more
expansive shopping experience on mobile
platforms — they need a consistent, relevant
and user-friendly experience that will shape
their online and in-store shopping behaviors,” said NRF senior vice president and
Shop.org executive director Vicki Cantrell.
“Even with relatively small investments in
their mobile initiatives, retailers are seeing
tremendous growth in both sales that come
from smartphones and the level of customer
engagement from mobile across the brand.”
Forrester vice president and principal
analyst Sucharita Mulpuru said, “While
mobile phones still represent promise, savvy
retailers will be leveraging mobile with their
customers to positively influence in-store
sales as well.
“Retailers need to be wherever shoppers
are when they’re browsing and buying,”
Mulpuru said. “It’s essential to provide value
on those devices and in those moments,
which are often in stores.”
“Retailers need
to be wherever
shoppers are when
they’re browsing and
buying.” — Sucharita
Mulpuru, Forrester
Research
10 8 JANUARY 2016
EYE
Downtime During
London Collections: Men
● The top new restaurants, art
exhibits and shops to check
out in England’s capital.
BY WWD STAFF
WAGYU DELIGHTS
The newest addition to Mayfair’s buzzy
Conduit Street, near Sketch and Brasserie
Chavot, Tokimeite offers authentic Japanese cuisine. Chef Yoshihiro Murata, who
rates seven Michelin stars across his three
restaurants in Kyoto and Tokyo, created a
menu based on classic techniques passed on
from older generations. Wagyu beef is one
of Murata’s most popular ingredients, and
standout dishes include a tender beef tartare
and the Wagyu nigiri from the sushi menu.
The restaurant’s decor is naturally inspired
by the Far East and references the different
elements of the Japanese seasons. Interior
designer Yasumichi Morita played with contrasts to convey the moods of fire and water.
The rich gold lighting on the ground floor
resembles fire, while upstairs the platinum
ceramics and rippled glass symbolize water.
— Natalie Theodosi
TOKIMEITE
23 CONDUIT STREET, W1S 2XS
TEL.: +44-20-3826-4411
WEB: HTTP://WWW.TOKIMEITE.COM
Tokimeite
MOBILE ART
Tate Modern is hosting the U.K.’s largest
exhibition on Alexander Calder, best known
for his kinetic sculptures. Calder combined
his knowledge of art and engineering to create wire sculptures and motorized objects,
which played a big role in defining 20th
century Modernism. The exhibition features
some of the artist’s best-known motorized
sculptures, as well as the famous wire portraits he created of the artists Joan Miró and
Fernand Léger. The exhibition runs through
to April. — Natalie Theodosi
ALEXANDER CALDER: PERFORMING
SCULPTURE
TATE MODERN, BANKSIDE, SE1 9TG
WEB: HTTP://WWW.TATE.ORG.UK
DEBT COLLECTORS
Winston Churchill might have had a fine
taste for tailoring, but it seems he wasn’t
willing to pay for it. Savile Row tailor Henry
Poole & Co. has been perusing its archives,
and has brought to light customer records
that date as far back as 1846, revealing Churchill’s outstanding bill for 197 pounds. The
iconic British statesman reportedly refused
to make a payment, claiming that by wearing
Henry Poole suits he was benefitting the
tailor’s business. Edward VII, then Prince of
Wales, was another customer noted in the
company’s records for his irregular payments. To celebrate the company’s history
of dressing some of the most important men
in the world, the tailor has launched the
Hall of Fame, a new room that showcases its
archive and garments produced for the likes
of Napoleon III, Czar Alexander II of Russia
and Charles de Gaulle, available to view by
appointment. — Natalie Theodosi
HENRY POOLE & CO: THE HALL OF FAME
15 SAVILE ROW, W1S 3PJ
TEL.: +44-20-7734-5985
WEB: HTTP://WWW.HENRYPOOLE.COM
YOUNG AT HEART
Fashion’s fascination with youth is the
subject of the latest exhibition of the Fashion
Space Gallery, located at the London College
of Fashion. Launching on the first day of
London Collections: Men, “Mad About the
Boy” will focus on the teenage boy and the
ways he’s presented in designers’ collections
and fashion images. Works by Raf Simons,
J.W. Anderson, Meadham Kirchhoff, Nasir
Mazhar and Nick Knight will be on display,
exploring the different notions of the young
male, from rebel to raver to sexual fantasist.
