iPad2 | Source: The Reader's Eye

iPads Now Driving More Web Traffic Than iPhones (Mashable)
“Smartphones and tablets — particularly the iPad — are becoming an increasingly significant source of web traffic in the U.S. According to web analytics firm comScore, smartphones and tablets accounted for 6.8% of all web traffic in the U.S. in August… Shopping is also a popular pastime. In August, 56% of tablet owners looked up product or price information from a specific store, and 54% read customer ratings and reviews. Nearly half of tablet owners actually completed a purchase on the device.”

India Vows to Open Up Luxury Market (WSJ)
“Global luxury brands have been testing the Indian market for years – but with very limited success… Indian Minister of Commerce Anand Sharma, speaking at a luxury conference in New Delhi on Tuesday, hinted that this may soon change… Big global brands would like India to lower import taxes on luxury goods, which at the federal level are between 30%-40%, and to remove the 51% cap on the foreign ownership of their Indian units.”

Burberry sees no sign of slowdown for luxury spending (Reuters)
“British luxury goods group Burberry is not seeing a slowdown in demand for its trademark raincoats and leather goods despite an uncertain economic outlook, it said on Wednesday as it beat quarterly sales forecasts. ‘No evidence of any slowdown … What we have seen is consistent strong brand momentum and business growth,’ Finance Director Stacey Cartwright told reporters after the 155-year-old group posted a 29 percent rise in second-quarter revenue.”

Levi profit rises as demand in India, China grows (Reuters)
“Levi Strauss & Co posted a bigger quarterly profit as demand in growing markets like India and China grew, offsetting the effects of rising costs of cotton and discounts on its flagship brands. For the third quarter, the company earned $32 million, compared with $28 million last year. Revenue grew 9 percent to $1.20 billion, led by a 20 percent rise in the Asia-Pacific region.”

U.S. Fashion’s First Voice (WSJ)
“New York has its own forgotten, or almost, stars and tastemakers, though their legacies live on. Eleanor Lambert was one such person… She was the greatest fashion publicist of her time, and one of the greatest publicists, period. Among her accomplishments was helping to create the Metropolitan Museum’s Costume Institute and, starting in 1948, its glittering annual gala… And she championed the careers of Calvin Klein, Donna Karan, Anne Klein and Perry Ellis when they were still fresh-faced kids.”

Riccardo Tisci photographed by Steven Klein | Source: Interview Magazine

Riccardo Tisci By Donatella Versace (Interview)
“Like any competitive industry, fashion understands the market need for a constant infusion of fresh blood and untapped talent. But among the crop of sartorial prodigies to have emerged in recent years, none has ascended from young upstart to master of the universe as rapidly as 36-year-old Italian designer Riccardo Tisci.”

Social Media: The Second Generation (WWD)
“Forget those who ‘like’ you. Go after the ones who don’t. That’s the new strategy emerging in the ever-evolving world of social media…. Now the future of digital marketing isn’t about bulking up a firm’s own branded dot.com… it’s about getting their content onto someone else’s to reach more consumers.”

PPR’s grosse acquisition (FT Alphaville)
“There’s ripple of excitement in the luxury goods sector… following reports that Gucci and Puma-owner PPR is on the prowl. Having seen arch rival LVMH swoop for Bulgari, PPR is in talks to make une grosse acquisition in the luxury goods sector.”

How India’s Super-Rich Spend Their Money (WSJ India Realtime)
“Meanwhile, the inheritors prefer to do their shopping for clothes and luxury items abroad. ‘The same international brands in India don’t have the same range, so I pick them up when I travel overseas… Also, apparel, especially international, better to buy them abroad. The range, the cut, the finish, is better there, even the price.’”

Putting Fairy Tales and Fashion in Play (IHT)
“As a fund-raiser for her Naked Heart Foundation, which builds playgrounds in Russia, the supermodel Natalia Vodianova invited 40 designers to create dresses on a fairy-tale theme.”

