Wwd 2015 02 03

THE AMERICAN STAR

MADE IN THE USA AND THE AMERICAN MARKET’S STRENGTH WERE THE FOCUS AT THE NEW YORK TEXTILE TRADE SHOWS. PAGE 6

WWD TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015 ■ $3.00 ■ WOMEN’S WEAR DAILY

Block Three Times

As he stamped c’est fini on the drawn-out pre-fall 2015 schedule, Louis Vuitton’s Nicolas Ghesquière took inspiration from the season’s go-to decade, the Seventies, interpreting bohemian chic in lightweight layers. Key to the collection: a fluid dress in three variations of silk crepe, worn over a ribbed turtleneck and paired with COLLECTIONS printed velvet ankle boots.

For more, see 2015 page 5.

PRE-FALL

PHOTO BY DOMINIQUE MAÎTRE

STATEMENT PIECES

DIAMONDS, SAPPHIRES AND EMERALDS STOOD OUT IN THE FINE JEWELRY COLLECTIONS UNVEILED DURING PARIS COUTURE WEEK. PAGE 4 AND 5

SEEKING ANSWERS A NEW BOOK EXAMINES THE TORTURED LIVES AND CREATIVITY OF LEE ALEXANDER MCQUEEN AND JOHN GALLIANO. PAGE 10

SERIES OF BUMPS

Alibaba Under Pressure, But Ma Remains Upbeat

By CASEY HALL and ELLEN SHENG JACK MA ISN’T worried.

While a looming lawsuit, recent regulatory kerfuffle and lower-than-expected third-quarter earnings have many people wondering whether some of the shine has come off China’s e-commerce golden child Alibaba, its founder and chief executive officer remains upbeat. This, despite the fact that last week the company saw its market capitalization dive by $25 billion in a single day when third-quarter earnings fell short of Wall Street estimates. Revenue at the world’s largest e-commerce company rose 40 percent to $4.22 billion in the December quarter, short of the average estimate of $4.45 billion from analysts polled by Reuters.

To Ma, things like the lawsuit, filed in New York, present an opportunity to let the West better understand Alibaba’s business — and China.

“We need to face it. We welcome it. It’s not a bad thing. This is an opportunity to show the West how Alibaba and China work,” he said in a talk in Hong Kong on Monday, adding that the Web giant’s legal team can handle it.

The 23-page complaint that was filed in Manhattan federal court Friday claimed Alibaba had violated securities laws by not raising regulatory concerns flagged in a July meeting that company officials had with Chinese regulatory authorities. The suit was filed against the company and named some officers as codefendants, and came a day after Alibaba was slammed

by Chinese regulators in a “White Paper” released by the State Administration of Industry and Commerce (though the paper has since been removed from the SAIC’s website). The central government in Beijing had revealed in November a renewed focus on fighting intellectual property rights violations and counterfeit goods, and recent actions undertaken by SAIC show SEE PAGE 12

From D&G to Lands’ End: Marchionni Named CEO

By DAVID MOIN IN A SURPRISING pairing, Lands’ End, a casual brand with an Americana appeal, has tapped Federica Marchionni, a European luxury executive who dresses to the nines, as its next chief executive officer.

The announcement Monday raised eyebrows across the industry, given Marchionni’s image and her experience. It’s her first ceo role, and a leap from her current job as president of Dolce & Gabbana USA. That business is estimated at between $100 million and $200 million in sales, whereas Lands’ End generates more than $1.5 billion in revenues.

Marchionni will succeed Edgar Huber as Lands’ End ceo on Feb. 17. Huber is expected to soon take a new job, in the retail and digital sector, possibly linked to a private equity firm. He was not available for comment.

Huber’s biggest accomplishment at Lands’ End was April’s spin-off of the brand from Sears Holdings Corp. into a freestanding public company listed on the Nasdaq exchange. Sears bought Lands’ End for $1.9 billion in 2002. Huber, a former Liz Claiborne Inc. executive who had headed the Juicy Couture brand after a career spent mostly in the beauty business, had been ceo of Lands’ End since 2011. He’s also credited with making digital growth at Lands’ End a priority, as well as elevating the quality of the collection; expanding the product range, including initiatives in swimwear and launching activewear, and adding financial disciplines.

In the fourth quarter, the company experienced some fashion misses, weakness in cold-weather products, and SEE PAGE 2

WWD TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015

WWD.COM

Lands’ End Turns to D&G for CEO {Continued from page one}

unfavorable currency exchange rates. Its steadily diminishing presence in Sears stores contributed to a revenue decline. The company expects earnings for the quarter ending Jan. 31 to decline to a range of $1.06 to $1.16 a diluted share, down from $1.44 in the prior year, and overall revenues to decline to between $505 million and $515 million from their year-ago levels of $530 million. The consensus estimate was for earnings of $1.38 a share on revenues of $542.2 million. The firm does expect improvement in its fourth-quarter gross margin — to between 43.8 percent and 44 percent from 43.7 percent in the 2013 period.

“The quarter was difficult but the year was not so bad,” said a financial source close to the company. “The two most difficult areas were currencies and the business at Sears.”

“With the successful completion of the spin-off of Lands’ End.…I have accomplished what I came to achieve at Lands’ End and I look forward to the company’s success in the future,” Huber said.

Sources noted that Huber had been thinking of leaving Lands’ End, which is headquartered in Dodgeville, Wisc., for some time to return to the East Coast, and that working under the Sears umbrella for about two-thirds of his tenure until the brand went public last spring was challenging for him. Lands’ End said he resigned.

Marchionni’s challenge will be to continue to improve the product and brand image, and further digital and international growth. Due to its presence at Sears stores, Lands’ End has long held back from rolling out its own stores, but could decide to in the future.

As president of Dolce & Gabbana USA, Marchionni was most involved in the wholesale distribution and retail sides of the business. “She’s very intelligent and represented Dolce & Gabbana very well,” said a retail source. “But it may be tough for her living in Wisconsin. It’s farm country.

She also never had any engagement in this kind of casual product. She’s very Upper East Side, Italian,

urbane, and she dresses formally.”

Josephine Linden, non-executive chairman of Lands’ End, described Marchionni as a “multitalented, visionary business leader with a complete set of creative, strategic and analytical skills to grow a multichannel apparel brand in a highly competitive and evolving global environment.”

Increasingly, retail brands have been making outof-the-box hires, partly to bring fresh perspectives, partly due to the industry’s lack of talent.

Lands’ End said while Marchionni was at Dolce & Gabbana USA, revenues increased significantly, and she oversaw several key openings — including the Federica Fifth Avenue flagship and Marchionni units in Toronto, Chicago, Aspen and Boston. Earlier, she was a global group director at Dolce & Gabbana, leading business development for business units in more than 100 countries.

Marchionni was also senior vice president at the Ferrari division of Dolce & Gabbana.

She joined the company in 2001. Earlier, she held product marketing and sales jobs at consumer technology and telecommunications companies such as Samsung, Phillips and Ericsson. She has a master’s degree in business administration and management from La Sapienza University of Rome and once taught a two-year course on brand expansion and extension at Marangoni Fashion School. Marchionni was not available for comment Monday.

Her appointment follows boardroom changes at Lands’ End late last year. Linden, a principal of Linden Global Strategies LLC, succeeded Elizabeth Darst Leykum as chairman. Leykum remains a director and became chair of the nominating and corporate governance committee. Edward Lampert, chairman and ceo of Sears, is neither a director nor officer of Lands’ End, but by virtue of his personal holdings and those through RBS Partners, an affiliate of Lampert’s ESL Investments, he’s its largest shareholder.

— WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM ARNOLD J. KARR

L Capital Invests in Ba&sh Global Expansion

By MILES SOCHA PARIS — Affordable luxury continues to attract investor attention.

Echoing its 2010 investment in contemporary brands Sandro, Maje and Claudie Pierlot, L Capital said Monday it would acquire 50 percent of French contemporary fashion chain Ba&sh.

The private equity fund — sponsored by LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton and Group Arnault — said it would partner with the founding managers to accelerate Ba&sh’s international expansion.

Ba&sh counts about 60 boutiques and shops-in-shop, mostly in France. It recently expanded into the U.K. and Belgium, and is slated to open stores in the coming months in Spain, Switzerland and Denmark. The brand also wholesales its approachable, bohemian chic for women to about 300 specialty stores, the company said.

Financial terms were not disclosed and the deal is subject to clearance by antitrust authorities.

Market sources estimate Ba&sh revenues at 35 million euros, or $42.5 million.

L Capital cashed out with Sandro/Maje in 2013, when American private equity giant Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. snapped up SMCP Group from L Capital and Florac for an estimated 650 million euros, or $790.1 million at current exchange rates.

L Capital noted that Barbara Boccara and Sharon Krief, who founded Ba&sh in 2003, would remain with the company alongside investor Groupe Vog, which retains a 50 percent stake. Boccara and Krief are to comanage the company with executives Dan Arrouas of Groupe Vog and Pierre-Arnaud Grenade, most recently an executive at Princesse Tam Tam. Groupe Vog, cofounded by Arrouas, has funded fashion companies including Eleven Paris, Ella Luna and PromoWorld.

L Capital invests mainly in personal care, selective retailing and home equipment, and has invested in fashion companies including Gant, Giuseppe Zanotti, Dondup, Pepe Jeans and Hackett.

Guess Declares Victory, Gucci to Appeal PARIS — Guess Inc. declared “complete victory” in its ongoing trademark battle with Gucci after a Paris court Friday shot down Gucci’s infringement suit against the Los Angeles-based jeanswear firm.

Guess said the judgment, handed down by the Tribunal de Grande Instance, absolved it of “every claim asserted by Gucci, finding no trademark infringement, no counterfeiting and no unfair competition.”

Gucci said it “strongly disagrees” with the decision and that it would appeal. It pointed to case in the U.S. and Italy in which Guess was found liable for trademark infringement.

Guccio Gucci SpA had been seeking 55 million euros, or $66.9 million at current exchange, in

damages. According to Guess, the Paris court invalidated three of Gucci’s “G” trademarks, meaning Gucci cannot claim exclusive use to those marks any longer.

“I continue to believe strongly that all these legal battles are a complete waste of time and this energy and money should be focused on business,” Guess chief executive officer Paul Marciano said.

Gucci noted that the Court of Appeal of Milan last September said that Guess’ “constant imitative attitude towards Gucci’s motifs” is clear and that “Guess’ initiative…in many cases is aimed at a systematic and massive exploitation of [Gucci’s] initiative and creativity.”

— M.S.

THE BRIEFING BOX IN TODAY’S WWD Karolina Gorzala is the subject of Model Call.

For more, see WWD.com.