A series of audio recordings of designers
and photographers discussing the memories
of their youth, as well as tableaux designed
by set designer Tony Hornecker, have been
included to create an immersive experience.
“The fluidity and possibility of the teenage
years seem to unite fashion’s obsession with
the boy. Designers young and old return to
the same themes — constructing, rehashing
and shaping the dream male, season in season out,” said the exhibition’s curator and
Showstudio’s editor, Lou Stoppard. — Natalie
Theodosi
THE FASHION SPACE GALLERY
LONDON COLLEGE OF FASHION, 20 JOHN
PRINCE’S STREET, W1G 0BJ
TEL.: +44-20-7514-7400
WEB: HTTP://WWW.FASHIONSPACEGALLERY.COM
Square. As a result, the restaurant has a
touch of Gatsby largesse with gilded mirrors
adorning red painted walls, a live band
entertaining guests and floral-print furniture
taking center stage. The menu features all
the dishes Yau would cook if he were to
host a dinner at home, including Peking
duck, salt and pepper squid and jasmine tea
smoked ribs. — Natalie Theodosi
PARK CHINOIS
17 BERKELEY STREET, W1J 8EA
TEL.: +44-20-3327-8888
WEB: HTTP://WWW.PARKCHINOIS.COM
The World of Charles and Ray Eames exhibit
EAST ENDERS
Park Chinois
ITALIAN JOB
Sartoria, the old Savile Row favorite, has
had a makeover just in time for London
Collections: Men with interiors designed by
David Almada, who recently worked on The
Arts Club in Mayfair and The Norman boutique hotel in Tel Aviv. The renowned Italian
chef Francesco Mazzei, of L’Anima restaurant, helms the kitchen as the restaurant’s
chef patron. Highlights include a new all-day
dining menu that features dishes from
Mazzei’s native Calabria as well as other hot
spots in Italy. It also boasts the new Libare
Bar with a drinks list comprised of seasonal
twists on Italian classics like Bellinis, Negronis and spritzes, alongside some original
creations, with liqueurs created by Mazzei
himself. — Rohaizatul Azhar
SARTORIA
20 SAVILE ROW, LONDON W1S 3PR
TEL.: +44-20-7534-7000
WEB: HTTP://WWW.SARTORIA-RESTAURANT.CO.UK
Mad about the
Boy exhibit
BACK TO THE TWENTIES
Alan Yau, the restaurateur behind Wagamama and the Hakkasan Group, has
realized one of his most ambitious projects
to date with the opening of Park Chinois,
in the heart of Mayfair. Yau was dreaming
of a Twenties dance hall while creating
the 15,200-square-foot space on Berkeley
After a series of successful pop-up shops,
Modern Society is finally settling down at
33 Redchurch Street in Shoreditch in east
London. The store’s offer ranges from the
apparel brand Être Cécile to The Gentleman’s Journal to flower bouquets, while
the coffee comes courtesy of Embassy East.
The store has also planned a string of events
aimed at bringing together the locals and
globals congregating locally at the likes of
Shoreditch House. “I have opened several
pop-up versions of Modern Society, but
Redchurch Street is where it will have its
permanent home, the area reflects the sensibility of the concept perfectly,” said owner
Nazifa Movsoumova. — Joanna Taylor
MODERN SOCIETY
33 REDCHURCH STREET, LONDON E2 7DJ
TEL.: +44-20-7729-0311
WEB: HTTP://WWW.THEMODERNSOCIETY.COM
Modern
Society
Sartoria
BY THE SEA
DOUBLE TROUBLE
Alexander Calder
exhibit
and stories at the Barbican is not simply for
admiration, but inspiration to folks in myriad
fields.”
