Givenchy Haute Couture Fall 2010 | Source: Style.com

Skeletons, Family and Religion (IHT)
“There was little of the sharp tailoring associated with Givenchy, where Mr. Tisci has been the creative director for five years… In an interview, the designer explained his vision.”

Perrone Quits as CEO of Italian Suitmaker Brioni (Bloomberg)
“Perrone, the 40-year-old grandson of Brioni co-founder Gaetano Savini, was appointed sole CEO in July last year, replacing a governing committee, of which he was part. The move was partly to accelerate decision-making, he said at the time.”

IT Holding Administrators Extend Bid Deadline for Ferré (Bloomberg)
“Administrators for IT Holding, the Italian fashion company being reorganized under government- backed bankruptcy protection, extended the deadline for binding offers for the Gianfranco Ferré label.”

Apple’s Appvertising Takes Off (Brand Channel)
“To make iAd advertising as effective as possible, Apple is looking to mesh interaction with emotion… Apple is reportedly ‘studying the buying habits’ of 150 million iTune users so it can target its mobile ads.”

Slow fashion: forever yours (Guardian)
“The concept of fast fashion – the hunger for a cheap Saturday night top that gets bought, worn once or twice and swiftly dumped – is fast fading. In its place we have slow fashion, the pre-eminence of terminally stylish designs with lasting appeal.”

Marc Jacobs | Source: FT

A New Marc Jacobs? (FT)
“‘I can’t do everything, and I’m not good at everything… I feel like what I do creates some sort of direction for the company, and that’s good, and then I can leave it to other people to interpret.’”

Why Givenchy is more desirable than ever (NZ Herald)
“Givenchy struggled to reinvent itself for over a decade, but today – with Riccardo Tisci at the helm – the designer label is experiencing its finest moment in years.”

Coach sues city of Chicago over counterfeit bags (Reuters)
“Coach Inc, the maker of leather handbags and other goods, sued the city of Chicago this week for allowing the sale of counterfeit goods at the New Maxwell Street Market, about two miles southwest of the downtown Loop.”

Resurgent female shoppers swing Ann Taylor to profit (Market Watch)
“Women’s clothing retailer Ann Taylor Stores Corp. on Friday swung to a first-quarter profit, helped by resurgent demand for women’s clothing and an updated merchandise assortment that spurred shoppers to pay full price.”

Civil Rights | Brand New Dandies (T Magazine)
“This week marks the debut of Social Primer for Brooks Brothers, a collection of bowties created in collaboration with the ultimate WASP-y men’s store and K. Cooper Ray, the dapper Southern-born men’s-wear blogger.”

Rue La La Out of the Box | Source: Rue La La

Software Maker Buying Web Fashion Discounter (NY Times)
“GSI Commerce, which manages the Web sites for major retailers like ToysRUs.com and Zales, announced on Tuesday that it was buying Rue La La, a Boston start-up, in a deal valued at $350 million.”

Giorgio Armani organizing staff as successors (Reuters)
“Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani, still frail after a bout of hepatitis, hinted on Tuesday of succession plans for his vast clothes empire after his retirement and joked about his appearance.”

Tommy Hilfiger European retail sales soar (Drapers)
“Tommy Hilfiger has revealed that global sales increased by 3.5% to EUR772m (£697.9m) in the six months to September 30. In Europe retail sales rose 24.4% with like-for-likes up 2.5%. However, European growth was offset by a slowdown in wholesale sales resulting in an overall sales decrease in Europe of 6.4%.”

TPG makes £500m profit from Debenhams exit (Drapers)
“Debenhams’ shareholder TPG, the American private equity group which took the department store private, has sold its remaining shares in the retailer, for a cool £500m profit.”

Hinterview: Riccardo Tisci (Hint)
“Givenchy designer Riccard Tisci is so Italian. Tall, dark and an aficionado of everything from music to art, he also talks a kilometer a minute…within minutes he had covered rave-hopping in Rio, trouble in paradise, his first fragrance and moving to New York—and being young enough to do it all over again.”