Paris, Photos: Francois Guillot
Posts for September 2nd 2008
Jil Sander Changes Hands
Here are some new clothes from a brand who just recently changed hands. While officially Out Of The City for the weekend, we were perusing the advertisements in a September glossy when along came a Jil Sander ad. Our boyfriend's mother asked, rightly, 'what sort of woman might wear heels so, so, uncomfortable looking' to which we answered (from the back seat of her smooth gliding non-taxi brand of automobile), that a more forthcoming question would be to ask what kind of woman wouldn't wear them. That is, most. Whatever you are left with, that lone woman with her hand raised, is your Jil Sander customer and you better believe she's not embarrassed to be poised as such. Jil Sander, ever defined by its slick, androgynous, aggressive aesthetic, has just been purchased by Onward Holdings Company for a clean 244 million. The brand, energized by Raf Simons and their previous holding company Change Capital Partners, is expected to keep Raf on board. Here's to a new chapter of Jil Sander and a seemingly confident change of hands. Now if only we could get Yoox to photograph the clothes so that they don't look like they're straight out of a Coldwater Creek catalog.
Fashion in 50 Seconds 9/2
Jil Sander has been sold to Japanese fashion company Onward Holdings for $244 million dollars. The London based private equity firm Change Capital appears to have been good for the house, handing them over to an excellent new home.“I like to say that Jil Sander was in quarantine because thanks to Change Capital, we cleaned up our act and successfully went from a designer house to a brand,” said Gian Giacomo Ferraris, chief executive officer at Jil Sander, during an interview at the Milan headquarters with WWD. “But this was the right moment to sell and now we can accelerate our growth process, increase revenues and improve margins.” Creative director Raf Simons will stay on.

Vogue India is at the center of a controversy that would make even a 20th century colonialist blush. Vogue India’s August 16-page accessories story of handbags, clutches and designer umbrellas, were modeled by average Indian people. Some 456 million Indians live on less than $1.25 a day making $200 Burberry umbrellas in huts a little offensive to more than a few people.
Halston is unlikely to hire a marquee name, instead focusing on an internal design team. Anyone curious about this spring collection should not that it was apparently conceived by Marco Zanini before the departure.
Diesel likes to party. A lot!
Coutorture favorite Oscar De La Renta has relaunched ecommerce. The site, designed by habitual enemies of usability and FLASH addicts Createthe Group, is similar in feel to the recently launched Calvin Klein ecommerce site (also a CreateThe project) giving us hope that perhaps a new era of selling products and showcasing information instead of pretending to recreate (and miserably) a store experience. But we trusted that CEO Alex Bolen wouldn't have it any other way. Heck, he even has Oscar guest blogging these days.
Coutorture Community's Morning Must Reads 9/2
With so much of today's fashion becoming commercialized, it's nice to see our Network Partners going their own way. Gain unique perspectives in today's Must Read posts from:
So Fash'On becomes entranced by Josephine jewelry. Her latest piece of jewelry needs a name, and she's looking to you for assistance. One of the main complaints against the fashion industry is the lack of reality in magazines, advertisements and runway shows. Bunny Shop points out that when magazines actually start using real people, things become confusing.
Some women have a face that is able to hold vibrant blush. So Loverly reviews MAC's latest blush offering, Sheertone, for those women who need a more subtle approach to cheek color. Trash Bag Aesthetics takes business cards and website promotion to the next level with her latest piece of jewelry. If you want to know where to reach you, just look around her neck. Even though it's the end of Summer, a beauty regime never ends, it just takes different forms. Trust Your Style "bares all" and shares her current routine.