Curated by Lottie Johnson, the exhibition
features a mixture of static displays as well as
studiolike and multimedia spaces. On Jan. 13,
there will be an Architecture on Film screen
talk celebrating the pair’s experiments with
design and moving image. The Barbican
show runs until Feb. 14. — Joanna Taylor
THE WORLD OF CHARLES AND RAY
EAMES
BARBICAN, SILK STREET, EC2Y 8DS
TEL.: +44-20-7638-8891
WEB: HTTP://WWW.BARBICAN.ORG.UK/
ARTGALLERY/EVENT-DETAIL.ASP?ID=18398
More than 380 works by the design duo
Charles and Ray Eames will be exhibited at
the Barbican in east London. “The World
of Charles and Ray Eames” explores their
post-War ideas and creations including
everything from architectural furniture and
product design to fine art and multimedia
installations. The couple — famous for their
practical, modern and playful designs — created the renowned Eames Lounge chair and
broke ground in the production of mass-producible fiberglass seating.
“For Charles and Ray, design was not
simply a professional skill, it was a life skill —
more than that, it was an essential attribute
of life itself,” said Eames Demetrios, director
of the Eames Office. “And not pretentiously.
On the contrary, they never stopped challenging themselves to make their most iconic
designs better and better — all the while having fun. The unprecedented array of objects
The restaurateur behind Scott’s and Le
Caprice, Richard Caring, has planted his flag
in Berkeley Square with a new restaurant
called Sexy Fish. Overseen by chef Ben Orpwood, the Asian fish and seafood restaurant
also showcases art by Damien Hirst. The
interior devised by Martin Brudnizki Design
Studio is filled with the sea-inspired works by
Frank Gehry, who has created distinctive fish
lamps that float above the bar, and a modernist coral reef. Guests grazing on tempura
prawns and Sexy Fish rolls can also stare at a
giant black crocodile positioned along one of
the walls. — Joanna Taylor
SEXY FISH
BERKELEY SQUARE HOUSE, BERKELEY
SQUARE, LONDON W1J 6BR
TEL.: +44-20-3764-2000
WEB: HTTP://WWW.SEXYFISH.COM
Sexy Fish
11
8 JANUARY 2016
Miss Golden Globe 2016 Corinne Foxx on
Social Media, School and Her Famous Dad
The 21-year-old college senior will make her TV debut at Sunday’s awards show.
It could be fair to say that Corinne
Foxx, this year’s Miss Golden Globe,
has led a charmed life in her 21 years.
As Oscar-winner Jamie Foxx’s older
daughter (both father and daughter
don’t disclose her mother’s name in
the press), she was born in Los Angles, grew up on the set of “The Jamie
Foxx show,” attends the University of
Southern California, and was bestowed her current title with nary an
interview or audition.
“I had no idea. I thought you had
to apply and all that and they kind of
just randomly sent me an e-mail. I was
screaming and jumping up and down
for two hours when I got it; I couldn’t
even sit straight,” said the younger
Foxx, whose wide smile and straightforward demeanor make her seem
like anything but an entitled daughter-of. And no, her father didn’t pull any
strings to get her the gig. “My dad had
no idea. He found out when I found
out. Everyone was freaking out,” she
said from her perch at the Globes
venue the Beverly Hilton hotel, her de
facto home for the next few days.
Foxx always felt she’d get into the
industry at some point, but it was
important to her to earn a college
degree first. “I major in pubic relations
and marketing, and I’ve really been
focusing on my education for the last
four years. My dad is super supportive of me but he dropped out of
college and he’s really into acting and
his art. Normally it’s the parents who
want you to go get an education but it
was really me.”
Midway through university, Foxx
signed with L.A. Models as a segue
into acting. “Channing Tatum called
me when he heard I was going to start
modeling, since he started in that industry, and he was just like, ‘You know,
just be careful, just make sure you
stay true to yourself,’ and I’ve kind of
lived by that — to not let the industry
change me or tell me how I should
look or how I should be,” she said.
So far, she’s not done any professional acting, apart from playing a
flower girl on the 100th episode of
her dad’s long-running TV show and
shooting a skit with him for a digital
network. “I want to start going out
for auditions when I graduate in May.
So I’m taking a lot of acting classes
and hopefully when I graduate I can
make my big debut. I’d say I’m more of
a dramatic actress, whereas my dad
was born funny,” she says.
