Santee Alley in LA by Gina Ferazzi | Source: LA Times

Counterfeit Gap joins the counterfeit Gucci (LA Times)
“The economy is one reason for the trend. ‘The recession has more people trading down,’ said Susan Scafidi, academic director of the Fashion Law Institute at Fordham University’s law school. ‘Even lower-priced brands feel like a stretch in this economy, and people are more likely to trade down to counterfeits.’ There are several other factors driving the low-rent-counterfeit trend, including the Internet, a changing consumer mind-set and beefed-up anti-counterfeiting efforts by the giant apparel companies.”

An awful lot of fashion in Brazil (FT)
“If France and Italy, the world’s fashion capitals, are content with one big ready-to-wear fashion week, does Brazil really need two? Yes, the country boasts the world’s sixth-largest economy, a growing and appetising consumer market and great tourist appeal, but is there so much going on style-wise that the world requires both Fashion Rio and São Paulo Fashion Week.”

Cashmere maker Cucinelli files for Milan listing (Reuters)
“Italian cashmere goods maker Brunello Cucinelli said on Friday it had filed with Italian regulators for an initial public offering (IPO) of its shares on the Milan bourse , as signs emerged recently of steadier market conditions.”

Beyond the Runway: Meet the PR Pros Who Run Fashion Week (AdAge)
“Those outside the tight-knit fashion PR community might be familiar with Paul Wilmot, who sold his firm to Omnicom’s Fleishman-Hillard; HL-Group, which got snatched up by MDC; or People’s Revolution owner Kelly Cutrone, who through reality TV demystified the frantic nature of fashion-show seating and swag-labeling. But inside the sartorial bubble live some highly influential shops unfamiliar to those outside the industry.”

Embracing the Ghost of a Faraway Past (NY Times)
“‘Who you are today is a ghost of your past,’ said the fast-rising New York designer Prabal Gurung. The observation sounds a bit dark and moody for the amiable young talent, who introduced his line three years ago, full of bright colors and sexy, feminine silhouettes that instantly endeared him to, among many others, the first lady. Lately, though, Mr. Gurung has shown that there’s bite behind the smile.”

Lanvin Spoof Video | Source:

NEW YORK, United States — At BoF, we’ve been ranking the top fashion films of the season since 2009, when the genre was still just coming into existence. But even back then, set against the staggering rise of online video consumption and the growing importance of engaging young digital consumers, the medium’s tremendous potential was clear.

Fast-forward to the Autumn of 2011 and YouTube-friendly short videos are practically de rigueur for fashion brands, large and small. But interestingly, it’s not digital “Geniuses” like Burberry who have been creating the most compelling fashion films. Despite being labeled “Challenged” by a Digital IQ report recently released by LuxuryLab, we think the Prada Group is making some of the best digital films in the industry, working with top fashion image-maker Steven Meisel.

But this season, it was Lanvin’s viral sensation (also shot by Meisel), featuring Karen Elson and Raquel Zimmermann dancing awkwardly to “I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)” by Pitbull, that proved to be the game-changer that propelled fashion film decisively into the mainstream. The film struck a chord with a broad internet audience, earning over 100,000 YouTube views in the first three days online, providing the spark for a real-life dance competition at a buzzed about and well-attended Fashion’s Night Out event at the brand’s Madison Avenue boutique, and even spawning spoofs, the surest sign of of viral success.

Notably, it was stills from the Lanvin video that appeared in print advertising, flipping a well-established paradigm and highlighting fashion film’s trajectory towards the very centre of seasonal marketing initiatives.

And while we continued to see some absolutely stunning examples of films that look and feel like print campaigns or magazine editorial beautifully brought to life, it’s ‘digital first’ fashion videos, conceived from first principles with the online medium in mind, that broke the mold with humour, quirky charm or unconventional visual techniques which seemed to resonate most with online audiences.

