Frida Giannini | Source: Vogue Taiwan

How Gucci Got Its Groove Back (Departures)
“Today she’s happy being the woman behind the brand, unlike Ford, who was ultimately bigger than Gucci, which is why, in part, he’s no longer there. (Ford declined to comment for this article.) ‘After almost ten years, it’s difficult to divide myself from Gucci,’ she says. ‘I love this company, and I have such respect for its history.’”

Azzedine Alaïa, a furious fashion talent (Independent)
“Basking in the knowledge that, more than any other designer, he occupies neutral territory – it is not uncommon for M Alaïa to be seen front row at many of his competitors’ shows, or indeed for other designers to wear his clothes – this is not a man who has been overly worried about what others might think of him and that, too, in fashion circles, is most unusual.”

The Rise of Consumption Equality (WSJ)
“It used to be so cool to be wealthy—an elite education, exclusive mobile communications, a private screening room, a table at Annabel’s on London’s Berkeley Square. Now it’s hard to swing a cat without hitting yet another diatribe against income inequality. People sleep in tents to protest that others are too damn wealthy.”

Fashion Hangover (Vogue)
“Louis Vuitton is going to war with Warner Bros: suing the entertainment giant for profits from it recent blockbuster sequel The Hangover Part II, for using fake copies of its bags in the film. Despite requests by the luxury label to not feature counterfeit bags – created by Diophy which is also being sued – the fake Louis Vuitton luggage appeared in a scene filmed at the airport.”

Cathy Horyn Recounts the Year in Fashion (NY Times)
“‘Give me time, and I’ll give you a revolution,’ Alexander McQueen once said. Like anyone born to achieve, he resented the small distractions — and the fashion business provides plenty of them.”

Inditex Headquarters in La Coruna, Spain | Source: Inditex

How Zara clothes turned Galicia into retail hotspot (Reuters)
“The green, rainy region of Galicia in northwest Spain is best-known as the destination for pilgrims hiking the Camino de Santiago to pay tribute at the remains of apostle Saint James… But a different kind of pilgrim also makes the journey here — retail sector analysts visiting the headquarters of Spain’s most successful modern export, Zara clothes, which has made the founder of Inditex one of the richest men in the world.”

The Future Of Fashion, Part Nine: Azzedine Alaïa (Style.com)
“Fashion will last forever. It will exist always. It will exist in its own way in each era. I live in the moment. It’s interesting to know the old methods. But you have to live in the present moment. The evolution today is in the machinery. There are machines that did not exist before. It allows you to be a lot more of a perfectionist.”

Luxury Daily Deals Site Gilt City Picks Up BuyWithMe at a Discount (All Things Digital)
“Gilt City, the daily deals site operated by fashion and luxury online retailer Gilt Groupe, has acquired BuyWithMe… Gilt will be purchasing BuyWithMe’s assets, including its member and vendor lists, as well as some of its technology. Other companies also exploring offers included San Francisco-based Bloomspot and the No. 2 player, LivingSocial.”

UnitedStyles Lets You Play Fashion Designer (TechCrunch)
“Based in Shanghai, UnitedStyles is a Facebook Connect-enabled service that lets any user create customized women’s apparel, allowing them sketch out, adjust and share a design via an online interface and customized 3D preview… Co-founder Marc van der Chijs tells me that his objective is to recreate the entire fashion design experience for Internet users, ‘It’s very strange that you cannot [already] design your own clothes online.’”

Rise: Anna-Sophie Berger (Dazed Digital)
“Graduating next year, 22-year-old Anna-Sophie Berger has a mad obsession with humanness and geometry. The Austrian student also likes to work around the concept of limitation and simplifying clothes to a very basic shape. For her mainly black and white collection ‘m/m2′, Berger chose the square that was transformed and disrupted, before shown as an installation pinned to a wall to visualize the two dimensional aspects of the flat squares and contrasting that in the look book, when the model’s body wearing the clothes creates a three dimensional volume.”