Rick Owens | Source: Vice Magazine

Rick Owens: The prince of dark design (Independent)
“In a fashion climate ruled by luxury-goods conglomerates and an excess of merchandise that is both overwhelming and, increasingly, banal, Owens’ less-than-conventional career trajectory – his business turned over more than $50m last year – is an inspiration. ”

The Golden Shears – the Oscars of the tailoring world (FT)
“Sometimes we can be so transfixed by new trends… that the quieter fashion revolutions pass us by. Take last Monday’s Golden Shears competition. It’s the Oscars of the tailoring world… this year not only was the top prize scooped by a woman, there were 18 female trainees among the 24 finalists.”

India’s models accuse fashion industry of racism (Telegraph)
“India’s fashion industry is currently enjoying a boom, with growing numbers of Indian designers such as Manish Arora and Rohit Bal enjoying success…  [but while white] models are cashing in, some of India’s top models have complained they are losing out on the best jobs in their own country.”

Jane Pratt Plots Her Comeback (WWD)
“In the next two months, she will launch JanePratt.com, a Web site aimed at the gulf between the Cosmopolitans and Jezebels of the world. Then, in the summer, she will team up with Gevinson to introduce a magazine and a Web site for teenaged girls.”

How a generation of creatives is changing the face of fashion (Independent)
“‘When I was at art school, anything ‘fashionable’ was frowned upon,’ says Jones, who studied her craft at London’s Central Saint Martins. ‘I jumped straight into this from a BA at Cambridge, so spent a lot of time playing catch-up and making up my own way of doing things. Maybe this is why my style is so slap-dash.’”

Ann Demeulemeester Autumn/Winter 2011 | Source: The Cutting Class

The Tribes of Westwood, Owens and Demeulemeester (The Cutting Class)
“While some designers tend to beat to the drum of being on-trend, others have already cultivated their own communities and are even referencing it within their collections. In the recent Ann Demeulemeester, Rick Owens and Vivienne Westwood collections you feel that they are speaking in a language that their customers already know and understand.”

Tokyo’s fashion stores slowly reopen (Relax News)
“‘Tokyo’s fashion business is gradually getting back to usual…Monday’s foot traffic along Omotesando Avenue and Harajuku seemed close to normal levels and shoppers were seen making purchases at Vuitton, Dior and Forever 21. H&M’s closed flagship drew some puzzled looks from passersby.’”

Luxury malls yet to catch on as brands can’t find the right space (Live Mint)
“With little expansion in the luxury mall space, what is emerging is a hybrid retail concept where luxury and premium brands are juxtaposed… For example, while there are pure luxury brands such as Burberry and Armani at Palladium in Mumbai’s Lower Parel, premium brands such as Diesel and Zara on the ground floor.”

Inditex Net Income Rises, Adds Stores in Asia (Bloomberg)
“Inditex… reported profit growth that beat analysts’ estimates and said it will accelerate expansion in stores and online. Fourth-quarter net income rose 14 percent to 553 million euros ($784 million), according to calculations based on today’s full-year results.”

John Lobb Unveils Bespoke Line (Forbes)
“It was created as a celebration of world cities: Eleven teams were assembled in 11 capitals to each create a unique pair of John Lobb shoes. The idea was to make two shoes that embody the spirit of the city, Paul-Dauphin said. He called it ‘around the world in 22 shoes.’”

Neiman Marcus, Boston | Source: ICSC

US luxury stores outperform rest of retail sector (FT)
“US luxury department stores outperformed the rest of the retail sector during September, underlining the extent to which more prosperous shoppers are leading the recovery in consumer spending.”

Asos launches US site (Retail Week)
“Asos is promoting the new website, Us.asos.com, by giving US customers free delivery. It plans to launch French and German versions of its site later this year. With Asos delivering to 167 markets, international sales account for 37% of total turnover.”

Italian Luxury Firms To Invest in India Over 5 Years (Fox Business)
“Top Italian luxury companies will invest at least EUR150 million in India setting up an additional 50-60 stores over the next five years, the executive director of Italian trade group Fondazione Altagamma said.”

Fast Retailing Forecasts 17 percent Profit Decline (Bloomberg)
“Fast Retailing Co., Asia’s biggest clothing chain operator, forecast full-year profit will fall 17 percent because of lower same-store sales in the first half.”

The Top 10 on the Runways (WSJ)
“A top 10 list from the Spring 2011 shows. Milan and Paris dominate the list, as they do the world of fashion and luxury production, but the highlights include both fashion’s heavyweights and some surprises.”