Her first on-camera job is certainly a good launching pad, as she
notes that other Miss Golden Globes
include “incredible women like Dakota
Johnson, Rumer Willis and Melanie
Griffith. It’s definitely a hard industry
to get into and I’m lucky I have so
many connections. Still, I don’t think it
will be easy.”
She’s anxious for rehearsals on
Saturday. “I want to know my mark
and all the details. I think the first
four times I go out there I will be very
nervous and by the end of the night I’ll
be throwing out those awards.”
As for her all-important gown,
she’s had “a million fittings” and won’t
disclose who or what she is wearing,
but offered, “I originally wanted to go
for something classy and traditional
so when I look back I can be happy
with it, but I ended up going with
something that was a bit more flashy
because I fell in love with the dress.
It’s a little more glam than I originally
planned.”
Like any Millennial, she’s social media savvy and has racked up nearly
58,000 Instagram followers and just
signed on to Snapchat. “One-hundred-thousand followers by the end
of the year is my goal. And I still like
Vine. Do you know what that is? There
are some really funny people on
there and a few of my friends make
fun of me because nobody uses it
anymore.”
Although her number-one beauty
secret is getting plenty of sleep, it’s
been in short supply this week.
“This is once in a lifetime opportunity, so if I don’t sleep, it’s worth it. I
drink a lot of water and I want to get a
facial. And I’m always careful with my
sunscreen.”
For now, she’s happy that her first
real gig doesn’t involve memorizing
any lines. “The best part about this job
is I don’t have to speak on stage, I kind
of just get to sit and observe and look
pretty.” — MARCY MEDINA
Corinne Foxx
“This was at the Globe nominations announcement. Another really early call time!”
Joel Madden, Princess Datin Ezurin
Kyhra, Nicole Richie and Benji Madden.
Lionel Richie Launches Home
Collection With Dinner in Beverly Hills
The singer-songwriter held a dinner at his Beverly Hills home to celebrate.
Foxx photogrpah by Tyler Boye; Richie Dinner by David Seaver
Trent Fraser and Kevin Spacey
As guests stepped into Lionel Richie’s
Beverly Hills home on Wednesday, they
weren’t greeted with a “Hello” from the
host, but rather by the aroma of scented
candles from the singer-songwriter-record-producer’s new home collection.
“This is really something that I do,”
Richie said, standing near the dining table
tinkering with candlelight where a fourcourse feast was about to be served.
Plenty of Dom Pérignon helped the
digestion process (the brand cohosted
the meal).
“We’ve been working on this for two
years,” said Richie’s girlfriend Lisa Parigi.
“He’d get off of stage and say, ‘Hey, I think I
have an idea.’” With a full range of product
from high-end dinnerware, glassware, and
vases to scented candles and accesso-
Lionel and Nicole Richie
ries retailing from $56 to $1,500 on his
Web site, Richie’s dreams finally came
true, but not before a couple of test runs.
“We’ve done this twice already just as a
warm-up,” Richie said during his pre-dinner toast. “The only problem I’m having out
of this whole launch is that I get here, and
there’s no band. In case I make a mistake,
there’s no cymbal crashing.”
Luckily, any faux pas were muffled
by the endless supply of vintage Champagne and guest Kevin Spacey’s spot-on
impersonations of Johnny Carson and
former President Bill Clinton that sent the
room into a roar. “Listen, I got your invitation even though you sent one to Hillary
as well,” jested the “House of Cards” actor.
“She replied and out of habit she immediately deleted it.”
One guest who didn’t miss the spread
of caviar, salad, rainbow chard risotto and
lemon polenta cake was Richie’s daughter
Nicole, who arrived with husband Joel
Madden and brother-in-law Benji Madden.
“Nicole came over and whispered in my
ear, ‘Oh my God, this is good Dad,’” the
elder Richie said. “This is the first time
she’s seen it, and I got the little pat on the
back, which is very comforting because
she’s a tough cookie.”
She’ll soon have more approving to do.
“This is just a start,” he said. “We’ll have
Lionel Richie Loft and Lionel Richie Studio.
In Loft we have some things for the apartment where you actually find the fun stuff,
‘Hello, is it brie you’re looking for?’ ‘Hello,
is it tea you’re looking for?’ You know that
kind of stuff.”
