Loewe Spring/Summer 2012 | Source: Her World Plus

LVMH Profit Meets Estimates, Sees 2012 Growth (Bloomberg)
“LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA (MC), the world’s largest maker of luxury goods, reported full-year profit that met analysts’ estimates and said it’s “well- equipped” to maintain growth in 2012. Net income rose 1 percent to 3.07 billion euros ($4 billion) in 2011, the Paris-based maker of Zenith watches said today.”

In cities, clothes maketh the man (China Daily)
“Cosmetics are not the only luxury goods attracting increasing numbers of Chinese men. More than 76 percent of urban males bought clothes in 2010, with 24 percent regarding clothes as ‘important purchases’, according to Chinese market researchers CTR.”

Luxury Flash Sales Sites Regroup After Layoffs (BetaBeat)
“Mass flash sales—deep discounts that expire usually after one to three days—had been touted as the first real innovation in e-commerce in years, and start-ups that applied the flash-sales phenomenon to the luxury market had investors salivating. But the former venture capital darlings suddenly seemed to be hemorrhaging employees.”

Polo Puzzle: What Goes Into a $155 Price Tag? (WSJ)
“Every piece of clothing has a story: There’s far more to a $155 polo shirt than a yard of fabric, four buttons and a length of thread. The tale of a KP MacLane polo shirt offers a rare look inside the planning and global transactions behind the clothes people wear.”

Following A Legend (Vogue)
“The film, entitled Bill Cunningham New York, profiles the visionary 81-year-old taking pictures on an old Nikon camera of its best dressed residents. Directed and produced by Richard Press, the documentary features anecdotes from New York’s biggest names, from Anna Wintour to best-selling author Tom Wolfe.”

Bernard Arnault | Source: Fashion Pile

Bernard Arnault Rethinks the Cult of Fashion Gurus (Newsweek)
“Arnault suggests it’s time for change, time to recast his global, glittering, status-laden empire as something else. The watchwords are: intimate, Old World, artful. And the timing feels right… After all, Arnault has learned that rock-star designers come and go. ‘A good product,’ he says, ‘can last forever.’”

SuperGroup rebuts critics as sales soar (Guardian)
“… The fast-growing retailer behind the Superdry fashion brand, has hit back at detractors… Supergroup reported retail sales up 48 percent for the first 10 weeks of the financial year… They are still trading well below the high of nearly £19 but remain more than double last year’s float price of 500p.”

China and M&A keep luxury stocks strong (Reuters)
“Chinese demand for premium brands will help luxury stocks continue to outperform even in the face of a shaky U.S. recovery, inflation in Asia and peripheral Europe’s debt crisis… With demand from emerging economies helping the sector rebound from the global credit crisis, luxury companies have also been active on the IPO markets.”

Made to Measure (Marketing Week)
“…The DIY trend is about consumers using new self-service brands to achieve and create professional-quality products, goods or services… ‘As the power of the high street diminishes further, and more store groups start to disappear, people will want greater choice and bespoke offers that.’”

Nothing Sells like a Duchess (IHT)
“In the duchess’s case, much like that of Michelle Obama, every designer she wears is likely to see an immediate impact on sales… The duchess has been praised for projecting a youthful freshness without being remotely bare, for wearing the work of a number of London designers.”

Gisele for H&M Summer 2011 | Source: H&M

Fast fashion: Is the party over? (Telegraph)
“Following on from H&M’s shock results in the final quarter of 2010 which saw profits fall 11 per cent, fashion comparison website Stylecompare.co.uk has today reported that year-on-year sales of ‘low end’ retailers fell by 21 per cent, as consumers flock to ‘mid range’ and eco brands for their fashion fixes.”

Why Is This Man Smiling? (NY Times)
“Mr. Hsieh’s success has been built in part on his ability to anatomize the way people crave connections with others, and turn those insights into a business plan… Zappos is able to pay below market salaries for its more senior workers… Recruiters boast that it is harder to get a job at Zappos than to get admitted to Harvard.”

