Fashion

NEW YORK's go-to designer for dressed-down chic,Rebecca Taylor, is launching her first ever eveningwear collection. Called the Rebecca Taylor Black Tie Collection, the range offers delicately detailed dresses with more elaborate embellishments and luxurious fabrications than ever before - something that Taylor says her cosmopolitan customer needs.

"We're already dressing the busy woman who needs pieces to take her from work to night, so it's exciting to offer her options for event dressing that feels modern," the designer told us. "The pieces are more elevated with richer fabrics and couture-like beading. With this collection I was really able to let go creatively."

Taylor's mainline has undergone a subtle makeover in recent seasons - moving away from the colourful party dresses that made her name to include cooler separates and outerwear that bring her closer to New York contemporaries like Alexander Wang and Prabal Gurung. And while red carpet starlets will probably have their eyes on a piece or two, Taylor herself has a few in mind who she'd be happy to dress.

"I think Rashida Jones and Kirsten Dunst would look amazing in the dresses," Taylor said. "They are able to wear gowns and still maintain a cool factor."

The collection will be available fromRebeccataylor.com, as well as selected UK stockists, priced from £395.

Tuesday, 19 November 2013

Ashley Olsen Lands New Fashion Job

ASHLEY OLSEN has made it on to the board of the Council of Fashion Designers of America. She was elected by the CFDA last month, although there was no mention of her twin sister, Mary-Kate Olsen, who also designs for their fashion labels, The Row and Elizabeth & James.

Other new board members include Kate Spade president and chief creative officer Deborah Lloyd and designer Prabal Gurung, WWD reports. The invitation-only membership consists of 400 designers who are either based in America or who are Americans working abroad.

The trio replace Yeohlee Teng, Kenneth Cole and Isabel Toledo, who will join the special Emeritus Board - for designers who have given up their CFDA responsibilities, but are allowed to retain their title.

Saturday, 16 November 2013

Gucci Loses GG Logo Trademark

GUCCI has had its GG trademark revoked in the UK on the grounds of non-use. The UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO) said that the label can still use the interlocking double G logo to sell under class three - which includes fragrances and soaps.

Gucci first registered the motif in 1984 in the UK in four different classes - 3, 14, 18 and 25. This spans handbags, T-shirts, watches and cosmetics. Under British law, UK trademarks can be revoked if they are not used within five years of their registration.

Fashion brand Gerry Weber applied for the motif to be repealed in June 2012 for a lack of use between 2003 and 2012, reports the World Intellectual Property Review. Gucci responded by providing figures of sales goods from those years, but didn't make clear as to whether or not these were UK-based.

The IPO deemed these too vague to be proof of genuine use, and revoked the mark covering classes 14, 18 and 25 - which means that the Italian brand no longer owns the trademark to those categories. There was thought to be enough evidence that the symbol was used in class three products, including "non-medicated toilet preparations, cosmetic preparations, perfumes, soaps, dentifrices, preparations for the hair; anti-perspirants, depilatory preparations".

Friday, 15 November 2013

London Couture, Bruce Oldfield-Style

BRUCE OLDFIELD presented a traditional couture salon presentation last week in his Beauchamp Place showroom but, despite a fabulous reaction to it, he's not tempted to climb onto the London Fashion Week bandwagon.

"I would never do a London Fashion Week show unless it was heavily sponsored," he told us after the show. "I'm happy with the niche I've carved out - making specialist garments for those who appreciate the qualities and the process of couture."

Full of sumptuous clothes - accented by jewels from Solange Azagury - that will solve fashion dilemmas for every wedding character from the bride, to the mother-of-the-bride, to the discarded former girlfriend of the groom wanting to save face - and any other women there wanting a high-quality boyfriend, the show was a breath of fresh air for jaded journalists who face a month-long international carousel of catwalk shows every season and a chance for Oldfield's loyal fans to see his latest creations in close up - an opportunity that had them literally gasping as they made mental shopping lists.

"My muse always used to be my pal Charlotte Rampling - it still is the woman who doesn't get too involved with what's the current look, she just finds something that suits her and sticks with it, with little changes here, little changes there," said Bruce. "Nowadays, I dress a lot of women who are either in the public eye or who are 'queen for a day' and need dresses to reflect that."

