L-R Rick Owens, Balmain, Balenciaga S/S 2012 | Source: Style.com

Raid the Archives With Caution (NY Times)
“Mr. Ghesquiere can come away refreshed from the Balenciaga archive, but for most designers the postwar couture is an element in the cut-and-paste process that largely defines current fashion. Designers saw the Madame Grès exhibition here this summer; they know Balenciaga’s volumes and bullring pomp by heart. But they always have to do something extreme to make you think it’s new.”

Don’t Forget the Clothes! (IHT)
“They are the champions of the Internet age — designers who can tap into the ultra-modernity of image and sound as part of a multimedia experience. But as the catwalk moves into cyber space, there should be one dictum: Don’t forget the clothes! Two fashion labels — the revived Mugler brand and the British-born Gareth Pugh — were in the same territory as the Paris season clicked onto spring/summer 2012. Or make that the year 2099 as these shows streaked into the future.”

H&M cost control cushions fall in profits (Reuters)
“Hennes & Mauritz accelerated its expansion plan and said it was gaining market share as it delivered a fall in third-quarter profits that was smaller than feared. The world’s no.2 fashion retailer suffered a 15 percent drop in third-quarter profit, hit by costs such as higher cotton prices. It said sales so far in the fourth quarter were below its expectations and markets remained challenging.”

From shopping sprees to marketing technique (FT)
“So-called ‘haulers’ are tween-to-twentysomething, largely female shoppers who haul their purchases back home and post video reviews on YouTube for their followers to watch…Chris Sanderson, co-founder of The Future Laboratory, a trends and innovation consultancy, says: ‘If that’s your world, to go to the shops and show off your stuff, then it’s incredible. This becomes a whole new mechanism for [retailers to] understand and target a demographic’.”

Official: Alexander McQueen is cooler than Chanel (Telegraph)
“Alexander McQueen, the British fashion label that scored the commission of the century – designing Kate Middleton’s wedding dress – has topped a list of cool designer fashion brands… The label, headed up by creative director Sarah Burton since Lee McQueen’s death in 2010, came eleventh overall in the 2011 list of cool global brands – four places ahead of iconic Parisian fashion brand, Chanel, at number 15.”

Anna Wintour, Cindi Leive and Roberta Myers

2009′s Most Powerful Fashion Magazine Editors (Forbes)
“This year, moving pictures mattered to U.S. magazine editors like never before.”

Gucci Group sees Balenciaga as a rising star (Forbes)
“Balenciaga, the trendy fashion house favoured by actresses such as Charlotte Gainsbourg, is the fastest growing brand within the Gucci Group and meeting all pre-crisis targets, its head said on Monday.”

Primark delivers ‘stunning’ sales (Independent)
“Primark, the discount fashion retailer, has posted recession-defying sales in its second half, and vowed to press ahead with its store opening programme.”

‘Time Style & Design’ Quarterly is No More (Media Post)
“Time Inc. is suspending publication of fashion quarterly Time Style & Design because of the collapse of the luxury market.”

A Decade Sophisticated but Louder (New York Times)
“With the spring 2010 collections beginning in less than a week, let’s take a moment to reflect on what designers have wrought over the decade that is coming to an end. What will fashion of the aughties be remembered for, if anything more than hipster uniforms and the Olsen twins?”

At what point does referencing and inspiration turn into blatant copying? It’s a question that is increasingly on the minds of designers — particularly young designers and small brands — who don’t have the legal muscle (read: cold hard cash) and time to defend the integrity of their designs.

In other creative disciplines like music, writing and visual art, it is much easier to defend copying. In fashion, referencing, inspiration, and trends form the backbone of our industry (just check out this long list of adventures in fashion copyright). So, where do we draw the line?

Case 1:  Steve Madden
Sometimes it’s quite straightforward to see what is going on.  A post on Manolo’s shoe blog alerted us to this blatant copy of the Balenciaga sportiletto shoe. Some may find it amazing that anyone would even wear these shoes, but I find it amazing that any company would be so brazen as to rip designs off in this way. 