What follows is BoF’s selection of the most powerful and interesting fashion films of the 2012 Spring-Summer season. As you sit back and enjoy the videos, let us know which ones you like best.

1. Lanvin Fall/Winter 2011 Ad Campaign

Dubbed “Park Avenue YouTube,” Lanvin’s tongue-in-cheek, fall campaign video — featuring top models Raquel Zimmermann and Karen Elson dancing uncomfortably in a chic apartment to Pitbull’s 2009 smash hit “I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)” and a hilarious cameo by creative director Alber Elbaz — had just the right elements to drive explosive word of mouth amongst fashion fans across the internet, while perfectly communicating the distinctive personality of the Lanvin brand. Shattering the seriousness that has often prevented fashion film from resonating with a broader audience, the Steven Meisel-shot video has already earned almost a million cumulative views on YouTube, been shared hundreds of thousands of times on Facebook, and inspired a spoof remix “starring the attendees of Fashion Week in New York” as well as a popular fan made imitation video.

2. Prada Fall/Winter 2011 Ad Campaign

Following on their first place ranking last season, Prada’s fall womenswear video, shot by Steven Meisel and featuring Antonia Wesseloh, Ondria Hardin, Kelly Mittendorf, Julia Zimmer and Frida Gustavsson, perfectly captures and communicates the delicate co-mingling of sensuality and innocence at the heart of Mrs. Prada’s collection. Set to a hypnotic soundtrack with a breathy voiceover, the slow motion film is also a seductive and transfixing digital merchandising dream, full of sequins, fur and snakeskin. We only wish it was directly shopable.

3. Mourir Aupres De Toi by Spike Jonze & Olympia Le-Tan

Set after-hours on the shelves of famous Left Bank bookstore Shakespeare & Company, Spike Jonze’s quirky stop-motion animation “Mourir Aupres De Toi” brings to life the embroidered ‘covers’ of Olympia Le-Tan’s book-clutch bags to tell the touching story of a clumsy skeleton and his lover. Using over three thousand pieces of hand-cut felt, the film beautifully communicates the handmade aesthetic and human charm of Le-Tan’s work. “I love getting performances from, telling stories about and humanizing things that aren’t human,” Jonze told Nowness, where the film first appeared.

4. “Dynamic Blooms” by Nick Knight & Alister Mackie

Recently released by experimental filmmakers Tell No One in collaboration with SHOWstudio, this succinct, visually stunning film brings to life Nick Knight and Alister Mackie’s breathtaking editorial for last season’s AnOther Magazine. Featuring Benjamin Warbis and Jac Jagaciak, the video collides dance and fashion, transforming pieces by Lanvin, Versace, Chloe, Valentino, Christian Dior Haute Couture, Jil Sander and Haider Ackermann into dynamic contemporary blossoms that explode across the screen.

5. Prabal Gurung Resort 2012 – “New Thing” feat. Rye Rye

For the launch of his first ever foray into resort, inspired by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama and the portraits of George Condo, rising designer Prabal Gurung teamed up with booty-shaking Baltimore artist Rye Rye to create a viral music video as bold and energetic as the graphic black and white theme, 60s-inspired florals, polka-dots, and pops of pinks, yellows and greens that run through the collection. Directed by Kenneth Cappello, the video deploys a dynamic high-low mix to explosive effect and underscores the power of integrating fashion, film and music to earn the attention of what Gurung has called “the YouTube generation.”

6. AnOther Magazine Issue 21 featuring Rachel Weisz

Shot by Craig McDean with creative direction by David James and styling by Olivier Rizzo, this off-kilter film features Rachel Weisz, cover star of this season’s AnOther Magazine, in a series of non-narrative micro-performances, inspired by German modern dance legend Pina Bausch. While magazines have long used online videos as supplementary material to support their print content, this film is a compelling example of ‘digital first’ editorial: the images that appear in print are stills taken from this surreal film.

