Thomas Tait | Source: Mother Blog

A London Design Maverick as a Pragmatist (On the Runway)
“Thomas Tait was in New York last week for London Showrooms, a presentation of young British fashion talent. Actually, Mr. Tait is Canadian, educated at a technical school in Montreal. In 2010, he completed the master’s program in women’s wear at Central Saint Martins in London, whereupon he joined that distinguished race known as the Young Fashion Designer.”

Urban Outfitters Losing Investors With Failing Fashions (Bloomberg)
“‘Bizarre’ and ‘lackluster’ fashions at its namesake stores may be why Urban, which also operates Anthropologie and Free People, is losing investors’ confidence, said Pamela Quintiliano, a New York-based analyst at Oppenheimer & Co. The shares have slid 27 percent this year, the biggest drop among U.S. specialty apparel retailers except for Aeropostale Inc.”

Gap bets on discounts to draw holiday shoppers (Reuters)
“Gap Inc said it plans to “compete aggressively” on discounts to attract shoppers in the crucial holiday season as the no. 1 U.S. clothes retailer continues to look for ways wrestle back market share from its peers. The retailer, which competes with more affordable and fashionable foreign players like Zara owner Inditex, Uniqlo parent Fast Retailing and Hennes & Mauritz , is trying to keep pace with fashion trends by revamping its stores and merchandise, but without much success so far.”

Nordstrom eyes Vancouver for expansion (Vancouver Sun)
“Nordstrom’s interest in its northern neighbour mirrors that of several major U.S. retailers lately… The big retail chains are looking for good opportunities and right now there aren’t a lot of good opportunities in the United States, so Canada is a natural place to look, and B.C. in particular because the economic performance here has been pretty good.”

There’s No Business Like Shoe Business (WSJ)
“Ms. Skovgaard’s designs are more rebellious than reserved, more dangerous than dainty, and since launching her eponymous collection in 2007, she has gained recognition across the fashion industry… In 2010, Ms. Skovgaard won accessory designer of the year at the Elle Style Awards, and most recently, she took the title of accessory designer of the year at the 2011 Dansk Fashion Awards, one of Denmark’s most prestigious industry prizes.”

Manolo Blahnik | Source: Dorchester Collection

“Thomas has such potential. The couture of it, the lines – his work is exceptional and wonderful.”

Legendary shoe designer Manolo Blahnik, commenting Tuesday night on the incredible potential of Thomas Tait, winner of the Dorchester Collection Fashion Prize. Thomas was first featured in The Business of Fashion in May, and most recently following his stellar, hush hush London Fashion Week debut

Thomas Tait Debut Collection | Photos: Sara Lai

LONDON, United Kingdom — Earlier this year, we introduced the BoF community to Thomas Tait. A fresh graduate of the Central Saint Martins MA programme, Tait has had a busy few months. Since we first met him in May, he has been named a finalist for the Dorchester Collection Fashion Prize, created an accessories collaboration with mega online fashion retailer ASOS, and on Saturday, showed for the first time at London Fashion Week in a hush hush off-schedule presentation held at the Wilkinson Gallery in East London.

There were only two rows for seated guests, but the overflow crowd didn’t seem to mind. Squeezed onto single benches on either side of the runway were Elizabeth Saltzman of Vanity Fair, Bronwyn Cosgrave of the Dorchester Collection Fashion Prize, Canadian High Commissioner James Wright and his wife Donna Thomson, and Kristina Blahnik, niece of Mr. Manolo himself and a new face for the Manolo Blahnik shoe empire. American editors who had caught wind of the Thomas Tait buzz were also there, including Whitney Vargas of Elle and Chioma Nnadi of Vogue.com. And of course, The Business of Fashion was there too.

So with a crowd of powerful fashion influentials, friends, supporters and classmates from Central St Martins in the house, and after waiting almost an hour for the show to begin, the audience craned their necks to catch a glimpse of Tait’s debut collection. And what a debut it was.

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Celebrating Canadians in Fashion at the Canadian High Commission in London

LONDON, United Kingdom — On recent trips home to Canada, much to my dismay, I have struggled to find local fashion stories to share on BoF. Yes, Canada has a history of superstar models, and occasionally there is a retailer like Brian Hill of Aritzia or a young designer like Rad Hourani who captures my attention, but for the most part, getting a good Canadian fashion story has proven to be a challenge.

As it turns out, I was looking in the wrong place the whole time. I missed the quiet Canadian fashion revolution happening in my own backyard, right here in London.

On Wednesday evening, James R. Wright, Canadian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, and his charming wife Donna Thomson, together with their daughter Natalie, hosted an intimate dinner at their home to celebrate the great success that London-based Canadians are having in the global fashion industry. It was only by bringing all of us together in one room that the full force of London’s Canadian fashion mafia could be truly comprehended.

Let’s take stock, shall we? … Continue Reading

Thomas Tait’s Sketchbook | Source: Thomas Tait

LONDON, United Kingdom — Each year, more than 4,000 design students graduate from fashion colleges across the UK.  But there are only about 500 new jobs available for them, leaving thousands of young designers to move abroad or start their own labels. The vast majority of these have absolutely no business training whatsoever.

For Thomas Tait — one of the most buzzed-about new graduates from Central Saint Martins, one of the UK’s leading fashion schools — and hundreds of other budding designers around the UK, PR and fame are not enough. There are also the practical necessities of developing a viable fashion business: raising funds, setting up a studio, hiring staff, securing production, creating a new collection and, ultimately convincing buyers that they should place an order because the clothes will actually arrive on time, as promised, ready to be sold.

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