Bernard Arnault Goes to Washington (WWD)
“Bernard Arnault hit the nation’s capital Thursday like a politician on the campaign trail. The chairman… first met President Obama at the White House — where they discussed everything from globalization to employment — and then that night received the Corporate Citizenship award from the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.”

Alexander McQueen’s Haunting World (Newsweek)
“He’d never analyze what made sense or not. It was personal and emotional, and he never wanted to water it down.’ The stagecraft and technical wizardry showed off McQueen’s capabilities as a designer. He was a skilled tailor who could also drape a glorious gown without benefit of a pattern. And his personal story… made him a dangerous and magnetic presence.”

Lunch with the FT: François Pinault (FT)
“A self-made luxury goods magnate, Pinault is internationally acclaimed for his cutting-edge art collection… But in France he has never shaken off a reputation as something of a wide-boy who made his wealth through takeovers of ailing companies, aided by political friendships… ‘French people … look at Pinault as a pirate.’”

François-Henri Pinault | Source: Coolspotters

PPR Chief to Run Gucci Himself (NY Times)
“The French luxury magnate François-Henri Pinault said… he would personally take charge of Gucci Group as he reorganizes its parent company to focus on the most profitable businesses. Robert Polet, who has headed Gucci since 2004, will be stepping down in a few weeks… Mr. Pinault also said Paul Deneve would replace Valérie Hermann as chief executive of Yves Saint Laurent.”

At Marc Jacobs, the Show Before the Show (NY Times)
“‘Sometimes, I don’t know how we got from there to here,’ Mr. Duffy said, referring to the early days of his 27-year partnership with Mr. Jacobs, when the two of them constructed sets themselves and went around ‘with a tin cup’ to friends. ‘Nobody has any idea what it takes to do all this,’ he added.”

Hermès Wants LVMH to Cut Stake to Free Up Shares in the Market (Bloomberg)
“Hermès wants LVMH to reduce its stake by more than half to free up shares on the open market… With the family controlling more than 70 percent of Hermès stock, ‘it’s not normal’ that LVMH Chief Executive Officer Bernard Arnault should hold 20.2 percent of the shares, Bertrand Puech said in an interview in Paris yesterday. ‘We want him to reduce his stake to less than 10 percent.’”

Cinderella Dreams, Shoestring Budget? No Problem (WSJ)
“If consumers can rent a movie by mail, or wheels on a whim, why not a couture gown should the occasion strike? That’s the concept behind Rent the Runway, a website launched in November 2009 that promises to give ‘every woman the opportunity to be Cinderella for the night’.”

Cast Your Vote for Calgary (NY Times)
“Imran Amed, the founder and editor of the popular Web site The Business of Fashion, has teamed with the renowned British leather craftsman Bill Amberg to create a new line of unisex totes designed with the globetrotting fashion follower in mind.”

Olivier Zahm Self-Portrait | Source: purple DIARY

For Fashion’s Bad Boy, No Secrets (NY Times)
“[With Purple] and often salacious photographic blog, purple-diary.com, Mr. Zahm, a former art critic, has become a demi-celebrity in the fashion world. He likens himself to Andy Warhol, who managed a similar feat with Interview.”

Discount luxury e-tailer BrandAlley to launch a crowdsourced platform (Independent)
“Discount luxury e-tailer BrandAlley is launching a new virtual platform… Taking a cue from the rising trend of crowdsourcing, Le Lab will allow BrandAlley Web users to vote on and decide which designs make it into production.”

Master of the Brand: Bernard Arnault (Forbes)
“Though LVMH quickly denied it would try to take control of the 173-year-old Hermès, the stage is clearly set. It may be a long drama: Three-quarters of the company is still in the hands of 200 Hermès family members. Winning them over could take decades.”

Adidas raises earnings guidance for 2011 (FT)
“Adidas, Europe’s biggest sports goods maker, gave its first indications of how economic recovery will extend into next year, saying it expects earnings growth of up to 15 percent in 2011 after raising its guidance on 2010 earnings for the third time.”

Window Dressing Warriors (NY Times)
“David Hoey [and] Linda Fargo, have dressed windows for 14 years… During that period, they have earned Bergdorf a reputation for decadent, intellectual art pieces that tickle both street crowds and museum snobs alike.”