7. Love F/W 2011 What Lies Beneath by Mert Alas & Marcus Piggott

Accompanying “What Lies Beneath,” an epic 46-page, Jeff Bark-inspired fashion story shot by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott for Katie Grand’s Love magazine, this disturbing but compelling film collides romantic elements with a hard-edged and dangerous undercurrent. Complete with white swans, bondage gear and submerged cars, this sexually-charged and transfixing film unfolds like a classical myth reimagined for a disjointed, nightworld where Lara Stone, Mariacarla Boscono, Saskia De Brauw, Kristen McMenamy, Paul Boche, Anais Pouliot, Jed Texas, Guinevere Van Seenus, Xiao Wen Ju and Angus Whitehead play dark contemporary demigods and water nymphs.

8. Gareth Pugh S/S 2012 by Ruth Hogben

This season, East London’s enfant terrible Gareth Pugh teamed up with Ruth Hogben to create a dark and punchy film that was screened at the designer’s Paris catwalk show, as well as on Nick Knight’s fashion website SHOWstudio. Integrated into the runway event, the film both set the tone at the beginning of the show and provided a digital backdrop to the models on the catwalk, turning the presentation of Pugh’s collection into a multimedia viewing experience for the assembled press, buyers and industry insiders.

9. Twin Parallel by Justin Anderson

Directed by Justin Anderson for London-based designer Jayne Pierson and inspired by the twin paradox in physics, this beautiful film won this season’s ‘Best Styling’ prize at Diane Pernet’s A Shaded View on Fashion Film festival, which took place during Paris Fashion Week at the Centre Pompidou. The film’s immaculately styled, still life tableaux, featuring fruit, candles, a cuckoo clock and a goose that presumably lays gold, sharpen the eye and draw attention to the royal details of Pierson’s collection.

10. Kenzonique by Kenzo

This snappy and upbeat trailer for the relaunch of Kenzo, directed by Jo Ratcliffe with music by Rob Coudert, perfectly teased the energy of the brand’s first presentation under new creative directors Humberto Leon and Carol Lim of Opening Ceremony. Dubbed “hyperdelic” on YouTube, the video’s vibrant colour palette and fun feel were totally in tune with the new collection and clearly communicated the brand’s repositioning as a playful creative force at the top end of the contemporary market.

What were your favourite fashion films this season?

Chloe Raises the Roof at the Tuileries Tent in Paris | Photo: BoF

LONDON, United Kingdom — It was a fashion season of extreme weather. After the New York Fashion Week schedule was upended, first by an earthquake and then by the State of Emergency declaration that came courtesy of Hurricane Irene, an unprecedented heat wave in Paris threw buyers, editors and bloggers into a wardrobe tailspin.

The American editors were worst off, having packed for the European shows two weeks before Paris with no prior notice of the heat wave that was to come. After a few days of shows in impossibly hot venues, some of them resorted to ripping the sleeves off their outfits or just wearing their ‘airplane clothes.’

Brands tried to ease the pain. Fans were distributed at shows alongside champagne and much to everyone’s relief, Chloe arranged for the roof of the Tuileries tent to be removed for their show, letting in the sun and much welcome breeze. Meanwhile Net-a-Porter, always on top of a new market opportunity, delivered heat wave friendly clothes to editors caught without weather-appropriate attire.

But of course the real action was on the runway and in conversations between BoF and the good and the great of the global fashion tribe at a season filled with its fair share of events and parties.

Without further ado, it’s time to look back at Spring/Summer 2012, the season that was.

1. FASHION’S ENDLESS PLAYGROUND

Louis Vuitton Carrousel | Photo: BoF

At the opening of Marc Jacobs’ stunning show for Louis Vuitton on the last day of Paris Fashion Week, a large circular curtain was lifted to unveil models in dresses as light as feathers, perched coquettishly on white horses that sat atop a highly stylised carrousel. Those assembled gasped with audible pleasure and then erupted into spontaneous applause. But more than a visual delight alone, Mr. Jacobs’ magical set was a clear metaphor for an industry in constant motion, with its endless cycle of fashion shows, not to mention the musical chairs of creative directors moving from house to house.

