Futuristic minimalism Alexander Wang SS13 collection

Minimalistic Futurism

Spring-Summer/2013

Elena Alessandra Vaia BA HONS Fashion Marketing Level 5 CWK 4 Computer Tools 2

INDEX

1 COMPANY PROFILE

Past, present and future of Wang’s firm

2 MARKET POSITION

Wang’s position in his niche market

3 TARGET

The models off duty concept” and Wang’s VIP clients

4 COMMUNICATION BACKGROUND

Wang’s past advertising activities

5 CURRENT SITUATION

The new SS 13 collection, a new concept

6 MESSAGE

Futuristic minimalism

7 INSPIRATION

Imagery expression

8 EDITORIAL 9 LOOKBOOK 10 MINISITE

1

COMPANY PROFILE

Born in 1983, Alexander Wang is a native Californian with a Taiwanese (Chinese)-American heritage who was born and raised in San Francisco.

He moved to New York when he was 18 to study Fashion Design at Parsons, The New School for Design. By his sophomore year he designed his first women’s wear collection and dropped out of Parsons.

His business started as unisex intarsia cashmere oversized sweaters line, that firstly were sold door-to-door and then became a big hit within retail buyers after appearing in The New York Time.

The business officially started in late 2004, when the designer was 21 years old and nowadays, it still has no outside investors.

Actually, Alexander Wang’s “mini empire” is wholly family-owned.

The key figures of the company indeed are: Alexander’s brother, Dennis Wang, who serves as chief principal officer and brought to the enterprise a background in international business development; his mother, and his sister in law Aimie Wang who is the one with whom the designer really founded the business.

He burst onto the fashion scene with an energetic and clear creative vision, characterizing his designs with nonchalant, French chic and rock grunge looks that have sleek tailoring. Inspired from the nineties, his designs have a slouchy, rolled-out-ofbed, androgynous aesthetics; urban separates with masculine undertones and a tough girl attitude.

The brand is the embodiment of cool and inspiring 80’s makeshift: in fact it can be considered as a contemporary street- inflected company.

Alexander’s ability in fact, is to being able to connect with the way his generation wants to dress and also to bring a youthful sensibility so playfully and flippantly into his pieces.

Wang’s brand fills the need for a new downtown persona, new ways to think about getting dressed, and a new mood to animate it all. “He is the right mind at the right time.

The brand has certainly a sense of fantasy but its willing was always to stay very grounded.

He knew that cool kids wanted a new highbrow-lowbrow haute-casual that could be worn to the prestigious day gig (modeling, interning) and would require no change whatsoever to go out dining and dancing all night.

In 2008, Alexander Wang won the CFDA\ Vogue Fashion Fund Award and cash prize, allowing him to expand his label into several other products categories, such as leather goods and other accessories such as scarves and hats.

Right after this Wang introduced a diffusion line of pre-weathered cotton tees, tanks, and T-shirt dresses named T by Alexander Wang and a footwear collection of towering platform sandals in Spring 2009.

T by Alexander Wang includes laid-back, casually chic basics and is priced for a bridge market, and offers unique interpretations of classic, everyday pieces for men and women.

The line is extremely wearable, and loved by both men and women for its ability to make casual basics as chic and modern as they are comfortable.

Wang’s has been a quicksilver.

In fact, since then the brand has grown so much that nowadays it includes an accessories, eyewear, swimwear and menswear line and it is said to be worth € 18millions.

The first stop for Alexander Wang company was New York, next stop Beijing.

Wang has adapted an overall business approach that parallels his fashion: energetic, bold and totally of the moment. Instead of moving to the next major fashion city such as Paris or London, he has decided to take his retail express to Asia and open his second flagship store in Beijing, China, in April 2012, which has been followed by several more outputs.

By the end of 2012, the designer had 15 of his own stores, all but one, in Asia. His method indicates the shift in the mind-set of professional age designers of today: starting from U.S to think East first and then West.

