Jimmy Choo for H&M, courtesy of H&M

Jimmy Choo to Design for H&M (WSJ)
“Swedish fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz AB on Wednesday unveiled the name of its next designer collection team-up: British accessory brand Jimmy Choo.”

Burberry Chief Says Luxury Demand Is ‘Stabilizing’ (Bloomberg)
“Burberry Group Plc Chief Executive Officer Angela Ahrendts said luxury demand is leveling out as the market slowdown nears its first anniversary.”

Tod’s CEO sees some growth in 2009 (Reuters)
“Italian luxury shoe and bag maker Tod’s should see growth in 2009 despite the global economic downturn, its chairman and chief executive said on Tuesday.”

Pitti Uomo: Resilient mood on Day Two (Drapers)
“Exhibitors remained in a resilient mood at Pitti Uomo despite a quiet opening day and a general absence of UK buyers.”

Jude Law for Dunhill 09, courtesy of Dunhill

Richemont Creates Post To Turn Around Ailing Brands (WSJ)
“The world’s second-largest luxury company by sales named Martha Wikstrom, 52, head of a portfolio comprising most of Richemont’s less-prominent brands, including Alfred Dunhill and Lancel, which market so-called soft luxury goods such as leather and fashion.”

Burberry eyes expansion in U.S. (Guardian)
“While other retailers apply the brakes on expansion, Burberry plans to open 10 to 15 stores this fiscal year, with five stores planned in North and South America.”

J. Crew Profit Falls 33 percent Amid More Markdowns (WSJ)
“J. Crew Group Inc.’s fiscal first-quarter profit tumbled 33 percent on inventory markdowns, but shares rose in late trading as its results exceeded estimates.”

Italy’s Della Valle says Saks stake strategic investment (Reuters)
“Della Valle has acquired a 5.9 percent stake in Saks and last week told Italian newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore he intended to increase it, without saying by how much. Reports have said he has an option to go to 10 percent.”

Burberry S/S 09 ad campaign, courtesy of Burberry

Burberry Prorsum to show at London Fashion Week (Catwalkingqueen)
“Christopher Bailey will bring the label’s 2010 spring collection to town to celebrate the 25th anniversary of LFW and the British Fashion Council. This will be followed by a special event hosted at Burberry’s brand spanking new headquarters.”

M&A passes luxury brands by (FT)
“The downturn in the luxury goods industry is the worst in 20 years, according to Johann Rupert, chairman and member of the founding family of Richemont. Conventional wisdom would have it that conditions are thus ripe for a wave of consolidation in the still-fragmented industry. But analysts caution the catalysts for consolidation are not yet in place.”

Versace Said Likely to Fire CEO Today After Conflict (Bloomberg)
The Versace saga continued to play out over the weekend in Milan.  “Gianni Versace SpA’s board meets tonight and will decide the fate of Chief Executive Officer Giancarlo Di Risio, who may be fired after tensions flared over creative control with Donatella Versace, exacerbating disputes over cost cuts, three people familiar with the situation said.”

Aquascutum Group May Be Acquired by Hong Kong’s YGM (Bloomberg)
“Aquascutum Group Plc, the 158-year- old label favored by British royalty and actor Pierce Brosnan, may be sold to the Hong Kong clothier that distributes the label in China and Southeast Asia. Japan’s Renown Inc., which bought the British label in 1990 for about 20 billion yen ($211 million), today named Hong Kong- based YGM Trading Ltd. as the preferred bidder for the unit.”

American Apparel ad campaign, courtesy of American Apparel

Take the money and run: Allen wins $5m for stolen image (Guardian)
“Several million dollars richer, and with his reputation more or less intact, Woody Allen successfully reached a last-minute settlement in a bruising legal battle with one of America’s most headline-prone high-street brands.” (Click here for Dov Charney’s statement and here for BoF’s previous article on Shockvertising)

Burberry Posts Loss on Discount Sales, Spain Impairment Charge (Bloomberg)
“The London-based maker of $1,295 checked Lowry handbags lost 5.1 million pounds ($7.8 million), or 1.4 pence a share, compared with profit of 135.2 million pounds, or 30.5 pence, a year earlier, according to a statement today.”

DHL invests over HK$100 million in Fashion Competency Center (FinChannel.com)
“The investment is part of a series of initiatives by DHL to expand its presence in the fashion industry. Earlier this year, DHL launched Fashion Centers of Excellence in India and Sri Lanka. In April, the company inaugurated its Fashion-focused DHL Leadership Dialogue Series in Hong Kong which saw participation from leading global fashion brands.”

M&S rejigs management as profits crash (Drapers)
“Marks & Spencer saw profits tumble from £1 billion to £604.4 million for the 52 weeks ended March 28, prompting a reshuffle of its management team which has resulted in the departure of director Carl Leaver.”

Firms Get Creative in Tough Times (WWD)
“In a down economy, focusing on the details and leveraging new technology is more important than macro trends, fashion executives said at a small business conference.” (Subscription required)

“

Burberry S/S 09 ad campaign, courtesy of Burberry

Burberry wholesale sales slide (Drapers)
“Burberry’s revenue rose 2% on an underlying basis and grew by 21% to £663 million for the six months ended March 31 but the luxury brand warned that wholesale sales would slide further in the next six months.”

