Boucheron Cameleon Ring | Source: Boucheron

PPR to take 2-3 years to sell retail businesses (Reuters)
“PPR said it could take up to three years to sell its Fnac, Conforama and La Redoute retail businesses, which is part of its strategy to refocus on its luxury, lifestyle and sportswear activities.”

Streaming is the new Blogging (Telegraph)
“Blogging? It’s so last week. Right now, ‘live’ streaming of catwalk shows is steaming! In fact, it’s getting so hot it’s raising the temperature in cyberspace and models are going to have to be called ’supernovas’, there’s so many of them rattling around up there above the Earth.”

Burani acknowledges resignation of chairman (Reuters)
“The chairman of Italy’s Mariella Burani Fashion Group has resigned, the company said on Wednesday, as the fashion group seeks protection from its creditors.”

The New Luxury (Brand Packaging)
“A clever story is not always enough for today’s consumers. Often, they’re most-concerned about a product’s environmental impact. Yes, high-end brands see the environment and social consciousness as purchase-drivers.”

The Return Of Confidence (WSJ)
“After a difficult year, designers re-embrace their core visions. The shows of Ralph Lauren, Proenza Schouler, Isaac Mizrahi and Calvin Klein.”

Alexander McQueen Spring/Summer 2010 | Source: style.com

Alexander McQueen label will survive (Times)
“Alexander McQueen’s fashion label will live on despite the designer’s apparent suicide last week, it was announced this morning.”

PPR full year net profit increases 7 percent (AP)
“Retail-to-luxury group PPR SA reported a 7 percent increase in 2009 profits Thursday and said it is launching a sales offensive to boost revenues in fast-growing markets such as China.”

Burberry Restructures In Spain (NY Times)
“Luxury goods group Burberry will restructure its loss-making operations in Spain, ceasing the production of exclusive collections and closing a facility that will likely mean 300 job losses.”

Alexa handbag joy for Mulberry (FT)
“Strong demand for the Alexa handbag, inspired by the young British style icon Alexa Chung, prompted Mulberry to upgrade its full-year expectations.”

Next in London: A New Crop (WSJ)
“Christopher Kane, Marios Schwab, Jonathan Saunders aren’t famous fashion designers, at least not yet. They are three of the up-and-comers expected to receive close attention starting Friday when London Fashion Week begins.”

The Business Of Lady Gaga (Forbes)
“In the cacophony of the music business, Gaga has broken through the clutter with muzzle velocity, becoming a superstar in scarcely a year. Her first album, The Fame, is the best-selling debut album of 2009. Her single Just Dance has been viewed 87 million times on YouTube. Gaga’s tracks have clocked 20 million downloads this year. One of them, Poker Face, is the most downloaded tune in the history of U.K. digital music.”

Heir to Gucci Empire Reveals Plan to Double Bet on Fashion (Wall Street Journal)
“A 12-person team within PPR has drawn up two lists. The first enumerates a new set of 20 possible industry buyers for the three retail businesses up for grabs, Mr. Pinault said during the interview. The second list targets a dozen potential luxury and lifestyle brands PPR would be interested in buying.”

Tailoring the Image to Fit the Clothes (NY Times)
“It is Patrick Li’s peculiar job, as an art director and graphic designer for some of the hottest new clothing designers in the business, to articulate their vision in the single nanosecond it takes to look at the name on the label of a dress or a T-shirt.”

Luxury brands avoid price cuts at all costs (Toronto Sun)
“Tiffany, like all retailers, has struggled during the global economic downturn as consumers tightened their purse strings. As a result, North American big box, discount and grocery stores have resorted to drastic prices cuts to lure shoppers. Metro and Loblaws, Sears and Walmart Canada have all gone head-to-head in price wars. Luxury brands however, have done quite the opposite. Instead, exclusive shops have opted to shrink inventory levels to avoid offering steep discounts.”

Steve J & Yoni P Makes Waves in London (Korea Times)
“Rising designers Steve Jung and Yoni Pai are making a name for themselves on the British fashion scene with their chic, impeccable designs with quirky details.”

Alexander McQueen for Puma | Source: Puma

PPR to sell lower-margin retail units (FT)
“PPR, the French retail conglomerate headed by billionaire François-Henri Pinault, plans to dispose of retail businesses that generate 70 per cent of group sales to focus on clothing and accessories brands within its luxury Gucci Group and Puma, the sports wear company.”

Online Luxury Retail Remains Elusive (Business Week)
“There are still some brands that sell absolutely nothing online, save for beauty products. Consider Chanel. While the legendary Parisian fashion house sells cosmetics both on its own site as well as on a few other high-end e-tailers, its current fashion and accessories collections are not for sale online.”

FIPB defers Gucci’s stake buy proposal (Times of India)
“Italian designer goods maker Gucci’s proposal to pick up a majority stake in its Indian franchisee has been deferred by the government after Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion sought further examination.”

Ralph Lauren’s Grand Entrance (WWD)
“After an absence of more than a decade, Ralph Lauren is returning to Greenwich — and making quite an entrance… opening a nearly 19,000-square-foot store with all the ingredients increasingly emblematic of the designer’s retail network.”

What the wealthy give each other for Christmas (Times)
“One area, though, where things are truly booming is personalisation. ‘The term ‘luxury’ is so overused,’ says the bag designer Anya Hindmarch. ‘But I think you can definitely say that something is luxury when it’s completely personalised.’”

Bottega Veneta A/W 2010, courtesy of Coutorture

PPR Results Beat Expectations (WSJ)
“French luxury-to-retail company PPR SA said first-half net profit fell 76% from a year earlier, when a gain from an asset sale boosted results, but revenue declined less than expected.”