This was the defining moment of the Spring/Summer 2012 collections, a season during which rumours continued to engulf Mr. Jacobs and other designers at the helm of major fashion houses, including Stefano Pilati, who seems safe — for now.

For others, the news was not so good. Immediately following the Vionnet show, it was announced that Rodolfo Paglialunga had been replaced. And just before Paris Fashion Week, Ungaro announced that the house and Giles Deacon had mutually agreed to part ways. Deacon was Ungaro’s fifth creative director in as many years and The Wall Street Journal reported at the end of September that Ungaro chief executive Jeffry Aronsson believes that “in-house talent can mine Ungaro’s heritage—bright colours, silk prints and sexy draped dresses—better than a high-profile designer from outside.”

But while some brands were severing ties with their creative directors, others were debuting new ones. Olivier Rousteing took the bow at the end of the Balmain show. There were also debuts from former Pringle designer Claire Waight Keller at Chloe and Manish Arora at Paco Rabanne — and, of course, the torrent of industry speculation about Galliano’s soon-to-be-announced replacement at Christian Dior.

2. BUZZ, EDGE AND SPORT COUTURE IN NEW YORK

Altuzarra prints and backpack detail | Photo: BoF

But fashion month begins in New York, which boasts more than 250 shows in a span of eight days, making it by far the busiest and buzziest fashion week of all. As one editor put it to me, “In New York we are great at picking up the leaves and throwing them up in the air and saying, ’It’s Fashion Week!’”

The unofficial kick-off for the Spring/Summer collections happens a couple of days into NY fashion week, with Fashion’s Night Out. Spearheaded by American Vogue, with individual events in almost every retail establishment across the city, it is a format that has been exported around the world. But though it has become a global phenomenon, the return on investment for brands and retailers remains in question. Most designers and retailers said it simply wasn’t worth the expenditure of time and resources, especially at one of the busiest moments in the fashion calendar. Barneys effectively sat this round out, eschewing the kind of elaborate in-store entertainment favoured by other retailers and issuing a statement that they were refocusing all efforts “on the shopping experience” and would donate ten percent of their Fashion’s Night Out sales to a fund for the National September 11 Memorial and Museum.

And with that, the New York shows were on and we entered a weekend of vibrant prints, inspired by places all around the world. It was a colourful vibe that New York designers seemed to have caught from London. But they gave it their own unique, New York spin with mesh fabrics and athletic details, making “sport couture” the buzzword on the lips of editors and buyers everywhere, from Joseph Altuzarra and Rag & Bone, to Alexander Wang, who has made athletic-inspired fashion part of his brand’s identity.

The week’s highlights came from power design duos Proenza Schouler and Rodarte, whose shows are now, deservedly, two of the most anticipated shows of New York Fashion Week. And both Jason Wu and Prabal Gurung took edgy steps forward from the red carpet and ladylike fare of their previous collections. These are some of the names amongst a healthy crop of promising young designers working in New York at the moment, pushing the boundaries of American fashion.

3. LONDON’S SHINING MOMENT

Giles Deacon swan hat, by Stephen Jones | Photo: BoF

It’s a shame that conflict over the global fashion calendar is putting London Fashion Week under threat just as the event really seems to be hitting its stride. This season, fashion stars in London shone brighter than ever, benefitting from the pulsating creativity of designers and digital print artists, who are largely based in the East London neighbourhoods of Hackney, Shoreditch and Dalston.

Of course, previous generations of young London designers were also praised for their creativity, but they were never able to translate this into commercial success. Garments were of poor quality and deliveries were often late. But that seems to be changing now. Indeed, Natalie Massenet, founder of Net-a-Porter told the Financial Times that “if people have been paying attention, they will see there is a new crop of extraordinary talent, which is young and dynamic and have learnt commercialism is not a dirty word.”