PHOTO COURTESY OF WOMEN/360 MANAGEMENT

2

A looming lawsuit, recent regulatory kerfuffle and lower-thanexpected last-quarter earnings have many wondering whether some of the shine has come off of Alibaba. PAGE 1 America’s ears were ringing at the recent Première Vision New York and Texworld USA trade shows held at Pier 92 and Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. PAGE 1 Via a partnership with Brand Assembly, YouTube Space is hosting “The New Class,” a series of presentations that will be held for six clients, during New York Fashion Week. PAGE 8 Lululemon Athletica founder Chip Wilson has resigned from the company’s board, but will retain his stake in the yoga apparel firm. PAGE 8 President Obama proposed opening new markets for U.S. exports and strengthening defenses against cyber attacks in the federal budget blueprint he submitted on Monday. PAGE 9 Max Mara’s new architecture-focused boutique in the Miami Design District is another testament to the city’s rise as a crossroads for culture. PAGE 9 Dana Thomas’ new book, “Gods and Kings: The Rise and Fall of Alexander McQueen and John Galliano,” tells more about the lives of the two chronicled designers — the backstory. PAGE 10 The National Magazine Awards were held Monday night at the Marriott Marquis in Times Square, where New York Mag and The New Yorker walked away with three Ellies each. PAGE 11 French cartoonist Tiffany Cooper has been invited by Karl Lagerfeld to create a capsule collection featuring her drawings of the designer and his famous pet Choupette. PAGE 11 Giorgio Armani and GQ magazine are teaming up to fete the Grammys with an after party at the Hollywood Athletic Club on Sunday night. PAGE 11 ON WWD.COM MODEL CALL: WWD sat down with Polish model Karolina Gorzala to discuss her European career and hopes of making it big Stateside. For more, see WWD.com.

FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA

@ WWD.com/social

TO E-MAIL REPORTERS AND EDITORS AT WWD, THE ADDRESS IS FIRSTNAME_LASTNAME@FAIRCHILDFASHION.COM, USING THE INDIVIDUAL’S NAME.

WWD IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF FAIRCHILD PUBLISHING, LLC. COPYRIGHT ©2014 FAIRCHILD PUBLISHING, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. VOLUME 209, NO. 22. TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015. WWD (ISSN 0149-5380) is published daily (except Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, with one additional issue in January, June, August, September, October, November and December, and two additional issues in April and three additional issues in February) by Fairchild Media, LLC, which is a division of Penske Business Media, LLC. PRINCIPAL OFFICE: 11175 Santa Monica Blvd., 9th Floor, Los Angeles, CA 90025.

Periodicals postage paid at Los Angeles, CA, and at additional mailing offices. Canada Post: return undeliverable Canadian addresses to P.O. Box 503, RPO West Beaver Cre, Rich-Hill, ON L4B 4R6. POSTMASTER: SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO WWD, P.O. Box 6356, Harlan, IA, 51593. FOR SUBSCRIPTIONS, ADDRESS CHANGES, ADJUSTMENTS, OR BACK ISSUE INQUIRIES: Please write to WWD, P.O. Box 6356, Harlan, IA, 51593, call 866-401-7801, or e-mail customer service at wwdPrint@cdsfulfillment.com. Please include both new and old addresses as printed on most recent label. For New York Hand Delivery Service address changes or inquiries, please contact Mitchell’s NY at 1-800-662-2275, option 7. Subscribers: If the Post Office alerts us that your magazine is undeliverable, we have no further obligation unless we receive a corrected address within one year. If during your subscription term or up to one year after the magazine becomes undeliverable, you are ever dissatisfied with your subscription, let us know.You will receive a full refund on all unmailed issues. First copy of new subscription will be mailed within four weeks after receipt of order. Address all editorial, business and production correspondence to WWD, 475 Fifth Ave., 15th Floor, New York, NY 10017. For permissions requests, please call 212-630-5656, or fax request to 212-630-5883. For reprints, please e-mail FFM_Reprints@pmc.com or call Wright’s Media 877-652-5295. For reuse permissions, please e-mail FFM_Contenlicensing@pmc.com or call 800-897-8666. Visit us online at www.wwd.com.

To subscribe to other Fairchild Media, LLC magazines on the World Wide Web, visit www.wwd.com/subscriptions.

WWD IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE RETURN OR LOSS OF, OR FOR DAMAGE OR ANY OTHER INJURY TO, UNSOLICITED MANUSCRIPTS, UNSOLICITED ART WORK (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DRAWINGS, PHOTOGRAPHS, AND TRANSPARENCIES), OR ANY OTHER UNSOLICITED MATERIALS.THOSE SUBMITTING MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOGRAPHS,ART WORK, OR OTHER MATERIALS FOR CONSIDERATION SHOULD NOT SEND ORIGINALS, UNLESS SPECIFICALLY REQUESTED TO DO SO

BY WWD IN WRITING. MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOGRAPHS, AND OTHER MATERIALS SUBMITTED MUST BE ACCOMPANIED BY A SELF-ADDRESSED STAMPED ENVELOPE.

Digital Forum

Ulric Jerome

MatchesFashion.com

Ld

Nicola Formichetti

Diesel

LONDON

April 30, 2015

Joël Palix Steve Miles

feelunique.com

Unilever

Claudia Shishova

Chalhoub Group

wwd.com/wwd-summits ATTEND: KIM_MANCUSO@FAIRCHILDFASHION.COM, 646.356.4722 EVENT SPONSORS

SPONSOR: AMBER_MUNDINGER@FAIRCHILDFASHION.COM, 646.356.4718

4

WWD TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015

Couture Jewelry Channels Natu

By JOELLE DIDERICH

▲

PARIS — The fine jewelry creations unveiled during Paris Couture Week were as distinctive as the dresses on the catwalk.

Designers homed in on house codes with pieces that trumpeted their provenance. Diamonds remained ubiquitous, but green and blue stones — in particular emeralds and sapphires — also made a strong showing, as organic designs complemented the floral embellishment used on clothes.

Many leading jewelers sat out the season, having presented extensive collections during the Biennale des Antiquaires in September. There were only three on the official haute joaillerie calendar: Boucheron, Chanel and newcomer Chopard. They were joined by a host of brands staging presentations, including Cindy Chao, Dauphin, De Beers, Elie Top, Sabine G. and Temple St. Clair.

Chanel showed a 33-piece collection, Les Intemporels de Chanel, centered on four familiar themes: Comet, Ribbon, Camellia and Lion. All have some link to founder Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel, who presented a one-off diamond jewelry line in 1932 that continues to inspire present-day collections.

“We wanted to reinterpret our icons, in particular Chanel’s Camélia Gansé bracelet. ▲ as an initiation into haute joaillerie for some of our A ring by Sabine G. clients who buy smaller pieces, or new clients who come to us,” said Benjamin Comar, international Temple St. Clair’s Great Horned Owl ring. director of Chanel Fine Jewelry. “We wanted a line that reprises our codes and was quite simple aesChopard’s Peacock earrings. thetically — uncluttered, delicate and easy to wear.”

Highlights included a necklace and matching bracelet made from two rows of pink-tinged Japanese pearls secured with camellia-shaped clasps set with diamonds and outlined in black spinels. The pieces are priced from 41,700 euros to 330,000 euros, or $47,100 to $372,800 at current exchange, making this an “intermediate” offering from the Rue Cambon house.

Boucheron padded out its Serpent Bohême pillar, launched in 1968, with introductions at every price. Among the high jewelry pieces was a white-gold bangle set with pavé diamonds priced at $272,000. The line’s signature gold granulation and drop motif also appear on a dainty gold-and-diamond watch with a mother-ofpearl dial and a slim satin strap. Available in two versions, it retails for $13,650. At the entry level, Boucheron presented its first bridal pieces, with wedding bands and engagement rings reprising its twisted chain effect in yellow, pink or white gold.

Chopard, which sometimes previews its red-carpet collection in Paris ahead of the Cannes Film Festival, capitalized on the number of clients and editors in town for couture to separately present recent creations in a suite at the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme, where three security agents vetted guests at the door.

“Haute couture and haute joaillerie share a passion for artistic crafts and nurture a tradition of superlative expertise and meticulous workmanship,” said Caroline Scheufele, copresident and creative director of Chopard.

The spotlight was on emeralds, tourmalines, aquamarines and tanzanites with creations that included articulated peacock earrings in shades of purple, green and blue.

Elie Top, the designer behind Lanvin’s bold costume jewelry, launched a signature brand that he touted as “high fantasy jewelry” with a cocktail that drew Catherine Deneuve, Kristin Scott Thomas, Marisa Berenson and Inès de la Fressange. He placed diamondstudded mechanisms based on astronomical objects inside gold orbs — CAROLINE SCHEUFELE, — small versions dangled from CHOPARD ears while a larger one was inserted into a chunky, burnished silver pendant — that could be clicked open or shut.

“The whole idea is to have always two ways of wearing them — hidden or on show,” he explained. The 16-piece collection includes five unique creations, such as a necklace with six circular gemstones aligned like planets around the neck. Select pieces went on sale at concept store Colette the day after the presentation.

New York-based Temple St. Clair made her Paris debut with a display at Les Arts Décoratifs showcasing Boucheron’s Serpent Bohême watch. nine one-of-a-kind pieces that she dubbed Mythical Creatures. Presented in individual boxes handcrafted by artist Nancy Lorenz, they included the Flying Fish bracelet featuring fish with A ring by Dauphin. ▲

▲

’’

Haute couture and haute joaillerie share a passion for artistic crafts and nurture a tradition of superlative expertise.

▲

▲

’’

heads and fins made from moonstone, the designer’s gemstone of choice, their bodies set with Paraiba tourmalines and tsavorites to imitate the changing color of scales. They jumped against drops of blue sapphire that were faceted underneath to evoke the play of light on water. Another piece, the 18-karat gold Great Horned Owl ring, was set with star sapphires, Ceylon sapphires, diamonds and emeralds, and featured another signature on the bottom — a granulation inspired by medieval archers’ rings.

“That sense of discovery and detail is something that I love and my collectors seem to appreciate, too,” said St. Clair, noting that six of the pieces — priced between $175,000 and $950,000 — have already been sold. “I always said when I was in my 20s and started this business that you need to be older to do the really serious pieces, and I think I’ve arrived at that point,” she added, noting that the line took three years of work but represented almost 30 years of relationships, including with the artisans in Florence who make the pieces.

’’

’’

That sense of discovery and detail is something that I love and my collectors seem to appreciate, too.

— TEMPLE ST. CLAIR

Taiwanese designer Cindy Chao produces most of her line in Geneva and said she would continue, despite the recent jump in the Swiss franc.

“Even though it increases the cost, I will still go to Geneva. From my perspective, having a perfect outcome of the work is more important than financial concerns,” she said, sitting in a room at the Four Seasons Hotel George V amid a display of her work, old and new. “It’s very challenging to make my pieces,” she said, pointing out that the imposing jewels — sculpted in wax and cast in lightweight titanium — require special setting skills.

Her latest creations had an aquatic theme and included a pair of fish earrings with flying tails.