The 4,000- square-foot store in Beijing houses the full range of Wang products, including the women’s and men’s collections, T, Core, accessories and some site-specific items. In addition, it is based on a different aesthetic than its New York counterpart.

2

MARKET POSITION

Alexander Wang’s ready-to wear price range is between 300-1700 dollars while T by Alexander Wang ranges between $70 dollars for a simple tank top and up to $350 for a dress.

Celebrities Like Rihanna, Gwyneth Paltrow, Cameron Diaz and Azelaia Banks have been found to admire and wear Wang’s designs.

30 of the world’s premiere retailers including Barneys New York, Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, Selfridges, Saks Fifth Avenue, Harvey Nichols, Dover Street Market, Browns, Otte and Selfridges are carrying his lines. In addition to his own e-commerce online retailing, other high end online retailers such as net-a-porter, shopbop and boutique1, are also carrying his lines.

In terms of market positioning and prices, his competitors can be invidiuated in designers such as Helmut Lang or Ann Demeulemeester.

Helmet Lang was created in 1986, and was known for their minimalistic, deconstructed designs.

After Helmut left the brand in 2005, it was sold to Japan’s Link Theory in 2006.

As of 2007, Helmut Lang has been under the creative direction of Michael and Nicole Colovos (co-founders of denim label Habitual).

Under this husband and wife team, Helmut Lang has become reinvigorated and gone back to its roots of edgy, urban elegance.

Helmut Lang offers ready-to-wear apparel, footwear and accessories for men and women. Although they do not currently have a diffusion line, the price structure of their ready-to-wear line is similar to that of Alexander Wang’s ready-to-wear collections. The similarity of style between Helmut Lang and Alexander Wang is obvious, both designers use androgyny, unique shapes and silhouettes, and incorporate the use of high-tech and uncommon textiles in their designs.

Ann Demeulemeester is a Belgium-born fashion designer who created her eponymous line for women in 1985, and a menswear line in 1996. Her product offerings include ready-to-wear for men and women, footwear, handbags, and other accessories such as hats and belts. Her inspiration includes androgynous musician Patti Smith and Jackson Pollack. Her designs are for modern women who aren’t afraid of contemporary cuts and dark color palettes. Ann Demeulemeester has been making pieces for strong and confident women for decades, with surprising elements in each season’s collection

3

TARGET

Wang’s target market for all of his lines is made up of mostly professionals with a high disposable income between the ages of 20-35.

For his women’s collection, Alexander Wang created this ideal buyer who is a “model off duty” – she’s a cool, a bit of a bad girl, nonchalant and effortless type of girl.

The typical Wang girl has a cool downtown style that is a mix of French chic and rock grunge at the same time.

a cigarette handsomely scruffy boy, swaying her hair around”.

The target client, as also Wang said in his interview for Teen Vogue, is more about the sensibility with which you see yourself, your recognition with the image that the brand is providing, if you feel comfortable to be dress in certain way, if you want be also represented by the image of the brand.

She is most probably a generation Y, urban, relaxed, edgy and trendy fashionista who is willing to spend more money for a simple item so long as it is chic with a sharp tailoring.

For this reason the girls would actually buy Wang are mostly young professionals in the city, 20-35 year old who like to feel a bit like that careless, tough and cool girl, even though they might actually be lawyers or accountants.

But is not always a matter of following a certain background, if it be so the “perfect” Wang girl would be “always ready to go out, dancing with careful abandon, drink in hand accessorized with

Nowadays Alexander Wang’s firm became one of the hit brand within the Hollywood jet set and it is also very much loved among the American celebrities, such as Rihanna, Azelia Banks and Miranda Kerr.

4

COMMUNICATION BACKGROUND Innovative & different” is the description that has been used repeatedly for Alexander Wang advertising strategies. Alexander Wang’s marketing strategies are purposed to be youthful, innovative, different and personal.

