Versace Mini Cabriolet gearshift detail | Source: Cartype

Restructuring Luxury at Versace (NY Times)
“I am a survivor,” the designer Donatella Versace said matter-of-factly during a recent blitz of New York, a visit that made it appear little had changed in the world of the occupationally fabulous.”

Escada sells Primera brands (Drapers)
“Primera comprises brands Laurèl, Apriori and Cavita. Luxury German womenswear house Escada previously signed a contract to sell the three brands to investment fund Mutares AG in May but withdrew from it on Friday, citing problems with the closing of the deal.”

Matthew Williamson to Launch Menswear and E-Commerce (Elle)
“The British designer best known for his colorful collections chock full of prints, is creating his first-ever menswear line. The collection, which is due out in February, will be sold exclusively at Harrods and Matthew Williamson boutiques.”

India, China Seen as Fertile Ground for Own Luxury Brands (Khaleej Times)
“Europe’s creative heartland for top-end jewellery, watches and fashion could, in as little as 20 years, face a stiff competitive challenge from India, China and other developing countries, executives in the luxury industry say.”

Pakistan fashion week defies Taliban with non-Islamic dress (Telegraph)
“As Pakistan’s army battled religious extremists in South Waziristan, Karachi’s top designers sent models down catwalks with bare shoulders and exposed navels in an unusual display of skin in a country where most women cover up.”

Brooks Brothers Black Fleece

‘We invented business casual’ (Globe and Mail)
“Still serious about suits, Brooks Brothers owner says storied firm is well-positioned to succeed in an increasingly dressed-down world.”

Burani Shares Halted as Auditor Cites ‘Uncertainties’ on Future (Bloomberg)
Mariella Burani Fashion Group, a licensee for Vivienne Westwood “was halted in Milan trading as the luxury-goods maker’s auditor cited “significant elements of uncertainty” about the business as a going concern after first-half sales fell.”

Star designers return to mark 25 years of London Fashion Week (Guardian)
“LFW has a strong reputation internationally as a launch pad for young talent – but also for being big on ideas but short on professionalism. Editors and buyers looking for commercial collections often skip the event, and London has struggled to keep its place as a world fashion capital.”

Just Williamson (Guardian)
“Adored by celebrities like Sienna Miller and Kate Moss, and creator of the much-copied boho look, Matthew Williamson has gone from teenage prodigy to world-famous designer in the classic rags-to-riches dream.”

The Main Characters of Tennis, and Style (New York Times)
“When Roger Federer unveiled his monogram at Wimbledon in 2006…it might easily have been mistaken for a club’s insignia. And it did in fact proclaim his admission to a club, one with a membership of two: Federer had joined Tiger Woods as the only other Nike athlete to be marketed on the basis of his initials.”

Mango ad campaign (Iran), courtesy of Mango

High fashion and Hollywood glamour as Mango open stores around the world (Times)
After a successful launch in Iran, Mango looks to move further into the Middle East, setting up a store in Irbil, Iraq.

Is luxury fashion good for the planet? (Observer)
“Premium brands don’t have the best reputation when it comes to social and environmental issues, but change is in the air.”

Matthew Williamson returns to London Fashion Week (Drapers)
“Matthew Williamson will join Burberry at London Fashion Week in September to help celebrate the event’s 25th birthday.”

Topshop confirms US roll out (Drapers)
“Sir Philip Green, the owner of Topshop, has confirmed he plans to open a second store in New York after the debut Manhattan store achieved strong sales in its first two months of trading.”

Adidas doesn’t want to run before learning to walk (Business Standard)
“Adidas, which launched its premium lifestyle product – Originals – in India two years ago, is still in the process of educating customers about the different story that the collections, represented by the Trefoil logo, has to tell vis-à-vis its regular ‘performance’ brands.”

Matthew Williamson, courtesy of H&M

H&M launches Matthew Williamson collection (Drapers)
“Hundreds of frenzied shoppers descended on H&M’s Oxford Circus store in London like locust this morning, eager to get their hands on a the Matthew Williamson collaboration.”

LVMH 1Q Revs Slightly Up On Fashion, Leather Goods (WSJ)
“French luxury conglomerate LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA Wednesday posted a modest rise in first-quarter revenue, as a fall in demand for champagne was more than offset by buoyantfashion and leather good sales.”

Japan’s Changing Fashion Retail Landscape: Innovate or Die (MarketWatch)
“Today, Japanese e-tail giants can make as much as one quarter of their sales via cellphones. Nearly half of Tokyo’s single females are accessing the mobile web more than five times a week.”

