Jaime Perlman | Source: Jermaine Francis.

LONDON, United Kingdom — “Everyone knows that editorial content is going to change,” says Jaime Perlman, Art Director of British Vogue. As web magazines, fashion films and a new generation of bloggers continue to capture the collective imagination of industry insiders and end consumers alike, there’s no doubt that fashion media is embracing digital technology like never before and becoming more immediate, transparent and multi-sensory in the process.

But where many in the magazine industry see a seismic threat, Ms. Perlman saw a creative opportunity. Last September, she launched an experimental fashion site called Test that embraces the collaborative energy, speed and democratic spirit of the internet and — true to its name — provides a platform for a new generation of fashion creatives to test the digital waters.

Jaime got her start in fashion as an assistant to Fabien Baron at American Harpers Bazaar, before moving on to become Associate Art Director at American Vogue. After a chance encounter with Robin Derrick, she was offered the job of Art Director at British Vogue and jumped ship for London, where she’s lived for the last five years.

BoF recently caught up with Jaime to talk about Test, the convergence of film and stills, moving to London, and the new inclusive fashion universe.

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Hugo by Hugo Boss Autumn/Winter 09 | Source: Hugo Boss

Hugo Boss European sales fall 13 percent (Drapers)
“Total European sales at Hugo Boss fell 13% to €852m (£766m) over the first nine months of 2009 as the brand and retailer was hit by a turbulent northern European and Spanish trading climate.”

M&S and Next fight back while Primark shines (Reuters)
“Updates from three of Britain’s biggest clothing retailers should shed a little more light next week on whether consumers are starting to spend more freely ahead of the key Christmas trading period.”

Lulu Guiness signs investor to fund Asian expansion (Drapers)
“Lulu Guiness has sold a 15% stake in the luxury handbags and accessories label to Hong Kong-based First Eastern Investment Group to further expansion in Asia.”

Prada shortens temporary layoffs as orders rise (Reuters)
“Italian fashion house Prada is shortening temporary suspensions for some workers by three weeks after orders for its spring/summer 2010 clothes exceeded expectations by 10 percent.”

The Fashion Fund (Vogue)
“Vogue and the British Fashion Council have launched a new £200,000 fund today to support Britain’s young design talent both financially and with expert business advice.”

LONDON, United Kingdom — Bootlegged copies of The September Issue have been circulating amongst fashion insiders in London. The new 90 minute documentary featuring Anna Wintour of American Vogue is not due to hit U.S. and U.K. theatres until later this Summer, but it is already providing much fodder for industry conversations over mid-Summer cocktails and pre-collection appointments.

The film revolves around the development, execution and advertising sales for the September 2007 issue of US Vogue, an 840 page tome featuring Sienna Miller in a feathered Marchesa dress on its cover and reaching almost 13 million people. Anna Wintour carves a clear path throughout the film, with a singular vision for her magazine. Industry luminaries young and old tremble in her presence, as she serves up her trademark quick, clear, sharp feedback to designers, businessmen and editors alike.

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Alexandra Shulman, courtesy of David Wise

LONDON, United Kingdom — When BoF’s Vikram Alexei Kansara explored the interactive future of fashion magazines about a month ago, a lively debate ensued in the comments section of the post and in emails with our readers. It is one of the most read articles on BoF thus far in 2009.

Clearly this is a topic on everyone’s minds, not only in the fashion media, but also print media more generally. Major newspapers like The New York Times and The Washington Post are deep in cost-cutting mode, the consequence of a perfect storm of technological change and plummeting advertising revenues which has sent the global publishing industry into a tailspin. Several magazines have been shut down, including Conde Nast’s Domino and Hachette Filipachi’s Home. Last week, music monthly Blender was the latest magazine to take its entire publication online, shuttering the physical publication altogether after the April issue.

So, when given the opportunity to pose a question to one of the most important fashion editors in the world, I couldn’t resist asking for her take on the future of fashion magazines in this climate of rapid change.

