On Sunday night, Rodnik and Iqons teamed up for a buzzing party in New York to celebrate the launch of the first ever Iqons magazine and Rich and Phil’€™s continued creative collaboration in music and fashion. Even the big guns from Vogue (Andre Leon Talley) and the New York Times (Cathy Horyn) were squeezed into the tiny cabaret space at The Box to catch the latest installment of the Rich and Phil show, which included a capsule of looks from their A/W collection to be shown in its entirety during London Fashion Week.

It’s a good thing that Rich and Phil made the trans-Atlantic trip, because Sarah Mower reported in The Observer on Sunday that that after the global stock markets sank in January, the British Fashion Council began to receive calls from American buyers canceling their trips to London.  Is last season’s rebound of London Fashion Week under threat?

Not according to Sarah Mower. She says that there is growing interest in designers like Christopher Kane, Marios Schwab and Roksanda Ilincic, especially from fashion’s emerging markets, where the economic meltdown has yet to rear its ugly head.

Yet, while London’s designer set has certainly captivated international interest, some of them are still notorious for late deliveries and poor quality and other structural business problems that make it tough for retailers to rely on them. We published an article in the Iqons magazine on this very topic, suggesting that each constituency in the fashion eco-system has a role to play in ensuring that this latest buzz around young designer fashion doesn’t flame out. The entire article is reprinted below.

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Fashion’€™s next generation: A Manifesto for Change

By Imran Amed

Each year, I give a talk at London’s Central St Martins College of Art and Design on The Business of Fashion, taking some of the school’s high potential students through the thought process of what to do once they graduate.

Over the years, Central St Martins has seen designers-cum-showmen like John Galliano and Alexander McQueen walk its hallowed halls and then go on to fame and fortune, largely on the basis of their creative talent. Back in the day, business considerations were of secondary importance to young designers like these, and Galliano, for example, could go bankrupt more than once and still rise from the fiscal dead.

An industry in flux…

Things have changed immeasurably since then: powerful luxury groups have emerged, the high-street has borrowed from the high-end by injecting a design quotient into its product, and the fashion industry has gone truly global.

This in turn has attracted unprecedented attention, not all of it healthy, from outside the industry.  There are now crooks disguised as investors, publicity stunts disguised as design competitions, and counterfeiters disguised as manufacturing partners.

More than ever before, fashion is a business, requiring personal judgment, significant financial resources and business acumen. These are lessons that Galliano and McQueen have come to learn over the years, and now even they must operate within the parameters of an industry that is in constant flux.

…but also stuck in old habits

Nonetheless, much of the fashion industry’€™s habits haven’€™t changed at all. We continue to hype young designers as the next big thing, based solely on their creative potential, while paying scant attention to whether they have the underlying discipline, funding, and infrastructure required to deliver on their runway promises.

Pages and pages of press and web ink are spent profiling young talents whose businesses may be messy, even if their creative concoctions are dazzling. For some of the industry’€™s hottest new names, it is not uncommon to be scrounging for cash in order to have their collections produced, to deliver product when the season is half over, and to live from season to season based on the patronage of fashion councils and industry sponsors who are desperate to keep these young talents afloat, for fear of losing the ingenuity that keeps fashion week interesting.

A world of opportunity

Thankfully, beyond all this doom and gloom, there is also some good news for young designers. The power of creatives to really set a fashion business apart is growing. Failed efforts by major fashion houses to use anonymous design teams hidden behind big brands have only served to highlight the importance of a unified creative vision. Creative talents like Tomas Meier at Bottega Veneta, Hedi Slimane at Dior Homme, and Tom Ford at Gucci have demonstrated what this kind of creative focus can do for a staid old brand

What’s more, as consumers tire of the ubiquity of the global brands, there is increasing demand for something truly special and exclusive; something that nascent independent fashion businesses can deliver in spades. Young fashion talent is uniquely positioned to be at the vanguard of this emerging market niche.

Limited professional support

However, unlike other creative fields such as music and film, there is limited professional support to help guide the careers of young fashion creatives. A young musician can turn to their manager and a young actor can turn to their agent, but more often than not, young designers find they have no one to turn to.

For a time, this was okay. When an issue or decision came up, designers would chat with a friend or family member who could act as a sounding board. But fashion is no longer a cottage industry. There is significant value at stake, particularly when dealing with large luxury conglomerates or private equity investors.

A poorly advised designer can end up leaving millions of dollars on the table by accepting deal terms that don’t fairly value their creative contributions. At the other extreme, young designers may make unrealistic demands at a time when major industry players are loath to sign bad deals, having learned from past mistakes. What good is a tough negotiator if they don’€™t help you get the deal you want?

Time for change

It is time for the industry as a whole to take responsibility for nurturing the next generation of young designers. Each constituency in the fashion eco-system has a critical role to play.

Fashion schools should better prepare designers for the reality of our rapidly changing industry. While creative and technical skills are a crucial part of a fashion education, so too are the fundamentals of managing a career and building a business. Accounting and cash flow analysis can be left to others, but practical training, which equips designers with the skills to make the right choices, is essential.