In addition to edgy and striking Ad Campaigns, many of his advertisement strategies are examples of Guerrilla style efforts that create a burst of excitement.

Even though Alexander Wang sells to over 200 stores around the world, New York City is where Wang concentrates on advertising. His main marketing strategy is to be unconventional.

Alexander Wang only started taking his ad campaign to the streets of downtown New York in February, 2010.

In July, 2011 Wang advertised his ready to wear campaign with a video campaign projected on videos around New York City. In addition, the designer hired National Promotions & Advertising to blanket downtown New York. The ads were changed once a week for four weeks.

In March 2012 the designer created his first advertisement for a magazine which was featured in “Interview”. He insisted that it was not an advertisement campaign but just an “image piece, again explaining that he wanted to be different. Wang is known for spotlighting musicians making noise in his collection campaigns.

Die Antwoord, the South African rap group known for their crazy slanging beats and even crazier haircuts, were the new faces of T by Alexander Wang for the Spring 2012 Ad Campaign.

The campaigns before that featured Rye Rye boogeying for Prabal Gurung, and indie dancehall star Santigold. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that young rappers + young designers = an innovative new way to present the most recent collection. While Rye Rye actually featured Prabal’s hyper-saturated looks, Santigold is hanging out with pal MC Spank Rock (one half of the Spank Rock group), generally free styling her own moves and enjoying goofing around in comfy cotton for Wang’s video look book.

For promoting his Fall 2011 collection, he introduced the collection through a short film projected on walls of buildings in Union Square, the Meat Packing District and the West Village. Shot

by Fabien Baron, most notable for Madonna’s Sex book, the film focuses on a chic vixen in an abandoned Brooklyn warehouse traipsing in Wang’s tough, yet sexy wares in a rock and roll meets thriller-like plot. This street theater approach was an innovative way to create news and a reminder for the brand. While letting fans or a passerby be a part of the brand experience, which is so important, because many can only covet an Alexander Wang piece. The video was also uploaded on Alexander Wang’s website.

In June 2011, Wang targeted young, fashionforward consumers with an exclusive pre-sale of its first wallet and leather goods collection in the eBay. The sale lasted 60 hours for accessories from the collection with prices ranging from $235 to $525. This approach created a platform for Wang to reach a broad audience.

5

CURRENT SITUATION

The first stop for Alexander Wang company was New York, next stop Beijing.

It depicts a linear quality that is clean and minimal with floating lines created by translucent fish wire, embroidery and exaggerated eyelets. the juxtaposition of tension and suspension are captured between structure and fluidity while dissected pieces build on a new silhouette, which embodies lightness and delicacy.

Wang has adapted an overall business approach that parallels his fashion: energetic, bold and totally of the moment. Instead of moving to the next major fashion city such as Paris or London, he has decided to take his retail express to Asia and open his second flagship store in Beijing, China, in April 2012, which has been followed by several more outputs. By the end of 2012, the designer had 15 of his own stores, all but one, in Asia. His method indicates the shift in the mind-set of professional age designers of today: starting from U.S to think East first and then West.

Today Wang launches his brand new SS13 collection, which will be following all the most iconic brand principles but with a new sense of innovation.

In fact, Wang experimented a lot with fabrics and shapes for this season to give the collection a very personal touch through the tool geometries.

Futuristic minimalism. This is the path the brand is following.

