The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Amazon Fashion has hired former Vogue digital creative director Sally Singer in a new role as head of fashion direction as it seeks to expand its luxury e-commerce business. Singer, who left Vogue in December 2019 after almost two decades, will report to Amazon Fashion president Christine Beauchamp.
The appointment is another example of a tech platform hiring former editors — as Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok have done in recent years — to better woo brands to advertise or sell their products on their platforms. Amazon has an uphill battle in capturing luxury brands, a group that has long shied away from the platform because of its utilitarian interface and lack of curation.
In September, Amazon launched a new “Luxury Stores” platform with a campaign starring Cara Delevigne wearing Oscar de la Renta, the first brand to sign on to sell there. This year, Amazon has also onboarded more designer labels through a shop set up in partnership with Vogue and the CFDA to help designers struggling during the pandemic.
The group’s flagship Prada brand grew more slowly but remained resilient in the face of a sector-wide slowdown, with retail sales up 7 percent.
The guidance was issued as the French group released first-quarter sales that confirmed forecasts for a slowdown. Weak demand in China and poor performance at flagship Gucci are weighing on the group.
Consumers face less, not more, choice if handbag brands can't scale up to compete with LVMH, argues Andrea Felsted.
As the French luxury group attempts to get back on track, investors, former insiders and industry observers say the group needs a far more drastic overhaul than it has planned, reports Bloomberg.