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PARIS, France — My favourite part of the recently released documentary on Carine Roitfeld is when the French Vogue editrix describes the level and degree of preparation for  a shoot with photographer Patrick Demarchelier. The shoot takes place in an agricultural show, contrasting haute couture with farm animals. As she explains, every shot had been imagined in her mind beforehand and everything had been meticulously planned to keep up with the photographer’s quick pace. And yet, they executed with a small team to achieve what Roitfeld calls a very French photograph.

In another segment, Marc Jacobs explains the thinking behind the low key approach to showing his signature collection this year, when he went without the elaborate sets and 2000 person mega event of New York Fashion Week. He says that it just didn’t feel right this time and so they put the money (and focus) into the clothes.

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Fashion spread, courtesy of Vogue (US)

NEW YORK, United States — Susan Sontag once said “fashion is fashion photography.” She might have added: “and fashion photography is the magazine.”

Indeed, it’s hard to overestimate the importance of magazines to the fashion system. More than the runway, the boutique, the boulevard, or the internet, glossy physical magazines are still the primary place where fashion lives and the most powerful pathway for its transmission.

But in the first few weeks of 2009, the outlook for powerhouse fashion publishers like Condé Nast (which has almost monopolized high-end magazines) looks decidedly grim. In response to the recession, advertisers are slashing their marketing spend.

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Vogue Magazine, photo courtesy of the New York Times

What’s wrong with Vogue? (New York Times)
“Vogue has become stale and predictable, and it has happened in spite of some of the best editors, writers and photographers in the business.”

Lunchtime Snap: The Highs and Lows of 2008 Runway Fashions (WSJ)
The Wall Street Journal breaks down the most ubiquitous trends of 2008.

French fashion retailer Morgan files for bankruptcy (Times UK)
Morgan, the French retailer that counts Carla Bruni as one of its models, has filed for bankruptcy.

European Firms Seek Minority Partners (WWD)
“Minority stakes are becoming newly de rigueur with private equity and family-controlled funds, which are still sitting on cash piles and hunting for deals.”

LONDON, United Kingdom – Back in 1995, Netscape Navigator was the dominant web-browser with a market share of more than 90%.  People were talking about the launch of Altavista, an Internet search engine that acheived 300,000 hits on its very first day. On the fashion end of things, the New York Times’ Amy Spindler was tearing apart Donna Karan and raving about Mark Eisen in her review of the New York A/W 1995 collections.

Today, Netscape’s share of web-browser use is less than 1% and Altavista is a relic. Donna Karan still puts out collections in New York, but she scarcely merits a full length review in Cathy Horyn’s reviews. Nobody even remembers Mark Eisen. In the worlds of Fashion and the Internet, things can change very quickly indeed. Combine the two together, and things travel at lightspeed.

That’s why the longevity and continued market dominance of  the UK’s VOGUE.COM, which also launched in 1995, is remarkable. I spoke to Editor Dolly Jones about the new technology and content underlying the relaunched site. Not one to rest on her laurels, we also discussed the business imperatives for keeping VOGUE.COM at the top of its game.

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Image courtesy of Fashion156.com

LONDON, United Kingdom - While taking a whirl around the Internet these days you’re bound to bump into an online fashion magazine – or ten. Everyone from Richard Mortimer of Boombox fame to Net-a-Porter’s Natalie Massenet is getting in on the action – and looking for ways to monetise it.

For a long time, content developers had a hard time creating a distinction between simple websites and bonafide online magazines. But, in the past year, a plethora of online magazines have emerged with three common threads:

Multimedia:   The new magazines are a veritable multi-media festival. For some content consumers, particularly younger tech-savvy types, a multi-media experience is the only way to capture (and keep) their attention: lots of videos, blogs, and communities.

Integration: The trick here has been to create a truly integrated experience across different channels — for example,  how do you make an offline page really come alive on the Internet? Creating complementary content that can be consumed separately, and together, satisfies even the most demanding multi-tasker.

Convergence:   Style.com meets Neiman Marcus.com. Content companies are integrating commerce models into their sites while commerce companies are creating their own content, and thereby, becoming content destinations in and of themselves. 

To mark the surge of online magazines, we’ve compiled a list of ten of the most interesting concepts to watch:
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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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