London-based Sabine Ghanem’s Prospero collection, her third for her label Sabine G., took its references from the grand dames of Rome — including her own mother-in-law, the inspiration for the Domi selection of colorful pinky rings. The designer’s lavish yet dainty creations included the open-fronted Foglia Rosa torque necklace, the delicate modernity of the slim gold choker counter-balanced by intricate fleur-de-lis motifs set with pink topaz, pink sapphire and centered with black onyxes. Prices for the line, which is carried by retailers such as Bergdorf Goodman and Montaigne Market, range from 1,004 pounds to 9,328 pounds, or $1,524 to $14,158.

De Beers unveiled additions to its Phenomena collection with two new sets, Sirocco and Sunbeam. Made from white gold, the Sirocco necklace is set with 42.27 carats of diamonds, including a 5.23-carat dangling pear-shaped diamond pendant worth 780,000 euros, or $881,150.

The diamond specialist is also introducing more accessibly priced options, including champagne or L-grade diamonds, which can be up to five times cheaper than colorless ones.

At Dauphin, founder Charlotte Dauphin de la Rochefoucauld presented the house’s second collection with a light installation by art collective Random International at the Palais de Tokyo museum. The collection featured a plethora of rings, ranging from simple diamond-set bands to more complex variations that recalled mechanical parts.

“I was thinking about the idea of time and the visual and artistic representations of the concept of time itself. That led me to ideas like circles and running water, so I created the entire collection around that and the principle of stacking, like memories that accumulate,” she explained.

With its second fine jewelry collection, Métamorphose, Maison Margiela offered a truly minimal take on jewelry symbolizing eternity. Its two-finger twisted rings, available in white gold set with diamonds or plain yellow gold, were inspired by the humble elastic band.

— WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM ALEX WYNNE

Vuitton Execs Put Pre-Fall in Perspective

By MILES SOCHA PARIS — Nicolas Ghesquière is heading to Los Angeles this week for a Louis Vuitton double-header.

The French luxury firm is scheduled to host a cocktail on Thursday night to toast the reopening of its Rodeo Drive maison, which just underwent a massive facelift and expansion, and to christen “Series 2,” a multimedia exhibition spotlighting Ghesquière’s spring 2015 collection and an advertising campaign for Vuitton featuring Jennifer Connelly.

As Ghesquière plots his next two fashion shows — fall 2015 ready-to-wear during Paris Fashion Week next month and an itinerant event for cruise — watch for Connelly and other celebrities to don looks from his first pre-fall collection for Vuitton, unveiled exclusively to WWD here and marking the denouement to a long and meandering intermediary season.

Michael Burke, Vuitton’s chairman and chief executive officer, confirmed that Vuitton’s next cruise show would be held in Seoul, and that the brand is zeroing in on a date and location. In 2014, the company staged its cruise presentation in Monaco.

According to market sources, Ghesquière intends to mount fashion shows for his pre-fall collections in the future, meaning Vuitton would join the likes of Chanel and Dior, which staged events in Salzburg and Tokyo, respectively, last December.

To be sure, the importance of pre-collections is unequivocal.

“They’re the biggest collections,” Burke said. “They stay in the stores the longest and they generate the most sales.”

The pre-fall season, spread over several months and cities, wound up during couture week in Paris with Vuitton, Miu Miu, Balenciaga and Lanvin among the major brands hosting presentations. Ghesquière, Vuitton’s artistic director for women’s collections, continued to work a Seventies vibe for the season with a spice-rack palette, wide lapels on blazers, ribbed turtlenecks and flaring jeans detailed with leather and a prominent zipper pull.

A slim, elongated silhouette predominated, along with lightweight layers: knee-length tweed dresses, lightly padded down macs and dotted silk windbreakers. Since he arrived at Vuitton in 2013, Ghesquière has taken a “wardrobe” approach grounded in real-world classics and open to interpretation and mixing.

Noteworthy accessories for pre-fall included soft versions Louis Vuitton’s of the Dora bag, chain-handled tweed dress and silhouettes in quilted patent lightweight coat leather, and reworked Speedy for pre-fall. bags in monogram canvas varnished to a high gloss.

Meanwhile, getting a tighter grip on the pre-fall season — and itinerant fashion shows — has become a hot-button topic in the industry.

As reported, Chanel had been eyeing May 11 for its cruise show in Seoul at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza, but when Dior revealed that it would stage its show May 9 in Los Angeles, Chanel said it was obliged to move a week forward, given the distances involved. That leaves Chanel’s event scheduled opposite the Costume Institute Gala in New York on May 4.

Burke predicted fashion’s large houses will have to come to an understanding in the future to plan pre-collections “in such a way that the clients, the press and the buyers can see them in a more organized way.”

In recent years, a number of European houses held pre-fall presentations in New York, but that frenzy has calmed, and some prominent brands returned to Paris this season. According to sources, French fashion’s organizing body is studying pre-fall collections and plans to propose a new approach to its members.

Stéphane Wargnier, executive president of the Fédération Française de la Couture, du Prêt-à-Porter des Couturiers et des Créateurs de Mode, said it was too soon to comment on the federation’s intentions.

Retailers say they would welcome a more workable and compact pre-fall buying season.

“The situation of having buyers cover multiple cities at different times for a pre-fall is challenging,” said Joanna Gunn, chief brand officer at Hong Kong-based Lane Crawford. “When we wrap up by early February, we are expected to be back on market starting in midFebruary for New York Fashion Week.” She suggested the ideal solution would be to move the January buy to connect with December dates in New York “so we complete the buys earlier and get earlier deliveries.”

Polat Uyal, chief merchandising officer at Beymen in Turkey, agreed the women’s market is “scattered” and not only overlaps couture, but men’s fashion week and the home decor show Maison + Objet, too.

“We would be happy to have a more organized and compact pre-fall market,” he said.

Given his druthers, CFDA executive director Steven Kolb said pre-fall could be contained to two non-consecutive weeks: the second week in December and the first full week back after the holidays in January. The CFDA has suggested this in the past by circulating a memo among members, Kolb said. That idea included the input of editors who are most affected by the unwieldy season.

As a “master calendar” that highlights runway shows, hair-care product launches, anniversary dinners and other events throughout the year, the Fashion Calendar has the potential to better organize prefall, as well as other secondary markets, including resort and bridal, Kolb noted.

“Our intention is to use the Fashion Calendar to help put more structure on other market weeks,” he said. “We haven’t really had a tool [to organize pre-fall]. Now we do.

“Now that we own the Fashion Calendar and operate it, there is a lot of authority that comes with that, and there is an opportunity that may have otherwise been underused before,” he added. “It’s really about us being able to use the calendar to be able to frame and redefine the dates for the collections.”

As for international designers showing pre-fall in New York, Kolb said that decision should come down to the individual brand. “There is a lot going on in New York already. It really depends on the brand and whether it makes sense to be in New York City,” he said.

PHOTO BY DOMINIQUE MAÎTRE

ure’s Hues

WWD TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015 5 WWD.COM

— WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM ROSEMARY FEITELBERG

6

WWD TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015

textiles

Singing an American Tune NEW YORK — America’s ears were ringing at the recent Première Vision New York and Texworld USA trade shows here.

The talk was heard at two levels — how the U.S. market was proving a lifesaver to European fabric firms and those that serve the downtrodden European market, and how the Made in America resurgence has taken hold and become a viable sourcing strategy for many firms, even with some limitations.

Exhibitors at PV at Pier 92 and at Texworld at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center said the favorable exchange rate that has developed with the dollar versus the euro has made the U.S. market more attractive. The exchange rate is about 1.14 euro to the dollar compared to about 1.37 euro to the dollar a year ago.

“The interest of our exhibitors is very high because they feel the U.S. market is solid and booming and taking risks again, so they are coming,” said Guglielmo Olearo, international show manager at Première Vision. “The appeal is strong.”

Olearo said the second season at Pier 92 “was working well,” noting, “We have the largest spring edition and exhibition in our history, with 297 exhibitors.”

PV launched its New York edition 14 years ago, and after calling the Metropolitan Pavilion in Midtown home for the first 13 years, moved to Pier 92 on the Hudson River in July, offering a more expansive, open-air environment for its mostly European fabrics firms to exhibit, and allowing for a growing accessories and trimmings area to be established.

He said there was a more contemporary feel among the exhibitors, what he called “a mix of activewear and city wear.” He said, “The exhibitors feel the American brands are looking for something different, something that adds value and creativity.”

Sandrine Bernard, executive vice president at Solstiss USA, said, “Business has been good.

The American market is doing well. The timing is good for the show, and I think some improvements have been made in this second time here. People have returned and we’ve seen many important clients.”

For the spring 2016 season, Solstiss was featuring a colorful array of its signature lace, with a focus on open knits, richer tones, big flower motifs and metallic finishes.

Also at PV, Liberty Art Fabrics was presenting its first collection from new designer Tess Burch at PV. The collection features illustrative florals, surreal conversational, fresh abstracts and textures, and oversize paisleys.

Examples include “The Painters Meadow,” full of richly colored florals and expressive textures, mixed with thick paint and freehand expressions. The “Fornasetti Forest” concentrates on detailed line work

and crosshatching capturing the shaded canopy and unseals plant life of a deep tropical forest. “Modern Tea Leaves” is a contemporary interpretation of classic blue ceramic designs as inky tones connote a subtle Batik feel and echo the Japanese origins of the subject.

Bob Friedman, sales manager for Dongheng Printing & Dyeing Co., based in Changzhou, China, said the company sells viscosebased fibers, including Lenzing’s Proviscose, a blend of viscose and Tencel, to fast-fashion chains such as Zara, H&M and Uniqlo. Showing at Texworld for the first time, Friedman said the company was looking to expand beyond its mostly European customer base to sell to more U.S. companies, especially given the difficult European market and the strengthening U.S. economy and manufacturing base.

The company has its own yarndye facility, and specializes in offering special treatments such as over-dyed fabrics and indigo dyes, along with bottom-weight fabrics utilizing spandex and cupro.

At a Texworld seminar called “Made in America: A New Reality,” speakers said the reshoring of U.S. textile and apparel production is gaining momentum, but is not without its problems and limitations.

PV Trends

Sabine Le Chatelier, deputy fashion director at Première Vision, hosted a new seminar called “Trend Vision: Season Highlights” that focused on the key influences, fabrics, accessories and silhouettes for spring 2016.

Overall, Le Chatelier said it would be a “fruity, sparkling season,” featuring pastel colors accented with offsetting hues, and where “we welcome the unexpected out of the ordinary.”

Among the highlights were three themes: ■ IN MOTION: A sporty spirit with an intimate side. This includes volume-oriented styles with multiple layers, as well as fabrics and pieces with rich textures and opulent decorations.

“I think every season is chipping away at the question a little bit more in trying to understand how companies can embrace working in the U.S. or in the Americas,” said Tricia Carey, business development manager for Lenzing USA. “One of the biggest obstacles I find is that there isn’t always the infrastructure in companies to handle the sourcing here. So often they rely on the systems they have in place and it’s much easier to keep working in Asia or within their existing sourcing channels. For right now, there continues to be interest in sourcing in America.”