Thursday, 14 November 2013

Burberry's New Design Lead

CHRISTOPHER BAILEYintroduced Burberry's new chief design officer - Luc Goidadin - yesterday as he addressed investors for the first time in his new double-role of chief executive and chief creative officer of the company.

Goidadin, he said, is "one of my most experienced, trusted and talented colleagues who has worked alongside me for over 12 years" and would "oversee all design activities under my leadership. This will allow me to remain fully involved in setting the creative direction and vision for the brand."

A new company structure will streamline the business into three pillars - design, product and communication - which will leave Bailey with "significantly fewer reports" than his predecessor Angela Ahrendts who will take up her position as senior vice president of retail and online stores for Apple next year.

While the industry has held its breath since the announcement last month that Ahrendts was leaving Burberry, it's clear that both Bailey and his long-term friend and colleague have absolute confidence in the company's future. We are to expect "no radical changes" to the strategy, Bailey said. "We have always seen art and commerce not as opposing forces but as two sides to the same coin. There is tremendous potential, and fuel in the tank."

"I would never, ever, ever have considered leaving if I didn't know that the company was significantly outperforming, and if I was not sure that Mr Bailey was ready to take the baton," said Ahrendts. "He has already been overseeing half of the business. In addition to the collections, all the store design, creative media and everything the consumer sees has gone through his office for the last eight years."

Tuesday, 12 November 2013

Joseph To Show At LFW

JOSEPH will show on the London Fashion Week schedule for the first time in February 2013.

The move comes as a part of the brand's celebrations to commemorate 25 years since the opening of its renowned Fulham Road store - earlier this year they asked 25 friends of Joseph to say what Joseph meant to them.

As a part of the Fashion Week showcase, the label has enlisted Giles, Balmain, Jil Sander, Jonathan Saunders, Rupert Sanderson and its creative director Louise Trotter to each design an exclusive item that will be for sale on the day.

Monday, 11 November 2013

Philip Treacy: The Industry Could Have Helped Isabella Blow

AHEAD of the opening of a new exhibition dedicated to the impressive wardrobe of Isabella Blow next week, the late fashion editor good friend, milliner Philip Treacy, says that the display is long overdue.

"She was never feted while she was alive," Treacy said. "She gave so much and worked so hard. She supported the careers of many young people who didn't stand a chance without her, yet she never won a single award. It's all very well them feting her now and going on about how wonderful and brilliant she was. There will be people at that exhibition who laughed at her when she was alive. They're hypocrites and they make my blood boil!"

Although he declined to name any of Blow's critics, he described how "they mocked her. It was cruel." Treacy believes that more could have been done while she was alive to applaud her contributions to the industry.

"She thought she no longer mattered," he told The Telegraph. "For all her flamboyance and humour and warmth, Isabella actually suffered from low self-esteem. Very few people got to see that. She also had this thing about getting old. She hated it. Before she died, she told me that she felt as if she had been somehow left behind in the fashion world."

Friday, 8 November 2013

Abercrombie Targets Plus-Size Shoppers

ABERCROMBIE & FITCH will start selling clothing in plus sizes for the first time in a bid to attract new customers, following another dip in sales. The company currently doesn't carry sizes above large, as part of its famously "exclusionary" ethos.

"In every school there are the cool and popular kids, and then there are the not-so-cool kids," said CEO Mike Jeffries in 2006. "Candidly, we go after the cool kids. We go after the attractive all-American kid with a great attitude and a lot of friends. A lot of people don't belong [in our clothes], and they can't belong. Are we exclusionary? Absolutely."

The American label is expanding its women's tops collection, to offer a broader range of sizes and colours, and is also planning to launch a shoe category. Company shares have lost an estimated 30 per cent of their value this year, as young shoppers turn to more trend-driven brands, Reuters reports.

The move comes following news that Gilly Hicks - the Australian underwear label owned by Abercrombie - is closing its UK stores, after disappointing sales.

Vuitton’s Second-In-Command

AS creative director of the womenswear studio at Louis Vuitton for the past five years, Julie de Libran is best placed to tell us how the brand may fare under the overall creative direction ofNicolas Ghesquière, who officiallytook over last week.