— ERICKA FRANKLIN
12 8 JANUARY 2016
A visual from the Carolina Herrera spring ‘16 ad campaign shot by Mario Testino.
Billy Howle in Prada’s new ad.
Prada and Miu Miu continue to strengthen
their ties with the film industry in their new
spring 2016 advertising campaigns with a cast
of up-and-coming actors.
Matthew Beard, Billy Howle and Logan Lerman appear in Prada’s men’s spring campaign,
which was shot by photographer Craig McDean,
who was also behind the lens for the brand’s
fall 2015 campaign. Taken in a New York nightclub, the three actors are caught mid-transit in
front of textured and graphic walls with a stark
flashlight, paying homage to Seventies club
photography.
Miu Miu tapped Millie Brady, Julia Garner,
Matilda Lutz and India Salvor Menuez for its
women’s campaign. Shot by photographer
Steven Meisel on a neutral gray background, the
cropped, asymmetric images feature portraits
of the actresses, who directly face the camera.
The two brands have a history of choosing
actors for their campaigns. Miu Miu previously featured Elle Fanning, Lupita Nyong’o and
Elizabeth Olsen for its summer 2015 campaign;
Prada opted for Scoot McNairy, Michael Shannon and Tye Sheridan for its fall 2015 ads.
— LUCIE JANIK
BY THE POOL
Carolina Herrera has once again called upon
Mario Testino to oversee her advertising campaign for spring.
Shot poolside on the lawn of a Barcelona
estate overlooking the Mediterranean, the
campaign mixes the Carolina Herrera New York
and CH Carolina Herrera women’s and men’s
apparel and accessories collections. By having
Testino shoot everything under one lens, so to
speak, Herrera aims to relay a cohesive vision
of the strong codes of the brand.
Building on the idea of connectedness, Lily
Aldridge and Romee Strijd, who first walked the
runway for the designer in September, headline
the new ads. Aldridge also appeared in Herrera’s fall campaign, which spotlighted elements
of both of the designer’s collections.
In one of this spring’s images, Aldridge and
Strijd stand poolside looking seriously amused
by a water-soaked Emilio Pancheri, who has the
full attention of a Jack Russell terrier. Beyond
the lightheartedness of the scene, Aldridge’s
sheer blush rose trench gown with a techno
fabric appliqué skirt and Strijd’s grey cloud
silk faille embroidered top and skirt are meant
to evoke an effortless elegance and modern
femininity that will set the tone for the season
ahead.
Art-directed by MarioTestinoPlus, the campaign will break in February issues of domestic
and international fashion and lifestyle publications, and it will of course be plugged via the
brand’s social media platforms. Followers of
Testino can also find his work in Amsterdam’s
Annet Gelink gallery through March 6, where
“Me & You” bring together his photography with
Ed van der Elsken’s. Earlier this week Testino
flew to Sydney where he was reportedly working
as guest editor for Vogue Australia’s April issue.
— ROSEMARY FEITELBERG
STYLIST FOR HIRE
Condé Nast’s Brides has developed a new
experiential service for readers in search of the
ultimate wedding dress but there’s one hiccup:
It will cost a pretty penny.
Called “The Bridal Style Package,” brides-tobe will be able to meet one of the magazine’s
FACE TIME
Léa Seydoux
Louis Vuitton has corralled another bankable
actress as its newest face, WWD has learned.
Paris-born Léa Seydoux, whose international
profile vaulted recently with her role as a Bond girl
in “Spectre,” joins Alicia Vikander, Michelle Williams,
Jennifer Connelly and Doona Bae as an ambassador
for a brand she considers “a strong symbol of French
elegance.”
Her first official duty is to accompany Nicolas
Ghesquière, Vuitton’s artistic director of women’s
collections, to the UNICEF Ball in Los Angeles on Jan.
12 wearing an outfit custom-made for her.
As a face of the brand, she is to appear in advertising campaigns and participate in its major events.
Seydoux scooped up a Palme d’Or at the Cannes
Film Festival in 2013 for her role in “Blue is the Warmest Color” and has appeared in such diverse films as
“Inglourious Basterds,” “Midnight in Paris,” “The Grand
Budapest Hotel” and “Mission: Impossible — Ghost
Protocol.” Later this year she is to appear in Xavier
Dolan’s newest film, “It’s Just the End of the World.”