Bergdorf Goodman’s Linda Fargo told Suzy Menkes that although she was primarily in town to see Burberry and Tom Ford, it was the young talents who really excited her. “My camera is going and my notepad’s flying,” she said. “Between the prints and the quality, I am blown away.”

Not really ‘emerging’ designers anymore, Christopher Kane, Peter Pilotto, Jonathan Saunders, Giles Deacon and Erdem Moralioglu all put on very strong shows. Mary Katrantzou and Michael van der Ham both pushed their signature techniques forward. And the two new names in London that everyone was watching were JW Anderson (who put on both mens and womens shows within a span of five days) and Thomas Tait, a name familiar to long time readers of BoF. Cathy Horyn of The New York Times said Tait’s clothes were “imaginative and inspiring” — high praise from one of fashion’s most respected critics.

But will London’s recent successes be hijacked by the current scheduling complications? And if a sensible resolution isn’t found, will editors really choose to see independent designers in London over major advertisers in Milan? Watch this space.

4. THE RISE OF FASHION DIPLOMACY

Tods Light Installation at Italian Ambassador's residence in Paris | Photo: BoF

With all the bickering and back-and-forth between the fashion capitals, it somehow seems appropriate that national ambassadors, much better versed in the ins and outs of international diplomacy, are using their muscle to support young designers, senior editors, and famous national brands.

In Paris, the Italian ambassador invited the fashion glitterati to a special event for Tod’s, at which Chairman Diego Della Valle was present, to celebrate the launch of the brand’s Signature collection. Sir Peter Westmacott, the British ambassador to France, along with the prime minister’s wife Samantha Cameron, continued to show their support for London-based designers — Nicholas Kirkwood, Erdem Moralioglu, Roland Mouret, Antonio Berardi, Jonathan Saunders and Katie Hillier, to name a few — with a lavish event at the ambassador’s residence. And, Glenda Bailey was hosted by the American ambassador to France for a celebration of her book commemorating her ten year tenure at Harpers Bazaar USA.

5. MOUZAT AND MENKES GO VIRAL

Mark Holgate and Anna Wintour of American Vogue at Burberry Spring/Summer 2012 show | Photo: BoF

Fashion editors from two important newspapers flexed their editorial muscle this season, creating ripples throughout the fashion industry.

The season’s first viral moment came courtesy of Virginie Mouzat, fashion editor of Le Figaro, one of France’s most respected daily newspapers. Though her name is not widely known outside elite fashion circles, Mouzat’s scathing critique of Tom Ford’s private London presentation had everyone talking, even if only a select few were there to witness what Mouzat described as “a nightmare.”

When an English translation of Mouzat’s article was emailed from the American Vogue office in Paris to its senior editors in London and New York, it wasn’t long before the email was circulating throughout the global Conde Nast empire and, indeed, throughout the industry. Incredible chains of emails — from one front row name to the next, from one senior magazine editor to another, from one global brand executive to his colleagues — was a lesson in how closely tied this industry really is. Ms. Mouzat had clearly struck a chord amongst the fashion establishment, for whom email, not Twitter, is still the most powerful viral tool.

Suzy Menkes, fashion editor of the IHT, set off her own viral frenzy, this time on Twitter, with the assistance of her colleague Jessica Michault. In her review of Raf Simons’ collection for Jil Sander in Milan, Ms. Menkes suggested that Mr. Simons was in talks to take over from Stefano Pilati at Yves Saint Laurent. When Michault tweeted the breaking news, which coincided with the Aquilano Rimondi show in Milan, attendees were reportedly glued to their iPhones and Blackberries, while debate quickly broke out across the social web about whether Suzy Menkes was actually saying Simons was going to YSL.

The next day, Yves Saint Laurent quelled the rumours in an official statement, which while firm, still seems to leave open the possibility that Mr. Simons, or someone else, could indeed design for YSLin the not-too-distant future. Will Suzy Menkes still be proven right? Time will tell.

