Esprit Casual Fall/Holiday 2009 | Source: Brandthink

HK’s Esprit buys $500M JV stake in China push (Reuters)
“Hong Kong fashion retailer Esprit Holdings is buying out its partner in a Chinese retail joint venture for HK$3.88 billion ($500 million) as part of a drive to expand in the world’s third largest economy. The deal will see Esprit take full control of the 10-year-old venture, while China Resources Enterprise, which is selling the stake, will focus on its core businesses.”

Neiman Enlists Designers in Cost-Cutting Plan (WSJ)
“Burton Tansky, the 71-year-old rag-trade journeyman who has led Neiman Marcus Group for nearly a decade, is quietly refashioning the upscale department store chain for an age of belt-tightening and less conspicuous consumption. Mr. Tansky, Neiman’s chairman and CEO, is pressing suppliers to produce lower-priced versions of designer styles, a stark reversal for a chain long labeled ‘Needless Markup’ by more frugal-minded shoppers.”

Fashion boss who hired Lindsay Lohan leaves Ungaro (Reuters)
“Mounir Moufarrige, president and chief executive of French fashion house Emanuel Ungaro, has resigned just over two months after a widely panned collection by American actress Lindsay Lohan. Ungaro said in a statement on Wednesday that Moufarrige would continue to advise the company, which has gone through several stylists and two chief executives since couturier Emanuel Ungaro retired in 2004.”

Madonna does the dishes (Telegraph)
“But the pop star has not let her glamourous image slide, the pictures are acutally part of a photo shoot to promote the Dolce & Gabbana spring/summer clothes campaign.Madonna takes on the role of housewife for the campaign, in which she is also pictured preparing vegetables and tucking into a plate of pasta with her hands, sat on top of a kitchen work surface.”

Dsquared2’s Caten twins launching into limelight (AP)
“The twin-brother team behind the fashion label Dsquared2 are on TV and the radio, they created concert costumes for Madonna and Britney Spears, and they’ll be outfitting the headlining performers at the opening and closing ceremonies at the 2010 Winter Olympics… But any time it seems success might go to their heads, they remember their modest Canadian roots and have a good chuckle.”

Esteban Cortazar

Cortazar Leaves Ungaro (Vogue.com)
“Following a lengthy period of less than emphatic denials and weak shows of unity between Ungaro and the label’s ceo, Mounir Moufarrige, the decision has been taken to dissolve the relationship, WWD reports. It is expected to be formerly announced later today that the separation is by mutual agreement.”

Amazon to buy Zappos (Drapers)
“Amazon is set to buy US footwear website Zappos.com for around $927 million (£561.6m).”

Italian luxury consumption seen stable in summer (Forbes)
“Consumption of Italian luxury goods is seen stabilising in July and August from falls in the two previous months as the crisis sapped demand for jewellery, accessories and designer goods, an association said.”

Fashion Rio and the casual lifestyle (The Japan Times)
“While there are some bumps to get over, interest in Japan seems to be readily increasing for some in the Brazilian fashion industry.”

Karl who?

PARIS, France – We don’t actively engage in the rumour mill here on BoF, but when the whispers involve Karl Lagerfeld, Olivier Theyskens and Alber Elbaz in a Lanvin and Chanel merry-go-round, it seems worthwhile to engage in a bit of Friday afternoon fashion speculation.

Today, Diane Pernet has published a bombshell post outlining this scenario:

“This is not a fact until you officially read it somewhere else but rumour has it that Karl Lagerfeld will not renew his contract at Chanel and that Alber Elbaz will take his place and Olivier Theyskens will take Alber’s place at Lanvin…Nothing is engraved in cement, these are still just rumours you will have to wait and see.”

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It’s turning out to be fashion magazine week on the Business of Fashion.

A couple of months ago, Dominic Sohn, a newly appointed Fashion Editor at Vogue Korea, contacted me to get some thoughts on the revolving doors for designers at major fashion houses. This was before Lars Nilsson was turfed from Gianfranco Ferre (just days before his first runway show) only to be replaced by Tomasso Aquilano and Roberto Rimondi of 6267 and before Paulo Melim Andersson was sent packing after three seasons at Chloe, making way for Hannah MacGibbon. Dominic’s questions were timely indeed.

Excerpts from the interview have just been published in an article in the May 2008 edition of Vogue Korea, along with the reflections of Sally Singer of American Vogue. It was such an interesting exchange that it’s posted here for BoF readers.

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Amongst the most anticipated collections this season in Paris were the debuts by new designers at the helm of established brands — Stuart Vevers for Loewe, Estaban Cortazar for Ungaro, and Alessandra Facchinetti  for Valentino. Each brand has faced its own unique challenges in finding the right creative spark to sustain brand awareness and business performance.

While many fashion companies are practically clambouring to establish a presence and gain legitimacy in the lucrative leather goods category, Loewe has a long, rich history in beautifully-crafted leather goods, including a strong link to the  Spanish Royal family. But despite its enviable heritage and high quality, Loewe has had a hard time breaking into the younger fashion mainstream. Enter Stuart Vevers, who has a luxury heritage all his own, with stints at Louis Vuitton and most recently at Mulberry, where he helped put the British brand on the global fashion map.

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Yesterday’s post on Esteban Cortazar’s appointment at Ungaro garnered quite the response from all sides of the issue. Not only was our inbox quickly filled with emails, several comments also came through, including one that could be from someone connected to Ungaro, accusing Cathy Horyn of censorship. Fashion Inc also posted a response on her blog in defense of Mr. Moufarrige, given his reasonably short tenure at Ungaro and the fact that he actually didn’t hire 3 previous designers at Ungaro (though this article seems to suggest that he was already very much in the picture when Dundas was hired at the end of 2005).

We normally don’t respond to emails, comments and other blogs directly in a new post, preferring instead to engage with readers one-on-one or via the comments function, but given the volume of responses today, we’re happy to engage in the dialogue to address three key questions that have come in throughout the day:

• Why did so many designers turn down such a plum post?
• Does Cathy Horyn have the right to comment on designer appointments?
• Shouldn’t we give Esteban Cortazar a chance?

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Ever since the announcement that 23 year-old Esteban Cortazar had been selected as the new designer for Ungaro, fashion people have been scratching their heads.

Over at Cathy Horyn’s blog, many of the regulars have been noting Cortazar’s lack of experience (in design, but also in life and in business), lack of sophistication and lack of a unique vision. While everyone seems to be rooting for the young and talented designer, the path ahead for Ungaro is full of question marks. Cathy Horyn herself says:

Esteban Cortazar is a nice kid; he’s outgoing and he’s got some talent. But a number of the fashion-house appointments don’t seem all that well considered, and at some point the mistakes become irritating. I certainly wish Cortazar well. Working in Paris can be a great experience for a designer, but as Fashion Turtle notes… does he have the craft?

So why would Ungaro’s management choose such a young, inexperienced designer for such an august label? Not by choice, it turns out.

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