River Island’s record year (Retail Week)
“Young-fashion powerhouse River Island has defied the market to deliver record sales and profits for the year to the end of December.”

Giving the Auf to Fashion Copyright (Public Knowledge)
“Fashion is a business in which copying plays a major role in driving new styles and trends. Marc Jacobs putting his own twist on a classic Chanel design; fashion on the streets inspiring fashion on the runway; low-end retailers democratizing high-end trends by selling more cheaply made versions of designer apparel-these are all integral parts of the fashion ecology. It is thanks to copying that trends have such a frantic life cycle.”

Vacant shop numbers soar (Drapers)
“The number of vacant shops on the high street has more than doubled over the past year according to a report by The Local Data Company.”

Coco Before Chanel: ‘She was claiming freedom through her designs’ (Guardian)
“Catherine Leterrier designed the costumes for Coco Before Chanel. She tells Rachel Dixon how she brought a fashion legend back to life.”

Armani's 5th Ave. store, courtesy of Armani

Armani profits drop 14% in ‘difficult’ year (FT)
“Giorgio Armani, the trend-setting Italian fashion group, reported a 14.6 per cent fall in profits in 2008 in spite of a slight rise in revenues and the opening of 50 new stores, as its owner reflected on a ‘difficult’ year for the industry.”

PPR says to focus on cash and cost-cutting (Reuters)
“French retail and luxury group PPR on Thursday pledged to focus on cutting costs and generating cash to emerge stronger from the current consumer downturn.”

Puma Profit Falls on Expenses of Restructuring Plan (Bloomberg)
“Puma AG, the German sporting-goods company controlled by PPR SA, reported first-quarter profit plunged 94 percent, hurt by one-time expenses, and said market conditions are expected to “remain difficult” in 2009.”

Japan’s Uniqlo thrives in recession, April sales up (Reuters)
“Same-store sales at Uniqlo rose 19.2 percent in April as warm weather early in the month helped lift sales of summer items. Like-for-like sales at g.u. rose 70 percent in April, having spiked by that much in March.”

A protest against ‘protest chic’ (The Guardian)
“The fashion industry has co-opted the imagery and emotion of activism in order to shore up its dwindling profits.”

The Future of Luxury in a Recession (Atelier)
As companies like Coach, Gucci Group and LVMH report their results this week, this video from Atelier, a division of Leo Burnett, highlights some of the cataclysmic changes in consumer behaviour that will drive the luxury of the future. What do you think of their assertions?

PPR Says Luxury Sales Remain ‘Sluggish’ (WSJ)
“Mass retail and fashion group PPR SA posted a 2.6 percent drop in first-quarter sales and said revenue in its luxury unit remained “sluggish” in March, signaling that demand for high-end products is still suffering amid the downturn.”

Business focus on eco-fashion: Greener clothing sized up (Telegraph)
“Allanna McAspurn, UK general manager of Made-By, is attempting to kick start an initiative funded by the European Union and the Dutch government to promote sustainable practices in the retail clothing industry.”

Mizrahi’s star back on the rise (Variety)
“While many of his fellow fashionistas are struggling to survive in an economy where aspirational shopping is as out of date as last season’s handbag, Mizrahi’s stock is clearly on the rise.”

Coach Profits Fall (WWD)
“Coach Inc. on Tuesday posted a 29.3 percent decline in third-quarter profits, hurt by the pullback in consumer discretionary spending, but said that it was confident in its business outlook.” (Subscription required)

Oscar glamour lives in tough economy

Oscars Evolve With Economy (WWD)
“With the worldwide economy in turmoil, glamour lives in the run-up to Hollywood’s annual Academy Awards extravaganza on Sunday night, but brands are finding ways to save a buck.” (Subscription required)

PPR sees fourth quarter sales slow (Drapers)
Although PPR, the French conglomerate that owns Gucci, saw revenues rise in 2008, its fourth quarter earnings slowed.

America’s Most Popular Stores (Forbes)
“Consumers may be spending less, but they’re having better shopping experiences.” 

Discount clothing tycoon tops Japan rich list (Forbes)
Tadashi Yanai, the founder of Uniqlo is Japan’s richest man.

PPR, the Paris-based conglomerate, saw its stock price drop after Credit Suisse analyst Tony Shiret downgraded the stock from "outperform" to "neutral" in his analyst report released yesterday. Shiret reduced his target price for PPR stock by 27% from 144 euros to 105 euros and the stock closed at 110.63 euros in Paris, down 4% for the day and the lowest price since January. According to Shiret

The group is becoming less, rather than more, strategically focused. We continue to feel uneasy about the widening scope of the business.

Shiret noted that as he tried to do forecasts for PPR going forward, he was struck by how many parts there are to the business. In particular, the report singles out Redkats, Conforama and United Retail as underperforming businesses that are dragging down earnings. Adding to the confusion are persisting reports about a forthcoming PPR acquisition of Clarins, as reported on The Business of Fashion last week. Some analysts say another acquisition is the last thing PPR needs.

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If rumours floating around Paris yesterday are on the ball, then PPR’s Francois-Henri Pinault has now got his acquisitive eyes fixed on Clarins.

The French cosmetics company saw its stock jump 7.7% on the speculation that PPR would make a bid for company in the coming days, pushing its market capitalisation to more than 2.6b euros. This rumour follows previous speculation that L’Oreal would make a bid for Clarins, after the death of its founder Jacques Courtin-Clarins in March of this year.

Acquisition rumours like this are a dime a dozen. But, this one might actually have some legs. An industry insider sitting next to me at last evening’s Walpole Awards said that attempts to reach PPR and Clarins to comment had been completely futile. Neither party had confirmed or denied the rumours – it was just radio silence and phones were just not being answered. It was precisely because of this that he was thinking twice about whether these rumours deserved more serious attention.

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