Carey noted that Lenzing’s Tencel plant in Mobile, Ala., manufactures 50,000 tons of fiber annually for the apparel, home and nonwovens market. This helps provide just-in-time deliveries of

Tencel and shows the corporate commitment to its U.S. spinners.

Tom Aubrey, senior vice president at Burlington Worldwide, said, “I think the Made in America resurgence is still in its infancy.

In small-town America, in the Carolinas where we’re at, we see a lot of the infrastructure is there and many people realize that by not buying U.S. their neighbors don’t have jobs. I think the economy has a lot to do with the resurgence. I also think the younger buyer is interested in the ecological impact and the fact that buying in the U.S. can lower the carbon footprint of everything you consume. Also, made in the U.S. offers the quick response that is more important to our customer.

So we are seeing a slow, gradual resurgence of people coming back to our U.S. platform.”

Michael Penner, chief executive officer of Peds Legwear, formerly the Richelieu Group, explained how he purchased a factory in Hildebran, N.C., in 2011 and has rehired more than 60 of the 200 employees that had been laid off, and has reengineered the facility to make Peds legwear and other socks and hosiery products, installing 100 new knitting machines from Italy, with space for another 350.

“We reopened that factory with a lot of help from the local ■ INFLUENCES: Hyper expressive

fabrics and styles that mix fabrics and fibers, and strong graphic elements, as well as witty references such as selfies and unusual twinned looks.

■ ENHANCED FASHION: Substantial and sensory fabrics and fashions, with voluptuous motifs, contrasting looks such as smooth with rough textures, and pieces with a luminous coldness.

As for specific fabric choices, key areas are raw sophistication such as a rough silk jacquard, fantasy novelty yarns and home decor fabrics like geometric jacquards and striped yarn-dyed goods. Transparencies are also important, with lightweight knits over colored wovens, opaque transparent patterns and enhanced volume. — A.F.

and state government, and the federal government,” Penner said. “We were even invited to meet at the White House with the President to talk about why we invested in the United States.”

Penner was referring to the SelectUSA summit held last may in Washington put together by the Commerce Department to encourage foreign direct investment in the U.S. The company has also benefitted from Wal-Mart Stores’ multibillion-dollar investment in Made in the USA products.

Aubrey noted that Burlington has seven manufacturing platforms in the U.S., in addition to facilities in Mexico, China, El Salvador and India, which gives its customers and Burlington flexibility.

He said, “In the past year or so, as we have seen this resurgence, we’ve gone into our worsted wool

Looks from Solstiss Lace.

Fresh prints from Liberty Art Fabrics. factory and brought in a new line of made in the U.S. wool suit fabrics that we call Just US, or Just U.S. “In our activewear business, we have been promoting a made in America line of technical fabrics for the outdoor, hiking, running and sportswear markets.”

Penner said his company’s story can be repeated by others “because there was not one reason, but 100 reasons,” for its success, ranging from “increased automation — we invested in state-of-the-art machinery — it’s not just duties, it’s not just energy costs, it’s not just currency…

You have to have advantages — different fibers, different innovations. So I think the revival can be seen by different companies and different industries.”

He added that in North Carolina “there still remains a fertile ground for the textile and hosiery industry where people understand the process, understand the product, understand how to manufacture it.”

Joann Kimm, director of Johnny’s Fashion Studio, said in New York a revival of local manufacturing could lie in moving the industry to Brooklyn, “which could take five to 10 years.” Johnny’s is involved in Manufacture New York, which is spearheading the Manufacturing Innovation Hub for Apparel, Textiles & Wearable Tech in Sunset Park, Brooklyn.

David Sasso, vice president of international sales at Buhler Quality Yarns, said it’s a time of “adapting” to issues and situations. For instance, Buhler, with U.S. headquarters in Jefferson, Ga., uses a lot of pima cotton in its yarns and has seen prices rise significantly due to the draught in California this year and Texas last year.

“We’re doing a lot of business in the Western Hemisphere,” Sasso said. “Having the ability to deliver with speed helps our business and our CAFTA programs with a 30 percent duty-free benefit is a big plus. Once people do the math, it’s a big selling point.”

Buhler has also done well participating in Wal-Mart’s Made in USA program, notably providing materials for towels, sheets and men’s shirtings.

PHOTOS BY JOHN AQUINO

By ARTHUR FRIEDMAN

“Seeing business come back in men’s shirtings is exciting because it had basically disappeared,” Sasso added. “I think Made in USA is real because once you make an investment you’re going to stick with it. The way the global and U.S. economy are today, it has forced companies to use speed to market as a strategy. It’s being proven that consumers want to buy local, so then it’s a matter of providing a quality product at a good price.”

Kelly Wilson, a sales executive for Los Angeles-based Laguna Fabrics, exhibiting at Texworld, said, “A lot more people are getting involved in Made in USA. There’s definitely less talk and more action.”

Wilson said this includes many new accounts looking to diversify their sourcing and bring at least some of it back to the U.S. Laguna, a fabric converter working with Los Angeles fabric makers, has been doing well with sweater knits, ribbed knits and jacquards.

Ronald Sheridan, president of STC Textile, who was representing Turkish fabric firm Aker Tekstil at PV, said, “Business is more spread out today. Maybe for the first time in a long time, new ventures, startups, have an advantage.”

He said they can approach their business differently, buy better fabrics, spread out their sources and not be pigeon-holed like an established brand can be.

“The need for faster turns has become more important, so in many cases the smaller brands and retailers are eating the larger company’s lunches because they have more flexibility and are more nimble, and in many cases are manufacturing more in the Western Hemisphere and foregoing Asian sourcing,” Sheridan said.

Penner, summing up the Made in America situation, said, “There’s a critical mass we need to reach. I think there are other opportunities, such as sheer hosiery that we manufacture offshore. The real Holy Grail is cut-and-sew that we haven’t been able to crack in North America.

But if somebody is able to figure that out, they’re going to be richer than Bill Gates.”

WWD TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015 7 WWD.COM

PV, Texworld Boost Brand Roster

By PAULINA SZMYDKE PARIS — Looking to strengthen their position, textile fairs Première Vision Fabrics and Texworld — set to take place here next week — are ramping up the number of exhibiting companies, along with their creativity factor.

The Première Vision Paris spring edition, slated for Feb. 10 to 12 at the Parc des Expositions in Paris Nord Villepinte, will add 127 new brands to its international roster of 1,772 exhibitors, 57 of which will show at Première Vision Fabrics, plus 20 more at the Première Vision Leather show, which is moving its offer upmarket.

Among the newcomers are Linen Club by Aditya Birla

Creativity is trading high at Première Vision Fabrics.

Nuvo Ltd., billed as the largest manufacturer of linen fabrics in India, and Kurkku Alternative, which will unveil a collection of organic fabrics produced by Japanese craftspeople.

Along with its exhibitor numbers, the fair is looking to bolster its creative strength. The Maison d’Exceptions section that was set up in 2011 to promote craftsmanship from around the world, this season will feature 13 new ateliers and artists from Italy, France, Japan, South Korea, India, the U.K., Senegal and Kyrgyzstan to help designers scout novel techniques.

Meanwhile, 32 exhibitors are scheduled to make a comeback after years of absence, including denim specialist Tavex and Heathcoat Fabrics Ltd., a supplier of engineered textiles, which the fair’s organizers see as a reflection of the show’s growing relevance in the international textile arena.

Gilles Lasbordes, executive director of Première Vision, said he was optimistic about business in 2015, but noted that the upcoming season would be marked by contrasts.

“Business differs a lot for our companies, depending on where you look in Europe,” Lasbordes said. “While the U.K. market is doing very well, in Italy, Spain and Germany figures indicating the consumption of apparel is pointing down. This is difficult for the mills. Overall, Europe remains challenging.”

On the other hand, Lasbordes said, “the luxury and the creative markets are overperforming.”

“Although China has slowed down, the U.S. is seeing a stark

companies, with knits and cotton among the liveliest segments. Silkland Trading from the UAE is debuting its Orientinspired collection of prints and embroidery, and Dong Il Textile Co., a South Korean maker, will display eco-friendly fabrics that feature additional properties such as anti-odor and quick-drying.

China, Turkey and South Korea still lead the list of exhibiting countries.

Michael Scherpe, director of Texworld and Apparel Sourcing, said he does not expect any major fluctuations in visitor figures, though he would not be surprised if there were fewer buyers from Russia at the fair, following the country’s economic downturn, tightening sanctions and the weak ruble.

The euro’s dramatic depreciation, meanwhile, is likely to work in exhibitors’ favor, or have no impact at all on those who are trading in U.S. dollars anyway, said Scherpe, warning companies not to put all their eggs in one basket and rely solely on the current strength of the U.S. market, which is seen by many mills as a new Promised Land.

“The U.S. gross domestic product is growing nicely, true, but the imports are not,” Scherpe said.

“Don’t forget, the U.S. is a very capable country. They can do a lot of things on their own.”

Sustainability is likely to remain in the focal point of discussions between producers and buyers, he noted.

“It’s a battle,” Scherpe added. “Everybody wants ecofriendly products, but nobody is willing to pay for it.”

Overall, he said, “The textile industry is experiencing economy works in cycles, and a boost from the growing men’s 2015 and 2016 should be the wear sector, which finds a specialyears where business is catchized offering at Première Vision. ing up despite a few remain“It’s not just the access to ing obstacles ahead. I think fabric weavers, but also leather, a lot of demand has been that appeals to men’s wear accumulated.” makers,” he said. “Leather This is particularly true goods, bags especially, are for Apparel Sourcing, a very dynamic category which unlike Texworld, is here.” not yet “a mature show,” A sign of the sector’s inScherpe pointed out. creasing internationaliza“We have been tion is also Première very pleased with Vision’s new brand its growth in the policy that has simplipast year and this fied the names of the February it will six shows, renamregister a 30-pering them Première cent-plus [growth] Vision Yarns (forversus the same merly Expofil), period last year,” Première Vision he said.

Fabrics (formerly A p p a r e l Première Vision), S o u r c i n g , Première Vision dedicated to finLeather (formerished product ly Cuir à Paris), manufacturPremière Vision ing, will add Designs (formerly Tunisia to its Indigo), Première roster, a country Vision Accessories the executive praised (formerly Modamont) for its logistic advanand Première Vision tages with Europe, Manufacturing (formerly as well as its quality.