As Manolo points out, it’s not the first time that Steve Madden has been seen to blatantly copy the designs of other brands.  It really makes me lose all respect for Steve Madden. Perhaps if the company’s executives saw the passion, perseverance and energy that go into innovative designs like these, they would understand why anyone who respects the creative process would be aghast at these actions. It’s unacceptable.

Case 2:  Diane von Furstenberg
On the other hand, sometimes it’s a lot more tricky to prove that designs have been copied.

"What if a very well known designer, one that say, would be on the vanguard of copyright protection (and going as far as lobbying Congress), were to be discovered to have, shall we say ‘dipped a toe into the knock-off pool as well?’ "

This was the note we received from an anonymous reader, lets call her Freda, with the accompanying photo. While Freda didn’t identify any of the designers or brands in question, it wasn’t too difficult to determine that garment B is from Diane von Furstenberg’s Spring/Summer 08 collection, which is in stores now.

What is a lot more difficult to determine is whether there is a case for copying here.  While Freda was very careful to underline that she is not making any accusations at all, she did note that another designer had put out garment A a full year and a half before garment B came out. Freda also asserts that she is not directly connected to either of the two designs in question.

"Throughout my career as both a textile designer and clothing designer and merchandiser, I have been continuously exposed to knocking off and being knocked off," she said.

"But, there is also such a concept as the public domain. Did Gucci do the flat ballet slipper with the big medallion before or after Tory Burch?  Did Prada’s 2-tone ballet slippers so popular a few seasons ago infringe on Chanel’s original concept? Did Versace’s status prints of the 80′s infringe conceptually on Gucci and Hermes?  Where does one draw the line? And if the line is so blurred, why lobby Congress?"

Freda wanted to float these questions in the most "neutral court of public opinion," and we were happy to oblige. It makes for a very interesting discussion, especially when someone  who is representing the CFDA in order to stop copying can be accused of doing the same.

So what do you think? Is this copying or coincidence? And where do we draw the line?

It’s been a blisteringly busy Paris fashion week here at the BoF, but we’ve been taking everything in and can finally share some of our views on all the action — and the business implications. This season, we were most interested in Balenciaga and Givenchy — the new Paris establishment — and the series of brand revivalists – including Stuart Vevers at Loewe, Estaban Cortazar at Ungaro and Alessandra Facchinetti at Valentino. Today, the new establishment. Tomorrow, the brand revivalists.

After what was widely considered a tour-de-force from Nicolas Ghesquiere  last season, the anticipation was building for a Balenciaga for A/W 2008. He did not disappoint, picking up on last season’s modern, sculpted silhouette (which, incidentally has also popped up in other collections this season from Marchesa to Bruno Pieters) and producing a more wearable, but still distinctive, collection. Ghesquiere is solidifying his place as the leader of the new Paris establishment.

Perhaps one reason why Ghesquiere is beginning to focus on gradually channeling his outstanding ideas in a more commercial direction (and we mean that in the best sense) is because he is reported to have about a 10% stake in the business. It’s very smart for designers to have their interests aligned with the brand owners. Everybody wins.

Then last night, Riccardo Tisci wowed the 900 people who assembled at Le Carreau du Temple with a genius collection for Givenchy. A new square runway format allowed almost everyone to take in the slick tailoring with ruffles and rouching up close. You could almost reach out and touch Tisci’s new signature for Givenchy.

He also allowed the Givenchy girl to add a bit of a muted colour palette to her wardrobe and there were no signs of a polkadot or Swiss-cheese fabric in sight, though some of the later looks were perhaps a bit heavy on the embellishment.

On our way out, we saw Carine Roitfeld racing towards the backstage area, with a huge smile on her face. The designer she has been supporting since his debut at Givenchy had proven her instincts correct. But while Tisci can be credited with the successful revival of Givenchy, credit must also go to a brand with a great heritage and CEO who meshes very well with the designer.

This powerful troika should have the cash registers at Givenchy’s new Paris store on the rue du Faubourg St Honore ringing like the one-armed bandits in Las Vegas. At tonight’s store opening, a super-chic elegant crowd, sporting Givenchy looks and those oh-so-hot Givenchy bags, feted the designer once again in the understated, minimalist space that lets the clothes, shoes and bags do all the talking.