Miu Miu Event in Shanghai, China | Source: Miu Miu

BEIJING, China — According to Bain & Company, a consulting firm, China is currently the world’s second largest consumer of luxury goods, ahead of Japan and second only to the United States. McKinsey forecasts that by 2015, China will account for around 20 per cent, or 180 billion renminbi (US$27 billion) of global luxury sales.

With numbers like these, it’s no surprise that a major land grab is underway amongst fashion brands eager to open new stores in China. But rapid retail expansion is only one part of a comprehensive strategy for seizing the opportunity in China. Equally important are a focused approach to local PR and product strategy.

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Christopher Kane | Source: Styles and Sounds

Britain’s got it all sewn up (Telegraph)
“Ten or 15 years ago… ‘Made in Britain’ was a synonym for doomed amateurism in the fashion field. Now, through meticulous hard work… things have turned around… So let me be the first to wave the flag on behalf of the innovators who’ve created an unsung virtuous economic circle which is underpinning and developing a skilled network of factories in and around London, while also propping up the UK’s GDP.”

Marc Jacobs: Now we are ten (Independent)
“Ten years is a long time in fashion’s goldfish bowl of communal memory. The past decade takes in the birth of e-commerce, two major wars, a technology boom, the rise and rise of the stock market, followed by its subsequent crash. It’s difficult terrain to negotiate, especially when the aim is to remain not just upright but positively ebullient.”

LVMH Fund to Target Indian Lifestyle Arena (WSJ)
“LVMH Group, will launch its private equity fund in India, in an attempt to tap the burgeoning disposable income and rising aspirations of the country’s urban population, especially women… ‘We are looking at investing in companies in the lifestyle arena in Asia, primarily from the aspirational segment, meaning people who are moving from mass-produced goods to the next layer up.’”

Versace sees 2011 turnaround on Japan push (Reuters)
“Italian fashion brand Versace is going ahead with plans to re-enter Japan this year despite the quake-hit country’s woes… After the family-run company unveiled 2010 results above its own expectations, Ferraris said Versace was on track to meet its target of becoming profitable by the end of this year at the operating level.”

DVF eyes the Mainland (The D’Vine)
“Fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg has been given many titles in her life – mother, working girl (via Dolly Parton’s song of the same name), princess and president (of the Council of Fashion Designers of America). While she may never be America’s first lady in the political sense, she comes close in the sartorial stakes.”

Giambattista Valli Store, Paris | Source: Giambattista Valli

Giambattista Valli: “True Luxury Is When Others Come To You” (Style.com)
“There’s something about Giambattista Valli’s clothes that is so fundamentally optimistic, they’ve got you at hello,” said Style.com’s Tim Blanks—and last week, the designer opened his first Paris boutique, in the centuries-old Galerie de la Madeleine.”

Diane Von Furstenberg and China: A Perfect Fit? (NY Times)
“Today, there are roughly three dozen DVF boutiques worldwide, and she’s extending her reach into China, with shops in Beijing and Shanghai…’I came for the first time in 1990. And I’ve always had this fantasy. I’d like to sell every Chinese a T-shirt.’”

When friendship and fashion equal success (Financial Times)
“When launching Gilt Groupe, an online shopping site that currently has 3m members, the co-founders did not trouble to write a traditional business plan. Instead Alexis Maybank, 35 and Alexandra Wilkis Wilson, 33, took what they had learnt from Harvard Business School and bypassed the formality.”

EBay to Buy Germany’s Brands4friends (Bloomberg)
“EBay Inc., the largest e-commerce marketplace, agreed to buy brands4friends, Germany’s biggest online shopping club, to increase fashion sales in Europe.”

Seamless Sabya (Deccan Herald)
“His clothes are an extension of his personality — they’re cheery, colourful and above all, exude a strong sense of Indianness. With his mantra being ‘clothes are just extensions of one’s intellect’, B-town’s favourite designer, Sabyasachi Mukherjee has proved his mettle in the business of fashion.”

Keeping Fast Fashion Fresh, and Profitable (IHT)
“It is not often that the Grand Palais… hosts a giant Ferris Wheel, a spinning swing, a shimmering mini Eiffel Tower, and a parade of scantily clad models showing lingerie on a catwalk resembling the Champs-Élysées. In the center of this adult amusement park stood Karl-Johan Persson, 34, in his new role as chief executive of H&M Hennes & Mauritz.”

Hermès and Gucci Press Equestrian Advantage (NY Times)
“The heart of the sponsorships is not commerce but the soul of the brands. Hermès has never deviated from its noble, officer-and-gentleman image. But this is a good time to reinforce that classy conception, at a moment when luxury has become associated with a period of extravagance and excess… Last weekend’s event may turn out for Gucci to be a Masters not just in jumping, but also in handling its heritage.”

John Galliano to start men’s wear line (Independent)
“Italian fashion giant Ittierre will license John Galliano’s first men’s wear range. While Galliano is responsible for the creative direction of French luxury fashion house Dior (in addition to his own label, John Galliano), this new line will be down-to-earth in comparison, with the designer eyeing a ‘contemporary-priced, ‘urban casual’ sportswear line.’”

Tough to let go for 70-something fashion designers (Reuters)
“The passing of the artistic torch is one of the most discussed subjects in the fashion world as it can make or break the survival of the brand — but no fashion house is willing to talk about it officially. Aside from Armani, the clock is ticking for a number of other fashion companies headed by 70-something designers including Ralph Lauren and Oscar de la Renta in the United States and Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel in France.”

A fashion icon, unwrapped (Chicago Tribune)
“Meeting Diane von Furstenberg, we weren’t sure what to expect. After all, this is a woman who married a prince, made millions, graced the cover of Newsweek at age 29 and hung out with Andy Warhol… Definite diva potential. Instead, DVF …was decidedly un-diva like. No big sunglasses. No handlers. No swish of the fur à la Meryl Streep in ‘The Devil Wears Prada.’”

Left: DVF Spring 2009, right: Mercy Spring 2008 | Source: National Post

Today we introduce Legal Patterns, a new series of articles on BoF exploring fashion and the law. Just as design patterns form the foundation of good fashion design, legal frameworks enable fashion businesses to defend their financial interests and protect their designs.

BRUSSELS, Belgium — In the fashion industry, the copycatting of designs is a not a simple issue. Accusations fly in all directions: luxury houses accuse high-street brands; artisans accuse fashion houses; and fashion houses accuse other fashion houses. Indeed, Diane von Furstenberg has found herself on both sides of the issue, submitting copycatted high-street designs by Mango and Forever 21 as legal evidence in court, while herself being accused of copying a jacket designed by the Canadian brand Mercy.

Nor is this a new problem. Since their inception, houses have struggled with fashion espionage. In the past, fashion companies tried to maintain strict control over their intellectual property, not through an assertion of legal rights, but by physically hiding their designs from competitors. In the 1950s, for instance, Christian Dior’s press officer insisted that “all precautions must have been taken to ensure that no member of the profession [e.g. fashion designers, manufacturers, milliners] would be attending” their fashion shows.

Until a few years ago, fashion houses religiously pursued this strategy of strict control. But with the rise of blogging and fast fashion, this approach no longer works. Today’s fashion world is faster and more transparent than ever, blurring the line between what is ‘copying’ and what is ‘inspiration’ and putting new pressure on fashion houses to protect their intellectual property.

Can the law help?

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