Zoom). They will from now Scherpe also pointed on run under the Première to a growing emancipaVision Paris banner. tion of Vietnamese and Texworld, set for Cambodian exhibitors, Feb. 9 to 12 at Le which traditionally have Bourget exhibition cenbeen subcontractors ter, expects its number of Chinese companies. of exhibitors to remain “Their respective governstable with 630, though ments are really pushing new countries will join for an independent textile their ranks, includindustry and are investing the United Arab Emirates and Malaysia. A runway show ing into development,” which encourages diverIn addition, the fair at Texworld’s sity, he added. will welcome 70 new fall edition. upswing,” he added. “Having a weaker euro means U.S. and U.S.-dollar-driven countries offer huge opportunities to European weavers, allowing them to be more competitive and export larger quantities. We expect a lot of dynamism from the U.S. as foreign fashion brands buy more within the euro zone.”

Consequently, the executive expects visitor numbers to be up at this month’s session.

By contrast, the fair’s Swiss exhibitors are likely to face tougher times ahead, he predicted. Trading with a currency that soared following the Swiss National Bank’s decision to de-peg the franc from the euro rate, those companies will forfeit competitiveness.

On a more positive note, Lasbordes confirmed that the

AdVErTIsMEnT

Sensitive Fabrics: wearable technology ®

innovativeconcept concepttoto express express aa new new way way of AnAninnovative dressing, winning performance for dressing, in the name of a winning every action. The latest wearable technology by EurojErsEy combines outstandingMade Madein in Italy Eurojersey combines thethe outstanding Fabrics with with the most advanced quality of Sensitive® Fabrics manufacturing techniques, garments that are easyare to manufacturing techniques,forfor garments that wear, to perfect and freedom of movement. easy wear,fitperfect fit and freedom of movement.

Andrea Busnelli - Fashion Design, Politecnico di Milano - SWIFTAG design project with mobile device included in the fabric

A performances A tailoring tailoring effect combined with technical performances offering maximum maximum comfort, distinctive design solutions offering solutions ® ® and unlimited creativity. and creativity. Sensitive Sensitive Fabrics, light, breathable,nono curling, no pilling, alwayseven perfect breathable, curling, no pilling, always perfect after even after several a source offorinspiration several washes, are washes, a source are of inspiration advanced for advanced design progressive innovations: body design innovations: bodyprogressive mapping effect, mapping effect, bonded and taping technology heat bonded and taping technology by heat fusing the by fabrics, fusing the fabrics, they create an avant-garde look, and they create an avant-garde look, and a comfortable, a comfortable, practicalstitching. fit withoutAs stitching.

As welded well as practical fit without well as welded technology that smart enablessolutions smart solutions such technology that enables such as solar as solar rechargeable accessories for electronic devices. rechargeable accessories for electronic devices. Thanks to Thanks the latest -techniques - includinglaser contouring, the latesttotechniques including contouring, cutting, laser cutting, and highdigital definition digitalgarments printing, flocking and flocking high definition printing, garments become highly and innovative and sophisticated, become highly innovative sophisticated, such as the such created as the during ones created during the EurojErsEy ones the Eurojersey workshop with the workshop the students of Politecnico di Milano. students ofwith Politecnico di Milano.

SOLAR MESSENGER MADE BY O-RANGE: multifunctional, foldable bag with integrated recharging features

These projects, main theme at EurojErsEy the Eurojersey These projects, areare thethe main theme at the booth February 2015 2015 edition, edition, booth at at Première Première Vision, Vision, February representing new wearable wearable representing the the true true expression expression of of new technology fashion technology through through unique unique garments garments with with both both fashion and and function functionfor foraacomplete completelifestyle. lifestyle.

Sensitive® Fabrics - digital print

www.sensitivefabrics.it

8 WWD TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015

Lululemon Founder Resigns From Board

By VICKI M. YOUNG

board.” He noted that he has the time to work with his wife and son as they grow their streetwear brand, Kit and Ace. Founded last year, the brand showcases a “luxury-technical fabric” trademarked under the name Qemir (pronounced “come here”) and is a proprietary blend of cashmere, viscose and elastane.

The company, Wilson said, will continue to pursue other ventures, including the establishment of Vancouver as the center for technical apparel

PHOTO BY TIM JENKINS

LULULEMON ATHLETICA founder Chip Wilson has resigned from the company’s board, but will retain his stake in the yoga apparel firm.

Wilson, who founded the company in 1998, left his position as its chief innovation and branding officer in January 2012. He went on a sabbatical to Australia and returned to the company in 2013 to assist in positioning Lululemon’s longer-term objectives. Since then, there’s been a transition in senior management at the company, with Laurent Potdevin taking on the role of chief executive officer in January 2014. He succeeded Christine Day, who revealed her plan to resign in June 2013, but stayed on until her successor was named.

In August 2014, Wilson reached an agreement to sell half his stake in the company to private equity firm Advent International in a deal worth about $845 million. The transaction gave Advent 20.1 million shares, or a 13.9 percent stake, and two board seats. Those seats went to Advent managing partner David Mussafer and managing director Steve Collins, and expanded the board to 12 members. In connection with the transaction, Wilson and Shares of Lululemon fell 1.1 percent on Monday.

Advent agreed to certain standstill provithrough the Chip and Shannon Wilson School of sions for the firm’s 2015 and 2016 annual meetings.

A spokesman for Lululemon said Wilson “has no Design at Kwantlen University.

While hardly as controversial a figure as Dov plans to sell his shares at this time.” Wilson owns a Charney, the ousted founder and ceo of American 13.8 percent stake in the company.

Wilson said, “Upon returning from Australia, I Apparel Inc., Wilson complicated Lululemon’s saw that the company had lost its way and was driv- public relations difficulties when, in the midst of en by the wrong values….I am happy to say that I a recall of its overly sheer black Luon yoga pants now believe the company has returned to the core in 2013, he said the pants weren’t right for “some values that made it great — product, brand and cul- women’s bodies.” He departed the company as chairman in December 2013, but retained his ture — and is back on track.”

Wilson added that he has achieved the “goals I set board seat as a director.

Shares of Lululemon on Monday slipped 1.1 perwhen I came back, and after careful thought, I believe that now is the right time to step away from the cent to $65.52 in Nasdaq trading.

Vacheron Constantin Opens in Miami

By MISTY WHITE SIDELL THE MIAMI DESIGN district is boosting its cachet as a collectors’ haven once more. Vacheron Constantin will today open its doors in the growing shopping mecca at 140 Northeast 39th Street, adding to the district’s other big-ticket imports including Bulgari, Jaeger-LeCoultre and IWC Schaffhausen.

The 1,400-square-foot space is the Geneva-based firm’s fifth standalone store in the U.S., and its first

The Miami store. outside of better-known luxury timepiece hubs such as New York, Las Vegas and the Los Angeles area.

Vincent Brun, Vacheron Constantin’s North American president, noted that Miami’s rapid development and international appeal is what made the town such a viable location for the brand’s U.S. expansion. “[It’s] a place where you see local people from Florida shopping, as well as a broader American audience, and definitely those coming from international places like South America,” he said.

Brun declined to reveal sales projections for the new store, but said that he sees the Design District’s

watch-laden offerings as an opportunity for unbridled success. “I think in the end it’s a benefit for the consumer,” he said.

“There is an interesting collectors’ market in Florida from watches and art to cars,” Brun added of the city’s luxury allure. “We see that this market is strong and that it is growing, so we are hoping to address and serve this clientele.”

Anticipating this collector’s culture, Vacheron Constantin Miami has implemented a rotating artist program on one of its walls to promote local talent, which Brun expects to particularly take flight during December’s annual Art Basel fair.

The store has also employed an in-house watchmaker to field questions regarding model and make. Both are first-time amenities for the Richemontowned brand’s retail operations.

The Design District store will offer a Miamiexclusive watch to celebrate its opening. A $48,400 limited edition Overseas Chronograph — produced in a controlled run of just 30 — is a reinterpretation of Vacheron Constantin’s athletically inclined Overseas Chronograph style. The timepiece draws visual inspiration from Miami’s oceanside landscape, with a deep blue color and a bezel furnished in rose gold — a new finish for the style. It will come equipped with interchangeable vulcanized rubber and alligator leather straps as well as the original Overseas Chronograph’s features: water-resistance, antimagnetic protection, and a Maltese cross-inspired bezel.

The limited-edition watch is not Vacheron Constantin’s only manner of celebration. The brand will host a week’s worth of events throughout Miami, the flagship fete of which will be held at the Pérez Art Museum.

YouTube, Brand Assembly Partner for NYFW Initiative

By JESSICA IREDALE NEW YORK — Another venue for emerging designers has popped up on the New York Fashion Week schedule, courtesy of YouTube and Brand Assembly.

In November, YouTube Space, a 20,000-square-foot studio located in Chelsea Market, opened as an incubator for YouTube creators, as the company calls its users, to experiment with content and the latest audio, visual and editing equipment at no cost to them. YouTube has similar outposts in London, Los Angeles and Tokyo. Via a partnership with Brand Assembly, an agency that offers business services to small designers, YouTube Space is hosting “The New Class,” a series of presentations that will be held Feb. 12 for six Brand Assembly clients: Hunter Bell, Michelle Kim, Caroline Constas, Nikki Chasin, C. Keller and Maria Dora.

The designers are divvied up into two, two-hour time slots — three showing at 10:30 a.m. and three showing at 12:30 p.m. — and each has her own individual space and eight models to work with. The Stylisted is doing makeup and Frederic Fekkai is handling hair. With YouTube as the main sponsor, there is an online aspect to the partnership.

The designers will be set up with a YouTube creator or YouTube star, including Evelina Barry of Evelina’s Fashion Cafe and Alexys Fleming of MadeYewLook, for pre-show interviews and first looks to post in an online video. “We hope this fashion showcase will bring the creative communities on YouTube and those in the fashion world even closer together,” said Vanessa Goldstein, who works in creator development at YouTube Space.

The partnership was proposed by Brand Assembly, founded in May 2013 by Alex Repola and Hillary French to provide operational support to independent designers. It also operates a trade show in Los Angeles and a concept shop for its designers within Lord & Taylor.

“Brand Assembly is set up to promote and elevate design talent and help them reach the final audience and that’s what YouTube Space does,” Repola said. “We saw a synergy to collaborate to help the guys we work with reach a wide audience by leveraging the YouTube resources.”

Most of the Brand Assembly designers would not otherwise be able to afford a fashion week presentation. “It’s an opportunity,” said Hunter Bell. “As a small designer, you have to plan everything yourself, and you don’t necessarily have the infrastructure and resources to come to life. There are so many opportunities that fall flat.”

As nice as it is to save money, Bell also appreciates the perk in pairing up with one of YouTube’s stars. Barry has 918,000 subscribers to her channel and Fleming has more than one million. “It’s a phenomenon,” Bell said. “YouTube caters to a younger demo and it’s a very important social media channel.”

Target Store Openings Skew to Smaller Format TARGET CORP. will open 15 stores in 2015.

The new stores will include eight TargetExpress locations, one CityTarget site and six general merchandise stores.

Tina Tyler, Target’s executive vice president and chief stores officer, said, “Our store growth looks different today than it did five years ago, driven by guests’ expectations for ease and personalization in their shopping experience.