For their part, fashion councils should focus even more on connecting young designers with the business support they sorely need. The practice of awarding designers with cash may unintentionally create a dependency on (and expectation of) free money. Financial resources are essential, but they are much more powerful when combined with training on how to put that money to good use. Money will only last a season or two, but skills and training will last throughout their careers. Initiatives like the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund and Fashion Fringe are a step in the right direction, but these could have even greater impact by supporting an even wider group of designers, rather than favouring a chosen few.

Finally, young designers need to take greater ownership of their careers by actively seeking to shore up the areas where they have less expertise, ensuring that their interests are adequately defended while also keeping issues of ego and hubris in check. They should seek out mentors, business partners and appropriate professional support to help them in this regard. This may mean sharing some of the upside from their work, but it will ensure that there is indeed any upside at all.

If we want to discover the next McQueen and Galliano, then we must also ensure that we give them the tools to harness their creativity in a way that reflects the tough reality of the business. We have no other choice.

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Imran Amed is a professional advisor to the fashion industry and the Editor of the Business of Fashion at www.businessoffashion.net.

© 2008 Copyright Imran Amed – The Business of Fashion

Fashion Rocks bills itself as the most glamorous event on the planet. If there is a night on the London fashion calendar that can compare to the see-and-be-seen status of New York’s Costume Institute Gala, this is it. It was originally started by the Prince’s Trust, a UK-based charity which endeavours to bring new hope to the lives of underprivileged youth. Proceeds from the event are directed to this worthy cause.

The first Fashion Rocks was held at Royal Albert Hall in London in 2003 and teamed famous musicians and fashion designers together, strutting their stuff (quite literally) in a series of fabulous performances, complete with pyrotechnics, choreographed dance ensembles, and of course, some no-bones-about-it fashion glamour. The event was reprised two years later in Monaco, taking on Swarovski as its lead sponsor.

Since then, Fashion Rocks has gone on to become a bonafide business in its own right. In 2006, Fashion Rocks was bought by Big Group Ltd and Premium International Ltd, which, according to the Big Group website, ensures

that The Prince’s Trust continues to benefit from every Fashion Rocks event through annuity and profit participation, in addition to receiving a substantial purchase figure. The new management of Fashion Rocks will also expand the concept worldwide providing greater opportunity for charitable fundraising for The Prince’s Trust.

Fair enough. With a business partner like Big Group, The Prince’s Trust may actually be able to generate more cash for its projects, but I wonder whether some of the original meaning behind the event has been diminished by the supernova concoction of the fashion and music industries, combined with a corporate sponsor and a private sector owner intent on making a profit.

Which brings me to the night itself. The Prince’s Trust was scarely mentioned during the event, except for a humorous introduction by comedien(ne?) Dame Edna, occasional soundbites from emcees Uma Thurman and Samuel L Jackson, and the odd video about a Prince’s Trust success story.

In theory, a series of performance collaborations between fashion designers and musicians sounds like a brilliant idea, as fashion and music have always been inextricably linked. But, each of the collaborations on the night was punctuated by a 10 minute transition and from the start, it was clear that this was a made for TV event (it’s being broadcast on Britain’s Channel 4 tonight with worldwide broadcast later this year).

So, when Beth Ditto of the Gossip brought the house down in her sparkly Christopher Kane dress and Timbaland finally got the crowd on their feet for his set with Dolce & Gabbana, the momentum they built was completely lost afterwards. People twiddled their thumbs, waiting for the set to be changed while watching videos which had the impossible task of keeping people’s attention between these fiery live performances. How do you compete with a Marchesa-clad Dame Shirley Bassey as the opening act, doing an unforgettable rendition of Goldfinger?

You can’t. So naturally, most of the famous fashion, television, music and sports personalities used these breaks (9 of them in all, plus a 30 minute interval) as an opportunity for some seriously high-wattage networking, mingling and air-kissing. I have to admit to being undeniably and completely star struck as I walked the halls behind the VIP boxes. I saw a smoldering Tom Ford and ultra-glam heiress Daphne Guinness in an intense conversation, leaning up against a wall. Tamara Mellon worked the VIP boxes one by one, looking impeccably turned out, perhaps stepping up her efforts to promote the revival of Halston, which would fit perfectly on the Fashion Rocks red carpet.

On stage, mixed in with the starry names of Donatella Versace, Giorgio Armani, Dolce & Gabbana and Valentino was London prodigy Christopher Kane. And, the young London designer set was out in full force to support him, with Giles Deacon, Rodnik’s Rich and Phil in character, Roksanda Illincic, Jens Laugesen and others all on hand. Many important editors were there too but they, like me, were clearly not there for the fashion as the dresses were so far away, they couldn’t be seen.

Given the size of Royal Albert Hall, this is forgivable. But, surely events like this should still be engineered to deliver stronger messages about the problems that still need to be addressed in the charity’s quest to address the inequality in our society.

Legendary fashion designer Coco Chanel once said that "Fashion is in the sky, in the street; fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening." She was right. And the fashion community should continue to support and contribute to events like Fashion Rocks, using the allure of its glamour to draw attention and donations to important causes such as The Prince’s Trust.  We just need to be careful not to let that glamour drown everything else out.