"I only met him for the first time on Tuesday," she told us today at the launch of the brand's new Townhouse in Selfridges (which she describes as "like Disneyland" - and it's hard to disagree after a trip in the world's first 360-rotating glass elevator that takes centre stage in the store). I know that he's a very nice man and I've always loved his work. He is a huge talent and so creative, so I'm really excited to see what he wants to do here."

Hearing her describe her own aesthetic as one that inspires her to "dress women who are passionate about clothes, the fabrics, the quality, the attention to detail to make them feel comfortable in their clothes because clothes are such an enjoyable part of life. I enjoy getting dressed every morning," it's hard to imagine that De Libran could be anything but a fantastic wing woman to a designer leading one of the world's biggest luxury brands.

Alongside Ghesquière's predecessor Marc Jacobs, she worked on the entire womenswear offering including accessories, ad campaigns and shows - and she'll have just as close a working relationship with her new boss. "Vuitton is an amazing place to work - it has such savoir faire and such huge potential and it's wonderful for me to be able to bring a feminine side to the collection," she says.

Having worked at Prada for 10 years before transferring to Vuitton so that she could base herself in Paris with her family, 41-year-old de Libran is loving what she's doing - but hasn't ruled out the possibility of her own label in the future. "I have always loved working in a team but when the time comes, I'd love to go it alone."

Wednesday, 6 November 2013

Jaeger’s New De La Renta Star

FORMER Daks and Oscar de la Renta designer Sheila McKain-Waid has been appointed as Jaeger's new womenswear creative director. The label has also decided to close two of its lines, Boutique by Jaeger and Jaeger London, to streamline its design aesthetic and target one market.

"Jaeger is a well-established British brand with a strong heritage," McKain-Waid told us this morning. "I am looking forward to working with the team to explore ways in which to interpret the Jaeger design aesthetic of clean, fabulous tailoring, elegant lines and beautiful detailing in a new and relevant way."

McKain-Waid started her career at Donna Karan as a consultant, before moving to Morgane Le Fay and later Halston. She then worked at Oscar de la Renta for six years, holding the position of senior designer, but moved to London in 2004 where she acted as a consultant to brands including Jaeger. In 2010, she was hired at Daks as head of design. Collette Brown still holds the position of head of womenswear design, having joined the company in November 2012.

McKain-Waid's appointment comes amid a revival of the brand. In June, former Espirit chief product officer Colin Henry was named its new CEO, and there are plans to bring back a proportion of its manufacturing to the UK in order to improve the quality of its collections.

Tuesday, 5 November 2013

The Vogue Winter Evening Style Guide

fashion leather goods
4. Bright nights

WE might have survived the storm, but we're still feeling the frosty prospect of fireworks night and the many festive evenings spent outside. How to stay warm in style? Sarah Harris and Emma Elwick Bates have the answers - see Vogue's guide to staying chic during those cold winter nightshere.

Monday, 4 November 2013

Meet The New NEWGEN MEN

THREE new menswear stars - Common, Kit Neale and footwear designer Diego Vanassibara - will receive the Topman-sponsoredNEWGEN MEN support at this season's London Collections: Men, it was confirmed today. Agi & Sam, Astrid Andersen, Lee Roach, Martine Rose, Matthew Miller, Nasir Mazhar and Shaun Samson will all continue to receive the support again this season.

The British Fashion Council revealed the names today ahead of the autumn/winter 2014 menswear shows in London, which take place in from January 6 to 8.

"All recipients receive sponsorship and showcasing opportunities at London Collections: Men, as well as tailored business and mentoring support with a view to increasing the success of their business commercially and building relationships with key press and buyers," the BFC said today.

Saturday, 2 November 2013

Gaultier Launches Couture For Children

JEAN PAUL GAULTIER has introduced a couture line for children. Launching for spring/summer 2014, the range will be updated every six months.
His first designs for the new line were inspired by the finale dress from the spring/summer couture 2013 collection - when the styles were first seen, as small children appeared from underneath the model's voluminous gown. The mini tulle dresses - available in ivory and pink - have silk bodices and an accompanying bolero adorned with Swarovski crystals. A limited run of 90 pieces will be produced in each colourway, which will go sale towards the end of the year, priced at $1,200 each.
The brand has a childrenswear line, launched in 2009, although the mini couture label marks its most luxurious offering for children yet.

Friday, 1 November 2013

Harrods's Marigay McKee Succession Plan