Smaller formats like TargetExpress and CityTarget offer customized assortments and services to meet the needs of guests who are increasingly moving into urban centers.

“In our general merchandise stores, we’re embracing a test-and-learn philosophy, innovating with layouts and experiences and bringing digital and brick-and-mortar together like never before,” she said.

In addition to the previous TargetExpress openings disclosed for San Francisco, San Diego and St. Paul, Minn., Target will add two TargetExpress stores to the greater Washington, D.C., area and one to Chicago. The newest Target format averages 20,000 square feet in size.

The discounter said it is looking to bring the format to other markets, including the greater Philadelphia area and Los Angeles.

The CityTarget format will open its first East Coast site in Boston, near Fenway Park. A second site is planned for Brooklyn, N.Y., in 2016 at the City Point development.

This format averages between 80,000 and 160,000 square feet. There are eight in operation, including three in Los Angeles, two in San Francisco, and one each in Seattle, Portland, Ore. and Chicago.

The six general merchandise stores to be opened include one each in Westwood, Mass.; Kahului, Hawaii; Kailua, Hawaii; Lake Bluff, Ill.; Fort Worth, and San Diego.

— V.M.Y.

WWD TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015 9 WWD.COM

Obama Proposes Pro-Trade Budget

By KRISTI ELLIS WASHINGTON — President Obama proposed increasing federal funding to strengthen trade enforcement, open new markets for U.S. exports, strengthen U.S. defenses against cyber attacks and crack down on counterfeit products in the federal budget blueprint he submitted to Congress on Monday.

Obama’s $4 trillion budget proposal for fiscal year 2016 that begins Oct. 1 would increase funding for trade agencies and also reiterated a previous proposal to reorganize and merge several trade agencies into one consolidated mega-department.

Obama’s plan is not expected to be enacted in its entirety, because Republicans, who control both chambers of Congress, oppose many of the President’s proposals and plan to write and pass their own spending legislation this year. But administration officials said Monday there could be common ground on specific proposals, such as corporate tax reform and trade. The budget blueprint also sent a signal to the business community that the President is placing an emphasis on international trade.

The White House is in a full court press to get presidential Trade Promotion Authority, seen as a crucial tool the President needs to conclude free trade negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership pact and advance a trans-Atlantic trade pact with the European Union. Under TPA, Congress can only vote up or down on a trade agreement, which gives the administration leverage with trading partners who will know they can make their final offers without Congress changing the deal.

“The budget provides resources to help deepen U.S. trade in the AsiaPacific region as the U.S. leads the way in negotiating the high-standard TPP with 11 countries in the Asia-Pacific region, which will boost American exports and create jobs at home by promoting strong rules to protect labor, the environment and intellectual property,” the administration said in the budget.

Obama’s fiscal blueprint would increase the budgets of the U.S. Trade Representative’s office and the Commerce Department’s International Trade Administration, two key agencies that work closely with the industry. The International Trade Administration, a division of Commerce that is leading the President’s National Export Initiative and also houses the Office of Textiles and Apparel, would receive a $25 million boost in funding to $497 million under the President’s proposal.

Obama’s budget would maintain a funding level of $15 million for the Interagency Trade Enforcement Center that addresses unfair trade practices and barriers. It would also maintain funding of $20 million for the SelectUSA program that promotes reshoring and attracting foreign investment. The proposal would increase USTR’s budget to $56 million from $54.2 million as it wraps up TPP talks and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the European Union.

In the plan to consolidate trade agencies and programs into one department, pending Congressional approval, Commerce’s core business and trade functions, USTR, the Small Business Administration, the Export-Import Bank, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation and U.S. Trade and Development Agency would be combined.

Customs and Border Protection, which makes seizures of counterfeit goods and monitors cargo containers and the flow of commerce through U.S. ports, would see an increase in funding to $11 billion from the current level of $10.5 billion. Obama also proposed $14 billion in funding for several agencies overseeing cyber security, in the wake of a string of online attacks against government assets and the private sector.

Max Mara Store Shows Off Arty Side

By REBECCA KLEINMAN MIAMI — Max Mara has fallen for Miami’s magic. The brand’s new architecture-focused boutique in the Miami Design District and sponsorship of last month’s National YoungArts Foundation’s Backyard Ball are yet another testament to the city’s rise as a crossroads for culture.

It also marks a new chapter for Max Mara.

Just as it prefers understated, classic clothing, the family-owned company hasn’t been a showoff concerning its vast art collection initiated by founder Achille Maramotti. The fashion house has chosen 2015 as the year to come out of its shell Stateside, including sponsoring the opening gala of the new Whitney Museum of American Art in Manhattan.

“We’re present in many U.S. cities, but selected Miami because of Art Basel, its private art collections like the Rubells and Art Deco architecture, and it’s international,” said Luigi Maramotti, chairman of Max Mara Fashion, of the locale’s synergy with the company’s art and design-based DNA versus collecting art as a trend.

“Even though Miami is young, it will be a successful market for us.”

Before he sat at a table with Jeff Koons, who received the 2015 Arison Award as part of National YoungArts Week when master teachers and alumni of the nonprofit mentor high school finalists, Maramotti spent the day touring his new neighborhood’s private collections steps from the store. His niece Maria Giulia Maramotti, North American retail director and global ambassador, was readying the bilevel, 3,325-square-

the tall facade’s white geometric screen into an upstairs salon with Murano glass tables, a B&B velvet sofa and Golran rug in watery blues.

Metallic inserts in wood walls, an exclusive design detail, gleam from a muted palette and materials, including the handbag and jewelry section’s adjustable wall panels that are upholstered in taupe microfiber sourced from Kvadrat.

“Miami needs a little flash,” she said.

The front half of the first floor is dedicated to exhibitions of works by emerging artists and Max Mara fashions such as the Heritage Project, the inaugural installation and first North American stop for the story of the company’s iconic coats dating from the 1950s to last year. The multimedia, interactive display features camel wool coats and an outfit

by Karl Lagerfeld, as well as sketches by Anne Marie Beretta and photographs

by Richard Avedon.

“Unlike our other Renderings of the Max Mara location Florida stores in Naples in the Miami Design District. and Palm Beach, Miami is our place to experiment and reach an arty, young professional,” said Maria Giulia Maramotti, who’s collaborating on an instore art show and college scholarship for a student from the nearby Design and Architecture Senior High with YoungArts.

“We’re used to mentoring young creative people, like our cutting and sewing internships in Italy, so this project was a no-brainer.”

They’re also already ing its assortment to that of New York’s in talks about staging a fashion show Madison Avenue, with the exception for resort 2016 at YoungArts’ campus of tailored suits. “There will be tropi- in the former Bacardi headquarters cal colors like a bright blue and gray in November. The strategic push difdouble cashmere coat and prints like fers greatly from when Max Mara operated under the radar during its resort’s kangaroo pencil skirt.”

Sans historic building codes, 15-year run at Bal Harbour Shops.

Duccio Grassi architects had free “There’s a real buzz here now. Our clireign. Natural light filters through ents are excited we’re back,” she said. foot space linked by a striking spiral staircase in cross-scratched metal and beachy oak for its opening later in the month. Though smaller in size than stores in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, Miami’s flagship status packs in most of the firm’s lines, from Elegante to Sportmax.

“This location is getting all our special fashion pieces,” she said, compar-

Paul Andrew Opens London Pop-up Shop

By NINA JONES LONDON — Paul Andrew, last year’s CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund winner, opened his first pop-up space here on Wednesday, on the second floor of Donna Karan’s boutique on Mayfair’s Conduit Street.

Later that evening, the footwear designer threw a party at the store, together with publisher and street-style favorite Caroline Issa, to fete the new space.

Issa said after seeing Andrew’s first presentation in London, she’d pronounced the collection “mind-boggling good.”

“He’s future-proof, he’s going to be here for the long term,” said Issa, who wears Andrew’s shoes in the look book for her upcoming collection with Nordstrom.

Andrew — who worked at Karan’s label for more than a decade and who he still consults for — said during a walkthrough of the space Tuesday that he sees opening the pop-up as “coming home in a way.”

“The fact that…[Karan] invited me to take over this space for a couple of months was such an honor, and the fact that it’s in London, and I was born and trained here, it does feel like coming home,” said Andrew, who’s based in New York.

Andrew has clearly stamped his handwriting on the store — a sketch of his Zenadia pump takes up one of the windows, while his colorful, feminine designs act as pops of color among Karan’s spring looks. Many of Andrew’s designs are exclusive to the space, such as a hot pink, matte patent version of the Zenadia pump — which is finished with a matte rather than shiny lacquer texture — along with a rose gold and dusty pink version of his Tigrado suede pump. There are also designs such as his Athena gladiator sandal, in which the straps run up the calf, along with the Zenadia pump in a rainbow of layered suede colors and his Rhea kitten heel sling-back in fuchsia floral brocade. “It’s really given me a taste [for opening a store],” said Andrew of the experience. “I’m really keen to open my own retail stores at this point.”

After his CFDA win in November, this year is shaping up to be a busy one for Andrew. He will showcase his fall collection in New York with a presentation during New York Fashion Week “that’s a little bit more outside the box,” Andrew said, which will have “a show element.” The designer will also create the shoes for a number of ready-to-wear designers’ fall collections, among them Emilia

Wickstead in London, who said at the party that she loved the “modernity” of Andrew’s designs.

As to future collections, the designer said he’s planning to launch a men’s line “within the next 12 months.”

“I see that there’s a real niche in the market for men’s shoes that are neither too classic nor too fashion-forward,” mused Andrew, noting that he’s also planning to launch accessories “within the next three to five years.” He’s also looking to new markets — the designer is just back from a trip to China, where his collections will launch for fall at Lane Crawford in Shanghai and Beijing, along with Isetan in Tokyo, with the line also scheduled to launch at retailers in Russia.

As for reports that the appetite for luxury is slowing in emerging markets such as China and Russia, Andrew said that unlike major luxury labels that may have seen rapid growth in those markets begin to slow, his business in those countries “is totally new for me, so I feel like there’s potential to grow the business there,” he said.

Exploring those far-flung locales has fired up Andrew’s imagination. “I was so inspired by my trip to China — I feel like the next collection could certainly have a feeling of Asia,” he said.

10 WWD TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015

DANA THOMAS’ new book, “Gods and Kings: The Rise and Fall of Alexander McQueen and John Galliano,” brings to mind two quotations: Walter Bagehot’s “We must not let daylight in upon the magic,” and the Arabic proverb, “The dogs bark, but the caravan moves on.” “Gods and Kings” tells you more than you ever imagined about the lives of the two chronicled designers — the backstory.