Do Discount Designer Duds Make The Grade? (WSJ)
“Recession-scarred retailers are turning to collections of cheap-but-chic designer clothing to lure customers who love fashion but are watching their pennies.”

Primark sales hit £1bn in first half (Drapers)
“Primark’s sales rose 18% to bust the billion pound barrier for the 24 weeks ended February 28.”

Banking Concerns Push Retail Stocks Down Monday (WWD)
“Equity markets fell Monday, dragging retail stocks down 3.8 percent as investors fretted over signs of continuing weakness in the banking sector.” (Subscription required)

Amanda Wakeley returns home (Telegraph)
“Amanda Wakeley, the British red carpet designer, has returned in triumph to the fashion scene, as the owner of her own label for the first time in more than a decade.”

Burberry Store, courtesy of Bloomberg

Burberry cut to neutral at J.P. Morgan (WSJ)
“J.P. Morgan downgraded fashion company Burberry group to neutral from overweight, saying the group is now trading at a 5 percent discount to the luxury goods sector, compared to a historical average discount of 20 percent.”

Taobao Partners with UNIQLO to Grow China’s Online Fashion Market (Businesswire)
“UNIQLO, a new-style casual wear brand under Japan’s leading apparel retail group Fast Retailing Co., today announced a strategic partnership to launch the online sales business of UNIQLO’s casual wear products in China.”

Apparel Prices Slip in March, Up on Year (WWD)
“Recessionary pressures created volatility in retail apparel prices in March.” (Subscription required)

Net-a-Porter launches off price website (Drapers)
“Net-a-Porter has launched its off price designer fashion website theOutnet.com, (which) sells around 200 luxury brands at prices discounted by up to 80%.”

Chinese New Year, photo courtesy of chateaugranville.com

Lunar New Year May Be a Tough Holiday for Sales (WSJ)
In China, companies are using discounts and clever marketing practices to make people spend during the Lunar New Year holiday.

Burberry to axe Thomas Burberry (Drapers)
Burberry’s bridge line, Thomas Burberry, will be shut down but the company reported surprisingly strong sales for Q3, up 9 percent on a constant currency basis.

Iodice To Give Away Free Dresses Instead of Staging Runway Show (WSJ)
Iodice, the emerging New York-based label, is opting for a showroom presentation and plans to entice  press and buyers by giving away free dresses.

Coach Profits Fall 14 Percent (WWD)
Once a robust, profit-making business, Coach has posted a 14 percent decline in Q2 profits. (Subscription required)

Mihara Yasuhiro, courtesy of IHT

Newcomers defy the odds in men’s fashion (IHT)
Unfazed by the current dismal state of the economy, emerging designers such as Mihara Yasuhiro are bravely forging on with their menswear collections.

Burberry Sales Rise, but Layoffs Are Planned (WWD)
Though Burberry’s Q3 sales went up 30%, the company plans to embark on serious cost-cutting measures. (Subscription required)

Retailers on the Extinction List (Seeking Alpha)
“Companies that over-expanded during the previous economic cycle,” are now closing their stores.

Consumer Spending: Last Bastion of U.S. Economy in Full Retreat (Seeking Alpha)
In past economic slowdowns, America’s consumer spending kept the economy afloat, but not this time.

Curtain to lift on Wills Fashion Week from March 20 (Fibre2Fashion)
Wills Lifestyle is on board with the FDCI for India Fashion Week in March.

Online fashion firm ASOS H1 profit up 68 pct (The Guardian)
In another signal that affordable online retailers could fare better than bricks and mortar operations in the economic downturn, ASOS H1 profit rockets up 68%.

H&M Still In Fashion (Forbes)
“Swedish-fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz posted a decent set of October sales.” But “analysts warned the company would not be able to avoid the ripple effects of the global financial crisis.”

Has Abercrombie Lost Its Shirt? (Motley Fool)
Abercrombie & Fitch’s  skimpy aesthetic is also reflected in the company’s declining sales performance for Q3 2008.

Profits flat at Burberry (Drapers)
“Burberry saw sales rise 20% in the first half of the year with pre-tax profit flat during the period, but warned of tougher trading since the start of the second half.”

Adidas to launch new brand (Drapers)
Adidas will launch SLVR, a new lifestyle collection which “will sit alongside Adidas’ Y-3 and Adidas Originals sub-brands.”

ASOS homepage, photo courtesy of ASOS.

While London is often the spark of new ideas and New York is confidently commercial, the Milan shows usually sit somewhere in between. They may not be the pushing the limits of fashion in terms of new ideas, but they specialise in striking the right balance between commerce and creativity.

Many buyers and editors complained of an uncharacteristically inconsistent offering from Milan’s usually focused designers last week. But we think there was a lot to be impressed by in Milan, especially from the some of the heavyweight brands who show there.

Take Burberry, for example. Christopher Bailey is on a clear winning streak, softening his approach this season with the perfect autumnal mood for the urban birds who walked down his catwalk of  "optimistic melancholy." (Theurban birds term was cleverly coined by Tim Blanks; Bailey loved it. We think its perfect).

… Continue Reading