6. PRE-TAIL GAINS MOMENTUM, BUT FACES OPERATIONAL ROADBLOCKS

Edgy Glamour at Jason Wu Spring/Summer 2012 | Photo: BoF

When Aslaug Magnusdottir and Lauren Santo Domingo launched their “pre-tail” start-up Moda Operandi (MO) last season, they must have known that the model would generate copycats, just as Gilt Groupe (itself inspired by Vente Privee) and Groupon were copied by hundreds of other similar businesses.

But as it turns out, Moda Operandi’s fast followers have not been other startups. Rather, it’s major media and retail brands who got into the pre-ordering game this season. Online industry bible Style.com debuted an “Instant Get” program for one-off products from six New York-based designers and venerable New York luxury retailer Bergdorf Goodman partnered with Jason Wu to offer pre-orders on selected items from his Spring/Summer 2012 collection. Sister company Neiman Marcus posted an exclusive pre-ordering opportunity for Donna Karan’s Spring 2012 collection, along with an interview between fashion director Ken Downing and Ms. Karan herself.

But fresh with a $10 million capital injection from New Enterprise Associates, a venture capital firm, the MO team had big plans of their own, announcing a partnership with Vogue.com just in time for fashion week, which directly linked the latest runway images to MO’s pre-order platform.

“We’ve experienced a steady rate of growth since our launch in February,” said Ms. Magnusdottir at the end of New York Fashion Week, “but the collaboration with Vogue has accelerated the rate of growth of both member acquisition and sales.” Indeed, Magnusdottir said that membership is expected to grow from 15,000 just after launch, a customer base built primarily on the personal networks of the founders, to an expected 100,000 members by the end of the year, driven by affiliations with Vogue.com and GOOP, the online media brand of Gwyneth Paltrow.

But despite the clear momentum, the model still faces a major roadblock that is out of the control of pre-tail players like MO: inefficiency in the fashion supply chain. As it stands, consumers still have to wait four to five months to receive most pre-ordered products. If pre-ordering is really going to provide instant gratification to consumers who are interested in buying from the runway, brands and retailers will ultimately need to deliver products more quickly than this. Burberry delivers its pre-ordered products within eight weeks, and Style.com’s ‘Instant Get’ products were due to be available within a few days of the 31 October launch.

Indeed, the broad success of the pre-ordering model rests on the ability of designers to compress delivery lead times. In response to this suggestion, Ms. Magnusdottir said she expected that supply chains would eventually be compressed over time, enabling MO to better match demand with product delivery.

Based on this season’s pre-commerce momentum, it can’t be long before other major fashion e-commerce players such as Net-a-Porter and Shopbop get in on the pre-ordering game. If the industry manages to sort out its supply chain issues, better aligning the operations and media cycles by delivering goods closer to the peak of consumer interest, could pre-commerce eventually just become plain old e-commerce?

Imran Amed is founder and editor-in-chief of The Business of Fashion

L-R Altuzarra, Prabul Gurung, Alexander Wang | Source: Style.com

You Can See Spring Coming (NY Times)
“Mr. Wang is a boy disguised as a designer — or maybe it’s the other way around — but whatever the case, he doesn’t want to grow up, and the clothes naturally follow that youthful spirit… Prabal Gurung’s show on Saturday had a pronounced erotic undercurrent that in its blunt use of violet, and the transparent hems of silk print dresses, owed something to the style last season of Riccardo Tisci of Givenchy.”

Fashion week: The ordinary people who stole the show (BBC News)
“Many people might not have heard of Tavi Gevinson, Scott Schuman, Susie Bubble and Bryanboy but they are household names to dedicated followers of fashion. All four are big players in the blogging revolution that has turned the fashion world on its head… But bloggers have been chipping away at the mainstream media as more and more people want to hear about fashion from people who apply it to everyday life.”