How did this new project begin? “I was writing a piece for The Washington Post about John Galliano’s downfall,” says Thomas, a former model and longtime journalist who lives in Paris with her husband, Hervé and their daughter, Lucie Lee. In the first paragraph of the Post story, she found herself mentioning Marc Jacobs’ two stints in rehab; Tom Ford becoming depressed after getting sacked from Gucci, and Christophe Decarnin, who was the lead designer at Balmain and who reportedly ended up in what the French call a maison de santé. McQueen had been dead by his own hand for a year at this point. Thomas goes on: “So I write this paragraph, and I think, ‘Wow! There’s something going on here.’” So she asked her

eye

book editor and agent: “Is this a book?” The historic moment, she says, “felt like the end of a 30-year run of creativity.

Beautiful, boundless, dizzying, magical, but it came so abruptly to a close. I knew I still had a lot in my cave [the storage space in her apartment building]. I’d kept all my clip files since before Google was invented.

As for McQueen’s suicide, according to “Gods and Kings,” this was not his first attempt, and it was something that he had often mentioned. “I think he was put on antidepressants, but he didn’t take them because it made him nauseous,” says Thomas. “He suffered from

acute anxiety and stress-induced problems.” At the time of his death, which took place on the evening before his mother Joyce’s funeral, he had been seeing a psychiatrist, Dr. Stephen Pereira, who specialized in workrelated stress. Claudia Joseph interviewed the McQueen family for The Daily Mail. His sister Janet told her, ‘I thought that he was coming to terms with her death. How wrong I was.”

McQueen’s most passionate fan, muse and early backer, of course, was the flamboyant fashion editor Isabella Blow, who, in 2007, also committed suicide.

Thomas says, “I just thought she was great fun. I wouldn’t have wanted to be her boss, though, and to have to approve her expense accounts.” Thomas details what appears to have been an unhealthy sadomasochistic psychological dynamic between the two. By all John Galliano accounts, the fact that at the spring McQueen did not give 2007 Dior Haute Blow a job at Givenchy Couture show. when he was named

FOR MORE PHOTOS, SEE

Shalom Harlow spray-painted by robots in Alexander McQueen’s spring 1999 show.

designer there broke her heart.

The book is full of interesting details about each fashion show and what, at times, seems like every idea each designer ever had. Both designers’ romances and misbehavior are also painstakingly detailed.

According to the book, in the last months of Galliano’s employment at Dior, firm head Sidney Toledano and LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton owner Bernard Arnault took extensive steps to rein him in.

When the designer melted down at the Mercer Hotel in New York during an inspiration trip in fall 2010, Toledano insisted that he return to Paris at once.

Kate Moss walking in Galliano’s spring 1993 show.

WWD.com/eye.

be drunk-dialed phone calls.

Before the La Perle incident, both Arnault and Toledano had suggested that he go to rehab.

He refused.

One of Galliano’s original muses, Amanda Harlech, found herself wooed by another designer: Karl Lagerfeld.

Harlech had long worked with Galliano and was given a consulting contract when he went to Givenchy. But it appeared that when Galliano was seconded to Dior by Arnault, she was not going to be appropriately compensated. She had two children, she was about to be divorced and it seemed likely that her husband was not going to be a reliable source of funds. The figure that she was offered at Dior was, Thomas writes, insultingly low, and this was probably due to the fact that Galliano’s right hand, Steven Robinson, wanted to get rid of her. André Leon Talley, who is

one of the key players in “Gods and Kings,” stepped in, brought her to a Chanel show, and, before long, Lagerfeld offered her a better position at Chanel.

Thomas says of Harlech, “Her fan club is...I’ve never encountered anyone whom everybody who ever met, people who worked with her in 1984, everyone used the words ‘amazing,’ ‘beautiful.’ There was unquestioned love for Amanda Harlech. Only one person said, ‘From time to time, she could come across as aloof. But she wasn’t.’”

Then there was the death of Robinson, who had been with Galliano from the beginning of his career, and was invaluable to the designer as a fashion collaborator and who was also gifted at administration — his Mr. Inside. Robinson died in 2007 of what was reported at the time as a heart attack, but, according to later Paris court proceedings against the man convicted of being his dealer, Alassane Seck, was a massive overdose of cocaine. Fashion

McQueen and Isabella Blow in 2005. insiders believe that losing him was the beginning of Galliano’s unraveling.

The jacket copy of “Gods and Kings” — and its ending – suggests that there are some

PHOTOS COURTESY OF PENGUIN PRESS

After the Fall

Both men met or tried to meet with Galliano over his behavior, well before he began slinging anti-Semitic epithets at a neighboring table in the Paris café La Perle in February 2011.

This was also not the first time, as it emerged, that the designer had used said epithets when inebriated. Thomas observes that there were days when Galliano simply didn’t come to the office, but members of his staff received what seemed to

other bad actors here. Thomas says, “I hope Bernard Arnault doesn’t come across as a villain.”

The jacket of the book, however, says Thomas “chronicles the revolution in high fashion in the last two decades — and the price it demanded of the very ones who saved it.” It’s hard to know what Toledano, Arnault and, for that matter, Domenico De Sole, who purchased Alexander McQueen for Gucci Group or his successor there, Robert Polet, should have done with two very gifted, unstable men. Toledano and Arnault appear to have done everything within their power to secure Galliano’s physical and mental health. Perhaps they can be criticized for overindulging the designer. But once his problems were brought to their attention, they acted with dispatch.

It seems unlikely that De Sole or Polet were aware of the depth of McQueen’s despair, which is scarcely surprising given the fact that no members of his own family knew it. One source who spoke to Thomas suggested that, rather than the death of McQueen’s mother causing the designer to commit suicide, her death — coming after a long illness — actually freed him to do so. “Gays don’t do old,” is one quote attributed to McQueen.

And it should be said that couture collections have not been a reliable source of revenue for a great many years; they have long been regarded as showcases for the skills of a top atelier. At least since the late Sixties, designers have talked about the notion that the couture is over and should be scrapped.

As for the brilliant fashion moments of McQueen and Galliano, the former’s legacy was secured, if it wasn’t already, with the blockbuster show, “Savage Beauty” at the Metropolitan Museum’s Costume Institute in New York in 2011. Galliano’s story is still being written, now at Maison Martin Margiela.

— LORNA KOSKI

WWD TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015 11 WWD.COM

CARTOON WORLD: Holding a fluffy white

for spring-summer, debuting at Colette in Paris on April 1 and at Karl Lagerfeld boutiques and shops-in-shop on April 4.

cat can soften a severe fashion look.

So figures French cartoonist Tiffany Cooper, invited by Karl Lagerfeld to create a capsule collection featuring her

— MILES SOCHA

TRINA’S TWENTIETH: Even amid drastic

PHOTO BY KARL LAGERFELD

changes instigated by multiple tech booms and the Great Tiffany Cooper Recession, some things FOR MORE with her remain a constant at Trina SCOOPS, SEE drawings.

Turk. For its 20th anniversary WWD.com. this year, the Alhambra, Calif.based brand is reviving some of its best-selling styles, introducing new ones and splashing a vivid print that blends flowers with hieroglyphics on the commemorative capsule collection.

Among the 20 styles that let customers sashay down memory lane is a minidress with a curving neckline that first appeared nine years ago and is now refashioned out of silk georgette and cotton jacquard. New items include tote bags, bikinis, enamel pendant necklaces and cases for the latest iPhones. Retailing from $68 to $328, the collection will hit department and specialty stores drawings of the designer and his famous including Nordstrom, as well as pet Choupette.

Trina Turk’s 11 freestanding boutiques The offbeat effigies are to appear on and Web site, in April. a selection of apparel and accessories Not to rest on her laurels, Turk is

MEMO PAD THE ASMES NEVER CHANGE: Even as the

issue for its issue about Oakland. Time won for feature photography.

Although ASME likes to say there are never any losers, editors know that is far from true — and there were some very notable snubs. Cosmopolitan — which, like its Hearst-owned counterpart O won for personal service last year — was passed over in three categories this year, as was sister title Harper’s Bazaar, which was nominated in two categories.

Condé Nast’s Bon Appétit, which won two Ellies last year, was a finalist for six awards this year but came up empty handed. Then there was Monica Lewinsky, who was up for the essays and criticism category for her Vanity Fair essay called “Shame and Survival” but failed to win the prize. — ALEXANDRA STEIGRAD

media landscape undergoes tectonic shifts, there are things that apparently will always remain the same: The National Magazine Awards will be held in New York in February, and New York and The New Yorker will nab most of the awards. The awards were held Monday night at the Marriott Marquis in Times Square, where the two titles walked away with three Ellies each.

The other big winner was Vogue, which was named magazine of the year, while longtime Time photojournalist James Nachtwey was honored for creative excellence.

New York won for GIORGIO DOES THE design, magazine GRAMMYS: Giorgio section and columns Armani and GQ and commentary, while magazine are teaming The New Yorker won up to fete the Grammys for general interest with an after party at magazine, essays and the Hollywood Athletic criticism and fiction.

Club on Sunday night.

National Geographic The party will be hosted and Nautilus brought

by GQ editor in chief Jim home two Ellies apiece; Nelson, and will include National Geographic many of the winners of got top honors for the music awards show. photography, naturally, “For us, music and while it proved it is faststyle are a natural match, moving into the digital and we’re celebrating that era while also winning as much as the artists who Vogue was the award for tablet magazine. are making their legacy named magazine First-time winner Nautilus right now,” Nelson said. “Plus: of the year. won for Web site and literature, The Grammys were dying for science and politics magazines. a great after party, and we were dying Other first-timers included The Atavist to give it to them. Everything had to for feature writing; The Hollywood be right, and it’s all come together Reporter for special interest magazines; beautifully: a historic venue, with an Pacific Standard for public interest; The excellent partner, guests that include Texas Observer for multimedia, and Vice some of the most talented musicians News in the video category for its series out there, and a night already keyed up “The Islamic State.” for celebration.”

Garden & Gun won for style and The February issue of GQ features design, Glamour for service and lifestyle, “The Legacy Project,” which and Men’s Health for active interest. Rival celebrates musicians who made an Backpacker grabbed the award for leisure impact on the entertainment industry interests, while GQ won for reporting, this year. Pharrell Williams is on the thanks to Jeff Sharlet’s story “Inside the cover, while inside he joins stars such as Stevie Wonder, St. Vincent, Sam Iron Closet,” about being gay in currentday Russia. O, The Oprah Magazine took Smith, Mark Ronson, Nas, Future, Diplo, Kim home the personal service award for its Gordon, Rick Ross, FKA Twigs, James Blake, caregiver’s guide, while San Francisco Drake, Lil Wayne, Young Thug, Karen O, scooped up the award for single-topic Spoon and Iggy Azalea. — A.S.

— KHANH T.L. TRAN

NOT ONLY FASHION:

“Our customer is the kind of girl who loves clothes but also has her priorities straight,” Brandes remarked on the ethos behind the campaign. “To market to her, we choose a fleet of witty, outspoken women with good senses of humor, because that’s who our customer is: someone who doesn’t take herself too seriously but also wants to look really chic.”

Other content contributors include Zoey Grossman, Mallory Llewellyn, Megan MacKay and Ali Michael.

