Diego Della Valle | Source: Marie Claire

Lunch with the FT: Diego Della Valle (FT)
“Tod’s is a success story that continues to show impressive growth: half-year results of the €800m company released this week show sales up by 16.4 per cent from the corresponding period last year and net income up by 26.7 per cent… Tod’s is nothing if not a global concern and, as with most luxury goods companies, eyes are looking hungrily eastwards.”

Luxury retailers worry that shoppers may pull back on spending (LA Times)
“The luxury sector has been a consistent bright spot in the retail industry this year, posting robust sales month after month as wealthy shoppers spent freely on designer handbags, shoes and jewelry…But luxury shopping is tied closely to stock market performance. Analysts said rich shoppers could pull back again if their portfolios take a big enough hit and if they sense long-term volatility.”

Ben Sherman poaches Burberry director as part of makeover (Independent)
“Ben Sherman, one of Britain’s oldest menswear brands, has poached Burberry merchandising chief Adrian Ward-Rees as part of a makeover for the 48-year-old business… The brand, famous for its 1960s Mod associations, wants to do a “Burberry” or a “Mini” and reinvent itself as a top global menswear brand.”

Artistic licence: The most influential make-up artist in the world (Independent)
“As the global creative director for Chanel beauty– creating looks for that company’s runway shows, beauty advertising campaigns and the product itself, from nail polish to lipstick, worn by millions, if not billions, of women – he is the most influential of his profession by far… Among many other beauty moments, it was Philips who created the extraordinary underwater alien look for Alexander McQueen’s final show, Plato’s Atlantis.”

Fight On (Vogue UK)
“Christian Louboutin’s lawyer says the shoe designer plans to “fight like hell” against YSL’s attempt to overturn his re-sole trademark – and plans to file an appeal against the judge’s denial of his requested injunction… Last week the judge ruled that Yves Saint Laurent could continue to produce the shoes in the meantime and hinted that Louboutin’s monopoly on the colour could be set to end.”

Gilt Men's Shirt Shop | Source: Gilt

Bargains on Flash Sale Sites Serve a Long-Range View (NY Times)
“Flash sale Web sites, a thriving e-commerce trend to promote limited-time sales, started as a way for brands to unload excess inventory… But now they have become something else: a way to advertise and find new customers, many of whom visit the sites of the brands and buy full-price merchandise soon after the sales.”

Olympics Ahoy! (IHT)
“Love of sport was once seen as the male equivalent of a woman’s passion for fashion. But now sport itself — riding, tennis or fencing — is the heart of fashion. The Olympics next year seem to have energized Milan men’s wear for spring/summer 2012.”

Supergroup faces battle to prove it is no flash in the pan (Independent)
“Above all, the group has been dogged by suggestions its Superdry brand could succumb to a similar slump in profits and its share price to French Connection… Indeed, it is now commonplace to see men aged from 20 to 45-years old to be wearing a black Superdry jacket… prompting concerns about over-saturation.”

Versace For H&M (Vogue UK)
“Versace will design for H&M this year, becoming the latest high fashion label to work with the Swedish high street brand. ‘I am thrilled to be collaborating with H&M and to have the opportunity of reaching its wide audience,’ Donatella Versace said.”

The House That Loafers Built (Forbes)
“The chairman and CEO of Tod’s has made the Gommino, as the loafer is called, as iconic as Hermes’ Birkin bag or Chanel’s tweed jacket… Mr. Della Valle runs Tod’s, Hogan (famous for its sneakers), Roger Vivier and Fay (a ready to wear label). He also owns a significant interest… in the American retail chain Saks Fifth Avenue.”

Gucci Autumn/Winter 2011 details | Source: Style.com

Sleek and Luxe (IHT)
“‘I wanted to play with color, a little of the 1970s and a lot of irony,’ said Ms. Giannini backstage, after the parade of fabulous Ms. Fox furs in turquoise, purple, rust and lilac wrapped around the shoulders above slim leather dresses or those sporty jackets with pleated culotte skirts that looked a lot like Yves Saint Laurent archives updated.”

The Kiddie Couturiers (NY Times)
““Kiddie couturiers” are perhaps the ultimate, inevitable result of a fashion culture that is obsessed with youth… and a youth culture that is obsessed with fashion…But the fact that fashion has become a field that is so easy for a tween to crack says a lot about how much the perception of a designer has changed. The allure of fashion is no longer the craft, but the flash.”

Saks turns a profit, sees higher sales this year (Reuters)
“Saks reported a quarterly profit as it sold more items at full price and forecast continued sales growth at its established luxury department stores, sending its shares up nearly 5 percent… sales at stores open at least a year rose 8.4 percent in the holiday quarter as shoppers resumed spending on expensive dresses, handbags and shoes.”

A Conversation With Tod’s Owner Diego Della Valle (Huffington Post)
“As the fashion flock moves to Milan for the fall/winter 2011 collections, Tod’s chairman Diego Della Valle, fondly called the Italian Ralph Lauren, talks about his life-long pursuit of Italian excellence, the reason why he bought shares at Saks and his part in keeping the Kennedy legacy alive.”

8 Must Know Fashion Show Producers (Luxury Society)
“[As] blogger’s, stylists and PR teams move across to Milan, we bring you a round up of the must-know event producers behind the catwalks… We investigated major fashion show producers and present a selection from around the globe.”

“If you want to do luxury you need to be specialised because if you do everything, you are a brand…you’re not in the luxury business.”

Diego Della Valle, Chairman of Tods Group, commenting to Crane.TV on what it takes to be successful in the luxury business.

Backstage at Thakoon | Source: Thakoon

A Faster Trip From Runway to Shopping Cart (WSJ)
“Collections of dozens of high-end design houses in New York, London, Milan and Paris will be opened up to individual shoppers, who will be able to place orders on a site called Moda Operandi, or modaoperandi.com.”

Chinese firms eye luxury’s battered stars (Reuters)
“Luxury Western brands selling designer handbags and handmade suits to China’s newly-rich, may find their local distributors want a bigger role or even ownership given the $10 billion market is booming.”

PVH reports decline in 2Q net income, ups forecast (Bloomberg)
“PVH reported a drop in its third-quarter net income due largely to several one-time items. The company said Thursday that it earned $80.7 million, or $1.12 per share, for the quarter. That compares with $83.6 million, or $1.58 per share, in the same quarter last year.”

The blurring of fashion and art (FT)
“Next weekend luminaries of the art and fashion worlds will be converging on Miami for the Art Basel Miami Beach art fair but they are not the only sign of the increasingly close relationships between the worlds of fashion and art.”

Tod’s CEO offers to fund Colosseum repair (Reuters)
“Italian luxury group Tod’s is ready to provide 25 million euros to fund the restoration of Rome’s Colosseum, chief executive Diego Della Valle said on Thursday, urging authorities to make a decision on the project soon.”