London cityscape | Source: Chelsea Trans

Why London deserves to be the fashion capital of the world (Telegraph)
“London fashion now has an explosion of internationally bought talent, an array of serious businesses, is a significant contributor to national exports, and is bolstering UK manufacturing into the bargain. Ten years ago, the despairing moan was that everyone was leaving London to show abroad: nobody talks about designers defecting any more, only about how we’re going to fit in everyone who wants to show.”

Dept. Stores, M-Commerce Leading the Social Media Way (WWD)
“It’s the year of the department store. The category posted growth in retail market share for the first time in nearly three decades — and it just might have something to do with innovative digital strategies… the average Digital IQ for department stores grew 14 points from 2010 — coming in second to e-tailers for highest category IQ — a telling statistic about the impact of digital, given that the latter are native to the medium.”

The Fastest-Growing Private Company of 2011 (Inc)
“Flash-shopping sites, a decade-old phenomenon in Europe, took root in this country around the time of the recession, when ideeli and its three best-known competitors launched. Members receive e-mail alerts about sales, and the clock starts ticking. For customers, the appeal is brands at a discount, which at ideeli can reach 80 percent.”

J. Crew launches online in the UK (Telegraph)
“J. Crew’s success – it’s valued as a $3 billion company – comes from filling the gaping hole between affordable fast-fashion, which the British high street has in abundance, and luxury designer labels… Fashion insiders point to the huge choice the label offers customers, making a single label store more like a boutique.”

At 90, Fashion’s Latest Pop Star (NY Times)
“Mrs. Apfel, the subject of a string of museum exhibitions, a coffee table book and even a fashion advertising campaign, has long been a magnet to aficionados, those devotees of fashion who dote on her style — a more-is-more mix of haute couture and hippie trimmings that appears at a glance to have been blended in a Cuisinart.”