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Week in Review | Companies and Culture Issue, End to $1 Billion Brands, Savage Beauty, Penny Martin

BoF editor-in-chief Imran Amed recaps the week in the business of fashion.
The Business of Fashion, Companies and Culture Issue
By
  • Imran Amed

LONDON, United Kingdom — It's been a blockbuster week here at BoF. Not only did we reveal the cover of our second special print edition, The Companies & Culture Issue (out on Monday April 28 and featuring stories on Victoria Beckham, Hermès, Mickey Drexler, Rick Owens and others), but we also had some thought-provoking contributions from members of the BoF Community that had everybody talking.

Venture capitalist Lawrence Lenihan argued that the days of $1 billion fashion brands is over and that many fashion-tech start-ups have been overvalued, setting unrealistic (and unreachable) expectations from investors, who will, in all likelihood, never make the returns they were hoping for. With the right capital structure, fashion-tech start-ups can still make healthy returns, however, though not necessarily at the scale demanded by recent sky-high valuations, he says.

Our friend Tamsin Blanchard, style director of the Telegraph Magazine, also contributed a piece that coincided with the one year anniversary of the collapse of the Rana Plaza factory in Bangladesh, a day coined "Fashion Revolution Day." She argued persuasively that we all need to take responsibility for the role that our own mindless fashion consumption plays in the conditions that led to this tragedy.

And, then, there was the exciting news late Thursday evening that the hugely popular "Alexander McQueen - Savage Beauty" exhibition, which debuted at the Met in New York, is finally coming to London. It will be staged at the Victoria & Albert Museum, opening in March 2015. Tickets went on sale today and by all accounts the V&A website was inundated with interest as none of the BoF team was able to purchase tickets.

Have a great weekend, and stay tuned for more content from our special Companies & Culture Issue on Monday.

Here are our top stories from the week gone by:

Victoria Beckham Speaks to BoF About Her Fashion Transformation
For BoF's second special print edition, The Companies & Culture Issue, cover star Victoria Beckham speaks to Imran Amed about how she has proven her critics wrong and become one of fashion's fastest rising stars.

Op-Ed | The End of the $1 Billion Fashion Brand
Armed with huge sums of money invested at sky-high valuations, fashion start-ups are setting themselves up for failure. But with the right capital structure, any company that can build a brand that delights its customers can be an economic win for all involved, argues Lawrence Lenihan.

V&A to Bring 'Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty' Exhibition to London
London's Victoria and Albert Museum will stage the hugely popular "Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty" retrospective in March 2015.

The Creative Class | Penny Martin, Editor
The Gentlewoman is known for its mix of glamour, pragmatism, modernity and warmth. BoF sits down with Penny Martin to discuss her role as editor-in-chief, the magazine's DNA, and why the future is not about social media.

In Beirut, Sarah's Bag Balances Style and Social Good
In battle-scarred Beirut, Sarah Beydoun of Sarah's Bag has built an international accessories business built on unique bags handmade by former prostitutes and prisoners by putting her story second and fashion first.

Op-Ed | Join the Revolution Against Mindless Fashion Consumption
On Fashion Revolution Day, the anniversary of the Rana Plaza garment factory collapse in Bangladesh, Tamsin Blanchard challenges consumers take action against mindless fashion consumption.

And don't forget, check out BoF Weekly, a week in review published with Flipboard and updated every Saturday.

Imran Amed
Founder and Editor-in-Chief

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