E-commerce is taking a backseat in BB Dakota’s new — KRISTEN TAUER digital content initiative.

Launching today under ONCE UPON A TOPIC: Kenneth the campaign hashtag Branagh’s live action take #itsonlyfashion, the on “Cinderella” won’t be in project showcases movie theaters until March original visual and 13, but as of today Hot Topic written creative work is courting modern-day created specifically princesses with a capsule for BB Dakota by collection inspired by the A Cinderella-inspired a roster of young Walt Disney Studios flick. dress by Hot Topic. female voices. “We The $50 Peasant Sweetheart wanted to pivot to a Dress, $80 Victorian Waistcoat more content-driven strategy, and other apparel and accessories items because it’s one thing you are meant to borrow from costumes can do to really generate a worn by Lily James and other cast conversation online and have members. Fans of Cate Blanchett will be people talking about you,” said out of luck should they want to emulate her role as the fair-haired princess’ Katharine Brandes, BB Dakota’s wicked stepmother, though. creative director. The launch Shoppers can preorder the includes a short documentary Cinderella-inspired styles through the series filmed by visual artist retailer’s e-commerce site, but they Petra Collins, who took a road trip won’t find it in Hot Topic freestanding across the U.S. to document female stores until Feb. 24. Cindy Levitt, senior dancers and empowerment through movement. Collins and others vice president of merchandising and profiled in the video series wear marketing, said the fairy-tale look suits looks from BB Dakota’s spring the 662-unit chain’s customer base. “The collection on-screen. collection has just enough twists to make it wearable but is still a bit magical for A look from Trina Turk’s 20th our fan girl customer,” she said. ▲

FASHION SCOOPS

aiming for more growth with several new stores slated to open in the U.S. at the end of the year.

“The way clothing is sold and the way people are buying it and the way fashion is working is very different from 1995,” Turk said. “We have stuck to our identity, which revolves around print and color and California.

That has stayed the same.”

anniversary capsule collection.

REACH THE FASHION INDUSTRY’S TOP TALENT

WWDCAREERS.COM PRINT & ONLINE PACKAGES AVAILABLE Contact Christen Cosmas, WWD Classified/Careers at 212.630.3937 or christen_cosmas@fairchildfashion.com

— ROSEMARY FEITELBERG

h

12 WWD TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015

WWD.COM

Under Strain, Alibaba’s Ma Upbeat percent on Monday to close at $90.13 in Big Board trading.

Still, a number of analysts have lowered price targets on Alibaba in the wake of the company’s trifecta of bad news last week, though those keeping a close eye on the still extremely robust Chinese e-commerce sector remain positive about the company’s long-term prospects.

“Monetization was weaker than expected, but we continue to see increasing platform value for merchants from Alibaba longer-term and increasing mon-

Despite this downward pressure on monetization stemming from the growth of mobile, several analysts pointed to this sector’s growth as a positive marker for Alibaba’s future. The company’s mobile revenue rose 448 percent year-over-year to $1.04 billion.

J.P. Morgan analyst Doug Anmuth compared Alibaba’s situation with that experienced by Baidu — China’s most-used search engine — when it was making the transition to a more predominantly

file. Now there are high expectations. They are a China consumer bellwether, so a lot of things people hear about the slowdown in China gets transferred to Alibaba,” he said, adding that it would be difficult to see recent developments threaten the company’s position as a dominant force in China’s e-commerce sector and beyond, as the company diversifies its offerings and expands internationally.

Yet it’s not surprising that Alibaba would receive special attention from Chinese regulators, according to digital strategy expert Andrea Fenn, from Mainland China digital consulting agency Fireworks, who describes the company’s position in China as “not just a company, but the company.”

A bigger problem for Alibaba, Fenn said, will be the demands of international

’’

{Continued from page one}

the regulator’s desire to follow through on that promise.

The lawsuit filed in New York stemmed from the SAIC white paper and charged that defendants “issued false and misleading statements regarding the soundness of the company’s business operations, the strength of its financial prospects and concealing substantial ongoing regulatory scrutiny.”

The complaint further alleged that “regulators had then brought to Alibaba’s attention a variety of highly dubious — even illegal — business practices that the SAIC advised Alibaba it was then actively clamping down on and which threatened the core of Alibaba’s business.”

The legal document listed some of those alleged business practices as including the “rampant sale of counterfeit goods” by vendors on Alibaba’s thirdparty marketplace platform; the sale of restricted weapons and other forbidden items; that Alibaba staffers “had taken bribes from merchants and others” seeking to help boost their search rankings, and that Alibaba ignored the practice by some vendors of faking transactions to make their sale volumes appear higher.

The lawsuit, filed on behalf of shareholders who bought Alibaba stock between Oct. 21, 2014 and Jan. 28, 2015, is seeking class-action status.

A Beijing-based research analyst, who works with a market research firm focused on the Chinese Internet and who requested anonymity, told WWD he believed the lawsuit is a swipe at the company’s management structure. This structure, which gives minority shareholders control over the company’s key assets, and limited recourse to unhappy shareholders, was flagged as a potential problem prior to Alibaba’s blockbuster initial public offering in September.

“The point of this lawsuit is to target Alibaba’s management and stockholder structure, which is something Alibaba needs to deal with,” he said. “I don’t think this kind of lawsuit can damage Alibaba because every part of the company gives real support to their stock price and profitability.”

Indeed, Alibaba’s shares shrugged off the suit, rising 1.2

Jack Ma and Tung Chee-hwa, the former chief executive of Hong Kong.

ICONIX BRAND GROUP Inc. has ponied up $37 million in cash for the North American rights to the athletic brand Pony and related intangible assets in partnership with Anthony L&S Athletics from Symphony Holdings LLC. Hong Kong-based Symphony acquired Pony in 2010 in an effort to revive the footwear brand.

Pony’s assets will be purchased through a newly formed subsidiary, which will be 75 percent owned by Iconix and 25 percent

’’

This is an opportunity to show the West how Alibaba and China work.

etization longer-term,” Pacific Crest analyst Cheng Cheng wrote in a note following the earnings report, which showed gross merchandise volume increase almost 49 percent, to more than $125 billion, and a 95 percent year-over-year rise in monthly active users to 265 million in 2014.

Of particular concern for many analysts was the growing influence of mobile, as Alibaba ended 2014 with 265 million mobile users, up 22 percent from the previous quarter. Alibaba platforms, such as consumerto-consumer e-commerce site Taobao, make most of their revenue from advertising and marketing, but charge less for these services on mobile.

mobile-based business.

“We expect Alibaba’s ads monetization to follow the trajectory of Baidu in their later mobile monetization stage to enjoy robust revenue growth driven by paid clicks and pricing,” Anmuth wrote.

Another concern for Alibaba is the more general slowdown of China’s economy and corresponding slowdown in consumption.

According to Torsten Stocker, a partner at management consulting firm A.T. Kearney, Alibaba’s increasing international profile makes it a target for fears about the Chinese economy at large.

“Before the IPO they were well known in China, but they had a much less public pro-

— JACK MA, ALIBABA

regulators and investors, who might not be used to the way business is done — by Alibaba and everyone else — in China.

That seemed to be Ma’s point in his speech in Hong Kong.

“The way that business is conducted in China, it’s all about guanxi, or relationships with people. Of course, there’s a lot of practices any regulatory body outside of China would think unusual,” he said. “Alibaba will continue to be the main, if not the only, credible player in Chinese e-commerce at every level. It’s a very Chinese company, but if they want to expand into the rest of the world over the next few years, they will have to internationalize their business practices.”

Alibaba’s dominant position in China is perhaps the reason Ma stayed mostly upbeat during his talk on Monday. “Doing business anywhere you have to talk, communicate, listen, change and push,” Ma said about dealing with regulators.

“We’re looking to see how we can communicate to the rest of the world. We don’t want to be misunderstood by the rest

Iconix Buys Pony in North America

By LISA LOCKWOOD

of the world that we are not transparent or that Taobao is a platform for selling fake products,” he continued.

Ma also expressed concern about China’s reputation.

“We want this company to represent China and the Chinese Internet. We are not frustrated about regulators. We are frustrated about how we can prove that today in China, we can have a good company that is as transparent and [with the same] values [as] any great Internet company in the world,” he said in English.

He was speaking to the Hong Kong public in a mostly lighthearted event called “An Evening With Jack Ma,” offering advice on entrepreneurship and encouraging others not to give up, to seize opportunities and to have confidence in themselves.

The talk was free and open to the public and had been adver-

by AL&S. Following the transaction, Iconix has the option to expand global ownership of the brand and acquire the Pony assets in additional territories.

“Sports has been one of the strongest and fastest growing segments of our portfolio, and a business that has proven to be truly global in its appeal,” said Neil Cole, chairman and chief executive officer of Iconix.

“With the addition of Pony, we believe we can leverage our existing sports platform including our Danskin, Starter and Umbro brands, which represent over two million of global re-

tail sales, and create significant value for the brand.”

Pony was founded by Uruguay–born entrepreneur Roberto Muller in New York in 1972 and became a top athletic footwear brand, worn by professional athletes in the World Cup, NBA, NFL, MLB and boxing.

The street culture brand went through several owners and was repositioned multiple times. In recent years, archival images featuring athletes such as soccer star Pelé and football star Dan Marino sporting Pony were featured.

Seth Horowitz, chief operating officer of Iconix, said he believes

Pony’s assets will be purchased through a new subsidiary, which will be 75 percent owned by Iconix. the group can grow Pony throughout North America, creating “a profitable multi-tiered distribution strategy similar to our other successful sports brands.” Further, he said, it will explore opportunities in additional geographies.

tised in local papers for weeks.

Ma said there are no firm plans to take Ant Financial, the company’s financial unit, public in the near future. Ant Financial is “still a baby,” he said.

Alibaba on Monday unveiled a $129 million foundation to help young Hong Kong entrepreneurs who want to start businesses on the e-commerce giant’s online marketplaces.

The foundation will provide financial capital, technical assistance, and training to eligible vendors in Hong Kong who want to sell products to customers in Mainland China.

Ma said the foundation was not politically driven, but that he “believed a company this size should have a responsibility to help young people.”

Asked if the foundation would consider young people who participated in recent prodemocracy protests, Ma said, “Why not?” But he then noted that if applicants were barred from entering China, then it would be difficult to do business in the country.

— WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM VICKI M. YOUNG

In exchange for its 25 percent stake in the partnership, AL&S contributed its previously held perpetual rights to the Pony brand in the U.S. and Canada, and will be the core footwear licensee going forward. AL&S (which has been rebranded as Unlimited Brand Group) owns, licenses, markets and distributes brands such as Etonic, G-Star, RAW Footwear, and Levi’s Strauss & Co. Footwear.

Last fall, DKNY partnered with Pony to make a whiteon-white leather sneakers imprinted with “Product of New York” on the tongue. The sneakers are being sold in select DKNY stores and online this month for $225.