The pragmatic fashionista: Bonnie Brooks (The Globe&Mail)
After leaving Lane Crawford, Bonnie Brooks has grown into her position at Canada’s ailing department store, The Bay. “While there is plenty of skepticism among industry experts about the Bay, they agree that Ms. Brooks is one of few executives with the savvy to lead a turnaround.”

LONDON, United Kingdom – Yesterday evening’s British Fashion Awards ceremony was a wonderful occasion to celebrate the best in British Fashion Talent. There was a very impressive list of awards categories and an even more impressive list of winners, but I couldn’t fight this nagging feeling that something was missing.

Then, I realised that there was not even one award to acknowledge the various talented business people who also make their own kind of fashion magic, and are an essential part of the British fashion eco-system.

Over the course of the evening, awards were given out for everything from Designer Brand (Jimmy Choo) and Fashion Creator (Tim Walker) to Red Carpet Designer (Matthew Williamson) and Designer of the Year (Luella Bartley) to Model of the Year (Jourdan Dunn). Two new awards were also given out for top Emerging Talent, and I was lucky be seated at a table between the two winners, for Ready-to-Wear (Louise Goldin) and Accessories (Nicholas Kirkwood), both extremely deserving of their honours.

The highlight was seeing (and hearing) the affable Stephen Jones accept an award for Outstanding Achievement for over two decades of work in cutting-edge millinery for the likes of Comme des Garcons, Marc Jacobs, John Galliano for Dior, Giles Deacon and L’Wren Scott. Of his chosen metier, Jones quipped “it is the Esperanto of fashion; nobody does it.”

But, the lack of a business award was especially surprising coming from the British Fashion Council, an organisation which has been desperately trying to shore up its own business credentials and the marketability of British fashion in general. To acknowledge photographers, models, designers and not recognise even one business type was a glaring omission.

It’s not like there was a shortage of business talent around. I spotted Joseph Velosa (the business partner of Matthew Williamson), James MacArthur (the new CEO of Harrods), and Natalie Massenet (Founder and Chairman of Net-a-Porter, recently interviewed on BoF), amongst others.

Maybe one of these three will be honoured next year? Stay tuned.

During London Fashion Week, one of the unquestionable highlights was Prince’s surprise performance on the Matthew Williamson catwalk. I have never seen the normally subdued and restrained fashionista crowd whoop and holler like they did when the diminutive dynamo stepped onto the catwalk from the front row.  It was definitely a sight to be seen.

And, despite the apparent smoothness of the whole collaboration, the deal was only done the night before the show. Prince made the request and Williamson told reporters that when Prince makes a request, you don’t say no.

The most frustrating thing was that no video footage of Prince’s performance was available afterwards. All of the photographers and videographers had signed waivers on arrival, preventing them from broadcasting the show in any form. The inside scoop was that Prince was planning to use the footage for his latest video, Chelsea Rodgers . And now, at long last, we have the video for you here.   

It’s another example of the power of the music and fashion industries coming together for a bit of co-promotion.  Methinks that it is Williamson who will benefit the most from the collaboration. The video is great and elevates Mr. Williamson’s profile to a whole new level. It will be beamed into households around the world where Mr. Williamson is not well known.

Good on him for seizing the opportunity to work with Prince, even with such short notice. Organising all those broadcast waivers, arranging front row seats for Prince and his entourage, and fitting-in a 15 minute prelude to the fashion show at the last minute must not have been easy, but it was all worth it as I am sure you’ll agree when you see the video.

As I looked out on the waiting crowd for Giles Deacon’s show last evening, there was something special in the air. Where else could you see wunderkind Gareth Pugh nestled next to Italian eccentric Anna Piaggi and Vogue’s Hamish Bowles and a raft of other notable fashion names, all crammed into a tiny space in a small schoolhouse waiting for a fashion show to start? No New York designer of similar repute would even think of forcing the fashion A-list into this cramped setting. But then again, the fashion A-list probably wouldn’t even bother turning up to a show in a similarly  uncomfortable setting for a New York designer.

London fashion is officially hot again.  And, this time it’s not just hype. Many of the New York collections were well-executed and wearable, but they were limited in terms of new ideas and came off feeling a bit flat. London has thrown this flatness into sharp relief. There has been a renewed sense of confidence about fashion in London this week, yet there could be a lot more reflection on why things haven’t worked out for London in the past after other short-lived periods of creative renaissance — and a great deal of this has to do with the business of fashion, not the creative side.