A familiar face in fashion’s front rows, Seydoux
has appeared in campaigns for such fashion brands
as Miu Miu, Prada and Rag & Bone.
An advertisement
for Brides Private
Access.
brands — it would be one thing if we were
pushing certain dresses or hawking a certain
shoe brand.”
Clients can purchase Brides’ Private Access
packages at bridesprivateaccess.com.
Although there won’t be any discounts
applied to the purchase of goods or services,
Brides chief revenue officer and publisher
Michelle Myers justified the hefty price tag of all
three offers by pointing to research.
“What I’m seeing from our research is that
the Millennial girl wants experiences,” she said,
noting that couples are registering for experiences in addition to appliances.
“Girls want their wedding to feel customized,”
Myers offered, noting that while she and Minor
developed the idea to speak to a “white space”
in the market, it was nurtured by Jill Bright,
Condé Nast chief administrative officer.
Bright heads up a new brand experience
group that facilitates the development of new
revenue streams for each magazine via new
licensing deals and product launches across
the company.
— ALEXANDRA STEIGRAD
some cheer to the consumers with a special WeChat
app to mark the two-week Chinese Lunar New Year
holiday, which begins on Feb. 8.
A Lunar New Year Gift is the name of the interactive messaging service that will allow users to
“unwrap” the brand’s products via tapping, swiping
and shaking. They can also create a personalized
digital Lunar New Year envelope to send to friends
and family.
Users can also win an actual limited-edition Burberry Lunar New Year envelope.
The Burberry gift assortment for the season
includes Scottish-woven cashmere scarves that can
be personalized, and Made in England trenchcoats
for men and women.
Burberry’s signature tote, The Banner, is also
available as part of the offering alongside men’s
backpacks, leather wallets and cashmere Thomas
Bear key charms.
Burberry teamed with WeChat in February 2014
during its women’s rtw show and during an event in
Shanghai in April 2014. — LORELEI MARFIL
— MILES SOCHA
CHINESE CHEER
The news out of China this week has been bleak:
Weak manufacturing data, a further devalued yuan
and stock exchange trading suspended twice in
three days amid fears of an economic slowdown.
In the midst of it all, Burberry is looking to bring
Burberry
trenchcoats.
Seydoux photograph by Alasdair McLellan
TALENT SCOUT
editors for up to $12,500. The package includes
a one-hour pre-consultation via Skype, followed
by half a day at the Brides’ offices at Condé
Nast headquarters at One World Trade Center.
The day includes a breakfast — not lunch — with
one of Brides’ senior fashion editors, followed
by a style consultation in which the soon-to-be
bride will try on dresses pulled by staff. She
will receive a digital look book with photos of
the experience, which will be posted to Brides’
Instagram account, as well as a luxury gift bag.
(The dress isn’t included.)
“I would love for this package to lead to her
finding her dream dress,” said Brides editor in
chief Keija Minor, explaining advice would extend to shoes, veils and other accessories. “It’s
definitely about the consultation now. We’re not
trying to sell dresses out of our [fashion] closet.
It’s more about arming her with the information
she needs.”
The package can be extended to the mother
of the bride, maid of honor or bridesmaid for another $2,500. That offer — called the “Wedding
Style Package” — includes a 30-minute style
session and custom look book. The bride-to-be
can also purchase the “Honeymoon Package”
for an additional $2,500 should she need an
insider honeymoon itinerary guide compiled by
the editors of Brides.
Minor noted that the packages do not
replace wedding planners, but instead will serve
as a way for brides-to-be from all over the country and abroad to gain access to Brides’ editors
in order to “streamline the [wedding] process.”
According to Minor, there hasn’t been any
pushback from her staff about the project; in
fact it has been the contrary. “It’s a new way to
connect with our audience,” she said, adding
that only two to three editors will work on the
project.
When pressed further about the expanded
demands of not only putting out a magazine
but also serving as a stylist-for-hire for readers,
Minor added: “Gone are the days where any editor wears just one hat. We’re all exploring brand
extensions and what it means to be an editor.”
She also noted: “We’re not pushing certain