Louis Vuitton Voyages Exhibition, National Museum of China photographed by Luc Castel | Source: Louis Vuitton

The mystery of the Chinese consumer (Economist)
“After decades of deprivation and conformism, Chinese consumers regard expensive consumer goods as trophies of success… The owner of a gleaming new BMW will drive around for half an hour to avoid a 50 cent parking fee. And she will hesitate to spend much on interior decoration, because only her family sees the inside of her flat.”

Alaïa Opens Up His Universe (IHT)
“The designer, whose intense and personal work is the nearest to the original spirit of Parisienne couture, closed the autumn 2011 season after eight years off the runway… ‘Designers all have a world — but Alaïa has a universe.’”

Mouret Named Creative Director of Robert Clergerie (On the Runway)
“Roland Mouret… Has just been named creative director of the footwear and accessories company Robert Clergerie… Founded in 1978, has been looking to expand its profile globally since the brand was acquired in April by Fung Brands Limited.”

How Can Jeans Cost $300? (WSJ)
“It is an enduring mystery to anyone reared on $50 Levi’s: How can a pair of jeans cost as much as the Phantom, the new look from True Religion that will be priced as high as $375?… The prices of “premium” jeans… Appear to be edging slightly upward after a downturn following the financial crisis”

Becoming One of the ‘Relevant’ (NY Times)
“In January Ms. Zeva appeared in Seventeen magazine… Later she was named a judge at the WWD Magic trade show… Elle’s blog asked, “Is Bebe the new Tavi?”…  Brought her to the attention of magazines like Seventeen and Elle, and convinced Mr. Lin and Ms. Boyle that she might be a worthy subject for their documentary.”

Azzedine Alaïa | Source: New York Times

The relentless pace of the fashion industry has almost certainly contributed to the retirement, the downfall, and possibly even the death of some of the industry’s greatest creative talents. But is anyone asking questions that might lead to change? Today on the eve of his off-schedule show in Paris, BoF brings you an exclusive interview between our friends at 032c and the revered couturier Azzedine Alaïa, son of Tunisian farmers who has rejected a corporate fashion system he has called ‘inhumane’ and recently turned down the chance to replace John Galliano at Dior.

PARIS, France — Quietly outside the fashion spotlight, Rue du Moussy is Alaïa’s home and workplace. The boutique, the atelier, the showroom, the studio for private clients, the designer’s residence — it’s all here, under one roof. For more than a decade, Alaïa has premiered his collections at his own rhythm, in discrete, private défilés here. He creates one collection per season. He doesn’t advertise; very few magazines are sent clothes to feature. He rarely gives interviews, and makes no public appearances.

Everything Alaïa creates, he creates with his hands on a bust — to feel the movement of his creations he even maintains a fitting model in residence. Every piece is handmade. The clothes are there to make women even more beautiful. That is his goal. Pure and simple.

… Continue Reading

Azzedine Alaïa | Source: Lane Crawford

Azzedine Alaïa: The Master of the Female Form (NY Times)
“Maybe the notion of strong-looking fashion, based on concrete methods and examples rather than abstractions and ironic statements, is dying, and there is nobody around with the grit and stamina to map the geography of a woman’s body, as he has done for last 45 years.”

The Little Season That Could (WSJ)
“Resort has gone from mild-mannered and meekly helpful to a seasonal superpower… It’s a colorful irony that a season inspired by leisure time has become the hardest-working collection in the business.”

A Decade Of Change In The Chinese Luxury Market (Jing Daily)
“With major brands opening new, increasingly lavish, flagships on a regular basis, it’s easy to forget that China was a virtual blank slate 10 years ago, and that the market at that time was far more challenging than it is today.”

Neiman Q1 profit triples on higher luxury spending (Reuters)
“Neiman Marcus Group Inc’s quarterly profit nearly tripled as it benefited from continued gains in luxury spending. The operator… reported net income of $25.7 million for the August-October quarter, compared with $8.5 million a year earlier.”

Stylist with the key to Lady Gaga’s wardrobe (Independent)
“Among the roster of models, designers and famous faces… was one name that people beyond the industry may not have heard. The stylist Nicola Formichetti… received the Isabella Blow award for Fashion Creator.”