London has never been lacking in creativity and this season its young designer set has been bursting with new ideas that show off their multi-faceted skills sets. Christopher Kane sent out a collection that felt new and fresh; like he was taking actually fashion forward. Jonathan Saunders, the master-of-prints, showed that he can cut a dress with the best of them. Marios Schwab went the opposite route, using stunning, unusual and arresting prints combined with his already proven strength in tailoring.

And then, last night, Giles Deacon wowed his small VIP fashion audience with a collection that meandered from cross-stitched denim pieces to heavily-worked dresses of tulle and eye-catching prints of Kate Moss à la Andy Warhol emblazoned onto a crisply cut hot pink jacket. One unforgettable moment was seeing model-of-the-moment Agyness Deyn come out in a simply cut dress with her trademark platinum blond cropped-mop dyed a bright pumpkin orange. Did Giles convince her to do that? He is quite the charmer, after all.

After the show, Ken Downing of Neiman Marcus asked me what I thought. And the first thing that came to mind were the words "beautiful" and "romantic". Ken seemed genuinely overwhelmed by what Giles had conceived. Hilary Riva of the British Fashion Council said that she thought the collection might make her cry. It’s so nice to see veterans of the industry who still get excited about great design.

But, abundant creativity aside, the big question is whether this is yet another meteoric period for London which will quickly flame out. Will these talented young designers be able to build businesses based in the city that they find so inspiring? Or, like other high profile talents before them, will the businesses collapse due to lack of business structure, investment and planning? Will they need to move to New York or Paris to make it big where there is a more cohesive support system for growing fashion businesses?

If they want to be around 10 years from now, they may want consider taking a page out of Matthew Williamson’s textbook. While he normally shows in New York, his business is still based in London and yesterday’s one-off 10 year anniversary show was an excellent mix of what Matthew does best. Fun, playful and embellished clothes for an international jet set woman who spends her time living the good life.

It must be said that the show got started on an exceptional note — Prince’s note, to be exact, and this may have played  a role in the exuberant feeling in the marquee which had been specially erected in Eaton Square to celebrate the occasion. Prince, one of the world’s most talented pop musicians, started things off by singing from the front row and then joined his bodacious dancers in a catwalk performance that had the fashion set on their feet. I was blown away. It was only left to Matthew to keep the audience on a high after this surprise!

But, back to business. While Matthew’s aesthetic and client may be quite different from some the more thought-provoking emerging London designers that have been creating all the buzz this week, his formula for success could still work for them:

1. Find a business partner: With his business partner Joseph, he has shown once again what a strong creative-business partnership can do for a fashion business. Ask many industry insiders about the keys to Matthew’s success, and Joseph is one of the first things they will mention.
2. Know your customer: Matthew’s "girls" were crawling all over the show and afterparty yesterday and he seems to understand what they want. He spends time with them and understands what they need to fit with their lifestyles.
3. Learn from the best: By working as the creative director of Pucci, an LVMH owned brand, Matthew has not only gained credibility as a designer of international repute, he and Joseph must also be learning a great deal about how a world-class fashion business is run and structured.
4. Work the PR angle: Like it or not, a good story is an essential part of making a high-end fashion business work. Matthew’s story is often based on his strong celebrity following. It’s a story that works for him, but might not work for everyone else. The important thing is to have a compelling story to tell, whether it is based on the designer, their clientele or their product.
5. Sort out the money side: With equity injections from the Baugur Group and TSM Capital, Matthew and Joseph have also shown themselves to be savvy fundraisers, who are still firmly in control of their business.

It’s no wonder Matthew asked Suzy Menkes "Where are my peers now?", referring to another slew of hotly-tipped designers whose businesses failed to take off during London’s last creative heat wave. Matthew certainly has something to be proud of. It remains to see which of these London designers will follow in his footsteps to celebrate their own 10 year anniversaries. Here’s to hoping this heat wave lasts a long time.

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Christopher Kane, Spring/Summer 2008

Marios Schwab, Spring/Summer 2008

Jonathan Saunders, Spring/Summer 2008

Matthew Williamson, Spring/Summer 2008

Christopher Kane, Jonathan Saunders and Marios Schwab photos and videos courtesy of Style.com. Other photos and all other content are copyright of The Business of Fashion. See our legal disclaimer for further details