Where Fashion Gazes at Itself (NY Times)
“Tumblr, founded four years ago, has reached out to the fashion community in a way no other social networking site has. For the second time, it has brought users to New York Fashion Week as reporters, paying for their trips and giving them access to the shows. Their coverage is being posted on a dedicated channel, tumblr.com/NYFW, made up of posts from 20 bloggers picked by Tumblr’s staff, along with contributions from magazines that have their own Tumblrs.”

Versace sees revenue up in 2012 on H&M and Versus (Forbes)
“Italian top fashion house Versace is expecting higher revenues in 2012 after launching a collection for Swedish retailer Hennes & Mauritz this year and revamping its Versus second line…The company draws most of revenues from its top Versace line, but it launched a “Young Versace” line for kids and bought back its Versus licence this year to boost sales and profitability after starting a deep restructuring in 2009.”

Luxury: the next generation (FT)
“One of the more astonishing success stories of the past century has been the evolution of luxury retailing, from small-scale family firms to an international, multi-billion dollar industry… Yet, as the modern industry struggles to reconcile its artisanal heritage with today’s public offerings and quarterly reports, it is the personal, family connection that bridges the gap.”

Iodice at Sao Paulo Fashion Week | Source: SPFW

Brazil’s prosperity bursts forth on catwalk (AFP)
“Brazil kicked off Latin America’s premier fashion event, Sao Paulo Fashion Week, Wednesday, with parades showcasing its economic prosperity and optimism.”

S&P removes upscale Barney’s from CreditWatch (Business Week)
“Standard & Poor’s on Thursday affirmed its corporate credit rating on Barney’s New York and removed it from CreditWatch…The rating agency also lowered its issue-level rating to ‘CCC-’ from ‘CCC’ and revised its recovery rating to ’5′ from ’3′, saying the company’s value has diminished over the past few years.”

Model students rewarded at Graduate fashion week gala (Guardian)
“Rebecca Thomson, a 22-year-old graduate of the Manchester School of Art, claimed top prize in the gala show at Graduate fashion week last night for a collection that mixed hand-pleated details with jogging bottoms – a look the designer dubbed ‘casual couture’”

Why fashion on screen lacks style (Independent)
“As a film on Isabella Blow is planned, Geoffrey Macnab argues that haute couture and cinema are more likely to clash than complement.”

Designer from Nepal who cracked New York (AFP)
“The young Nepalese fashion designer Prabal Gurung has been courted by the world’s top style magazines and won plaudits for his creations from some of Hollywood’s best-known actresses.But it was not until Michelle Obama attended a function wearing a dress he designed that his parents, who live in the Nepalese capital Kathmandu, finally believed he had made it.”

Prabal Gurung and Joseph Altuzarra

Out on Their Own, and Making It Work (New York Times)
“Ever since Prabal Gurung left his employer in the garment district, last winter, and sank his savings into his own label – at the worst possible time – he has been more aware of the silly and duplicitous nature of fashion. It may just be him, or the economy, but he doesn’t think so.”

Italy Fashion Manufacturers Welcome “Made In Italy” Law (WSJ)
“Italy’s association of textile and apparel makers, Sistema Moda Italiana, Wednesday welcomed a new law that will force Italy-based fashion manufacturers to affix a “made in” label on products manufactured overseas.”

The Trouble With Jake (New York Times)
“Jake is just one store struggling to keep up with its bills during the worst retail economy in decades, but its troubles illustrate a dilemma facing an important swath of the fashion industry. While the recession has taken a toll on luxury fashion retailers of all sizes, it is the smaller, independent stores like Jake – known in the industry as specialty stores – that have been hardest hit.”

Giles Deacon Fashion in Motion at the V&A (Catwalk Queen)
“Giles Deacon will be showcasing a selection of his work in the V&A’s Raphael Gallery tomorrow as part of the museum’s Fashion in Motion programme.”

Ossie Clark to close (Drapers)
“Ossie Clark, the iconic fashion label which enjoyed huge popularity in the 1960s, is to close, just one year after it was relaunched.”