Monte Carlo, Monaco

MONTE CARLO, Monaco — The global luxury industry has descended on the luxurious and beautiful principality of Monaco to discuss the future of luxury at the Financial Times Business of Luxury Summit at a time when there seem to be far more questions than answers. I am delighted to be representing Luxury Society, which is an official media partner of the conference.

To start off the conference, we heard from Bernard Arnault, Chairman and Chief Executive of LVMH, who sounded an optimistic tone, but acknowledged that the luxury industry will never be the same as it has been in recent boom times. He also touched on the crucial importance of the internet, sustainable development and selective distribution (i.e. the ongoing battle with the EU over distribution of luxury goods online) in the coming years. You can get a taste of Mr. Arnault’s speech from this video on the FT site and this article by the FT’s Vanessa Friedman.

Yesterday, with some encouragement from other participants, we set up a hashtag for our BoF Twitter reporting. For more reporting from the conference and to join the ongoing dialogue going on in the stunning Salle des Etoiles at Le Sporting Monte Carlo, check out the Twitter hashtag, #montecarlux, where you can also find tweets on the Summit from fellow conference attendees Alexandra Wilkis Wilson of Gilt Groupe, James Gardner of CreateThe Group, Oliver Walsh of Wednesday,  and Susan Tabak of Chic in Paris, amongst others.

Finally, please be sure to check out our latest contribution to the Financial Times which was published in today’s Business of Luxury supplement, discussing the Power of Pricing for luxury brands in today’s environment of wild currency fluctuations.

Japan slips into recession (FT)
According to FT, “the Japanese economy entered its first recession in seven years.”

Brioni Seeks Minority Investor (WWD)
Brioni is said to be selling a 20-25 percent stake of its company.

The Green revolution: Sir Philip Green (The Scotsman)
Sir Phillip Green will have his eye on the many high-street fashion companies up for sale next year.

Will London’s First Luxury Mall Spur Spending? (Ad Age)
A faltering economy and the fact that malls are not a huge part of the European shopping culture could make Westfield London a tough sell.

Street scene in Shibuya, Tokyo courtesy of  Guwashi99, under Creative Commons.

MUMBAI, India and SHANGHAI, China – If it’s the Monday of Milan Fashion Week, it also means that the Financial Times has published its regular supplement on The Business of Fashion. We’re a couple of days late, so in case you missed it, here is a link to a PDF of the entire supplement available on the FT’s Partnership Publishing site.

Amongst the best reads are a fascinating article by Josh Sims featuring a brand that I have come to know well in recent times, Clemens en August. Founder Alexander Brenninkmeijer ably describes the counter-intuitive, but successful business model that underpins this innovative company. Another article, on A Bathing Ape, asserts that the Japanese streetwear company has a 98% sell-through on its goods and suggests they might be looking for an investor.

I also made my own contribution to the supplement in an article exploring the short- and longer-term potential of the Indian luxury market. I was fortunate to speak to Yves Carcelle of Louis Vuitton, Patrick Thomas of Hermes, Amin Jaffer of Christies, Mohan Murjani of the Murjani Group, Priya Tanna of Vogue India and the French jewelry designer Marie Helene de Taillac, to get their expert points of view from inside and outside the sub-continent.

So what’s the quick verdict? Is India going to be the next China? The answer appears to be ‘not just yet’.

Today, the Financial Times published its regular Business of Fashion supplement, chock full of industry updates and in-depth articles on the issues that are shaping the industry. It really is a must-read for everyone in the fashion business, whether you are a creative or a corporate, or somewhere in between.

This time, we contributed an article, How to reach second base online, encouraging established luxury and fashion companies to start thinking about Internet as a communication tool, not just a tool for selling and advertising.  In fact, if done cleverly, this can be used to re-establish the communication and relationships that Luxury Goods companies were once known for.

We would love to hear what you are thinking on Fashion 2.0 these days, and about any brands that you think are leading the way. The full PDF of the article is available here.

We are excited to share the news that our first published article appears in today’s Financial Times.

The article links the shift in luxury goods production out of Italy to a recent spree of investments and licensing agreements that have taken place between emerging brands and established Italian houses with high quality production facilities. These deals have provided young brands like Proenza Schouler, Derek Lam and Sophia Kokosalaki with access to top class production, solving one of the major headaches of launching a high-end fashion business.

It appears in one of my favourite supplements for getting the low-down on happenings in the fashion business: Financial Times – The Business of Fashion. There are some very interesting reads, including Vanessa Friedman’s Q&A with Dana Thomas, author of the much-discussed book "Deluxe", my friend Robb Young’s take on the new movers and shakers in the fashion business, and Godfrey Deeny’s revelations about fashion’s power brokers in the Middle East.

If you can get your hand on the supplement, it’s definitely worth a read. Unfortunately, none of the content appears on the FT.com site as yet, but in the meantime, please click here to have a look at the article on Italian investments.

Many column inches and much screenspace has been dedicated to Valentino over the past few weeks. The Business of Fashion has been no exception to this trend. What with the acquisition of Valentino by Permira, the celebration of Valentino’s 45th anniversary at the helm of his eponymous label in Rome last weekend, and the announcement of a 45% investment in Proenza Schouler by Valentino Fashion Group this past week, there has been much to write about — or, more specifically, to speculate on.

Will Valentino continue to design for his label or was this party the beginning of the end? How well will Permira be able to manage Valentino, their first investment in luxury fashion? What will Permira do with the tiny Proenza Schouler business which they snapped up for what seems to be a low valuation? Who will replace Valentino when he goes — will it be the Proenza Schouler boys or will it be Zac Posen, who was sitting in the front row in Rome along with other designers with careers longer and reputations much larger than his? Is there any meaning behind 45 years of Valentino and the 45% investment stake in Proenza Schouler? So many questions.

Vanessa Friedman of the FT has beautifully summed up the rampant speculation in this article, contextualising last weekend’s celebration in Rome with two other major tributes, the Concert for Diana and the Gianni Versace ballet this weekend — memorials for people who really are already gone. She goes on to describe the emotion and the grandeur of the festivities in Rome, trying to decode its significance, not only for Valentino but for an era in fashion more generally.

And, she ends with the most interesting question of all. By announcing his impending retirement, has Valentino become the equivalent of a lame duck U.S. President? Will he suffer the same fate as Tony Blair and George Bush, now that he has essentially announced his departure but is apparently staying on?

I can’t wait to see how all of this pans out.