6

MESSAGE Futuristic Strong Geometric Graphical

Experimental Monochromatic Present Sporty Black and white Minimalistic

7

INSPIRATION

8

EDITORIAL

Photographer: Ruth Hogben

Location

Model: Cara Delevigne

Make up and hair style: Paolo ferreira and Carole Lasnier

Look and feel

9

Zippered vest with leather bib and hand tack detail $ 1450,00

LOOKBOOK

Sleeveless zebra suspension crewneck $1150,00

Fishline hockey jersey dress with leather blocking $1750,00

Suspension pencil skirt with glow thread $2000,00

10

MINISITE

Visual refrences: SHOWstudio.com

SOURCES: URLs Mini website: http://futuristicminimalismss13.wordpress.com/ Issuu:

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Target http://lamodellamafia.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/la-modella-mafia-Models-at-Coachella-RaquelZimmerman-Jaqueline-Jablonski-Hanne-Gaby-Odiele-and-Kasiahttp://25.media.tumblr.com/fa6783e43fee62ce755aa780c15e85ea/tumblr_mg0p44EzzS1r8g50go1_500. jpg http://sphotos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/9436_10151376034992394_2021854071_n.jpg http://sphotos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-frc1/21716_1015148190 http://sphotos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/541804_10151376035757394_41657 Communication background http://jaumbulanti.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/m2675670151654312_4.jpg http://sphotos-a.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/48124_10151483821277394_681059057_n.jpg http://jaumbulanti.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/m2675670151654312_3.jpg http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-E8t6tPRbjfw/UPg6I18petI/AAAAAAAAIxs/Jiej-CqIrOw/s1600/malgosia-belaalexander-wanghttp://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MixWBJt6HJw/UPg6JVddReI/AAAAAAAAIx4/l868PSvBAl0/s1600 http://minimal-list.max.gazzetta.it/files/2012/04/Minimal-List-Alexander-Wang-Die-Antwoord-02.jpeg http://minimal-list.max.gazzetta.it/files/2012/04/Minimal-List-Alexander-Wang-Die-Antwoord-04.jpeg http://art8amby.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/t-by-alexander-wang-fw-2010-max-motta-zoe-kravitz-by-daniel-jackson.jpg?w=490 http://art8amby.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/t-by-alexander-wang-fw-2010-max-motta-zoe-kravitz-by-daniel-jackson.jpg?w=490 Current situation http://le-21eme.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/2288-Le-21eme-Adam-Katz-Sinding-Backstage-At-Alexander-Wang-Spring-Summer-2013-New-York-City_AKS4229-920x612.jpg http://showstudio.com/img/images/83201-83400/83310_320n.jpg?1347206879 http://showstudio.com/img/images/83201-83400/83310_320n.jpg?1347206879 Inspiration http://media-cache-lt0.pinterest.com/550x/5c/4e/c9/5c4ec9df8cd10d9be7a34a3f5a1af993.jpg http://media-cache-ec3.pinterest.com/550x/7d/d5/27/7dd5271a007d4a4d4f4b3d59a4782d61.jpg http://www.ssense.com/frontend/editorial/solaris/images/gallery/4.jpg http://media-cache-is0.pinimg.com/550x/9d/65/db/9d65db13c4f93e2bd63f7314d5cab6ac.jpg http://media-cache-ec2.pinterest.com/550x/9e/73/ae/9e73ae86ec93dd96feaf7c1382b6785b.jpg http://media-cache-ec2.pinterest.com/550x/47/cc/7c/47cc7c336a94caf0970cc4bee680ba19.jpg http://cdn.trendhunterstatic.com/phpthumbnails/171/171324/171324_1_600.jpeg http://media-cache-ec2.pinterest.com/550x/92/a0/22/92a0225a7153408c891839cb8af405d1.jpg http://www.torling.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/jil-sander-layouts-46.jpg http://media-cache-ec5.pinterest.com/550x/75/50/64/755064cfdd363589907df458c00d2c80.jpg http://media-cache-is0.pinimg.com/550x/a7/9c/a2/a79ca28977cf7975307cadb889e06c4a.jpg http://media-cache-ec3.pinterest.com/550x/ef/e2/f5/efe2f5353cc8d6522220f4482a084929.jpg http://media.trendland.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/petros-chrisostomou-2.jpg

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Minimalistic Futurism

Spring-Summer/2013

Elena Alessandra Vaia BA HONS Fashion Marketing Level 5 CWK 4 Computer Tools 2