As for the sponsors, owners and beneficiary of the event, it is important that they balance their objective of creating something great for TV with the opportunity to engage an unprecented group of influential people, all assembled in one room. How often does that happen? With a captive audience like that, it is a shame not to seize it.

Emerging brands usually don’t have the marketing budget and editorial muscle to build big brands and it can therefore be extremely difficult to get above all the noise and stand out from the crowd. Yesterday, I was thrilled to see two young brands partner with major retailers in innovative ways to build brand awareness.

My favourite guerilla marketers from Rodnik launched their "We are not a rock brand" tour at Barney’s New York. They played to an appreciative crowd of lucky customers and industry insiders, with their sidekick Peaches Geldof supporting Phil on vocals. The guys were understandably excited about the tour which rocks up at one retailer after another, from Colette in Paris to Comme des Garcons in Tokyo to Corso Como in Milan, over the next couple of months. 

For people who had never heard of Rodnik, it’s not likely a performance they will soon forget, what with that 80’s throwback and all that energy. Here’s a sneak preview video of their opening tour song, the surprisingly catchy "How to be Lovely":

Meanwhile, over at Bergdorf Goodman, Bontoni was holding a trunk show to allow customers to experience their exquisitely hand-made and custom-dyed leather shoes for men — the only appropriate way to promote such a unique product, allowing the customers to see it and feel it in person. The 3rd generation Italian family has only recently begun to expand the business beyond its tight circle of in-the-know customers using the combined business savvy of Lewis Cutillo and his cousin Franco Gazzani. Still, they only make between 5-8 pairs per day, so this will remain a very special product, brand buzz or no brand buzz.

It was a busy day overall as I provided Business of Fashion commentary on Rodnik’s growth spurt to Fashion Television (who were on hand to cover the Barney’s event) and filmed some footage with Anina for a new documentary on 360Fashion to be shown on America’s PBS network next Spring.

I also chatted for a while with the very personable self-proclaimed uber-nerd Robert Cringely who will be hosting the show and who is the author of blog called I, Cringely which is an excellent resource for anyone interested in entrepreneurship and technology. While Anina, Robert and I are all very different, the one thing we have in common is our nerdiness and interest in business building. It was great to bounce ideas off of each other.

New York Magazine: Tom Ford After Sex
Another article on Tom Ford (he’s clearly got PR under control) this time from New York Magazine. If you want to get into the psyche of the man himself, this article will help you get there.

Financial Times, Style: Models of a Financial Kind
You’ve heard of Roland Mouret for Gap and Giles Deacon for New Look, but now its Rodnik for HBS. Back in the Autumn, I talked to Rich and Phil of Rodnik about designing a t-shirt for the 5th year reunion of my business school class. They have woven this into their latest Financial Times column on the Adventures of Fashion.

© 2007 Copyright Imran Amed – The Business of Fashion.

I first met the Rodnik guys during New York Fashion Week in September 2006. I had been introduced to them via email by a business mentor of theirs, Maria Stammers, from the Portobello Business Centre in London. I had been exchanging text messages to arrange a meeting with Rodnik during Fashion Week in New York, but when I spotted two guys after the Peter Som show in cool webbed black wool cardigans with matching peach-coloured ties and that je-ne-sais-quoi English dandyism, I knew it was them. I tapped Rich on his shoulder and asked if they were Rodnik. At the time, they looked amused that someone would actually recognise them (or, at least, had heard of them). When I explained that I was the one whom Maria had referred, any awkwardness disappeared and we nipped off for an afternoon coffee in Bryant Park where I learned all about their budding business and their vision for where they wanted to take it.

Since then, we have kept in touch regularly and I have watched as they have  faced various business challenges (Production!), declared major fashion victories (Barneys! French Vogue! Lily Cole!), and shared their charm with the fashion world (Anna Wintour! Karl Lagerfeld! Julie Gilhart!), who have simply fallen head over heels for these two quintessential non-designer designers. With their brilliant marketing skills (Parasols! Spoof fashion show! FT Column!) they have built the beginnings of a brand.

Their latest adventure has been to put together an entourage/band/posse that includes the illustrious Peaches Geldof, maven of the London social scene (although Rich says posses are for cowboys not rockstar fashion designers). Tonight the Rodnik band gave its debut "concert" at Selfridges and the guys put on an inspired performance in line with evening’s surreal theme using a miniature piano, a child-sized set of drums, an old school record player pumping out The Doors and for lead singer, a mannequin with a top hat dressed in Rodnik .  The entourage provided requisite levels of vocal support and cool factor throughout while the photogs were all leaning into capture the moment.

Does this sound like a luxury fashion label? Well no, not really. But it is brilliant marketing and will continue to weave interesting stories around which the Rodnik lifestyle brand will be built.

Burlesque beauties hawking (surreal) scent-free perfume

Pre-show atmosphere


Surrealists

The debut


Stylish onlookers

Copyright Imran Amed 2007. All rights reserved.