paul rowland

These stories and more in our daily news roundup.

• Cat's out of the bag. The tweeting mastermind behind Choupette's Diary has finally been revealed. [Fashionista]
• Major staff shakeups at Ford. The agency has let go of its women's division head Paul Rowland and his partner, agent Mohammad Fajar. The two are accused of being "too demanding for the agency." [Page Six]
• Is this editor the next street-style and design star to watch? [The New York Times]
• Pantone has revealed its 2013 color of the year. [The Wall Street Journal]
• Drouot Richelieu is set to auction off iconic fashion pieces as part of its L'Homme et son Univers sale. Among the lot: an Emporio Armani shoe worn by Lady Gaga. [WWD]
• H&M customers will now be able to trade unwanted clothing items for store vouchers. [Telegraph]
• Club Monaco has been Coveteur'd. [Fashionologie Inbox]
• Anna Wintour uses Cartier stationery to write her thank-you notes. [Mod Mods]
• Remember the study that found toxic chemicals in the fabric of popular clothing brands? Mango has pledged to eliminate all hazardous substances from its production lines by Jan. 1, 2020. [Mango]
• From the mouths of Angels: men should never wear baggy bootcut jeans or Speedos — especially when trying to seduce ladies. [GQ]

Source: Twitter User ChoupettesDiary

>> Paul Rowland, who founded the Women and Supreme modeling agencies, created quite an uproar — and a number of agency switches — when he left both to head up the women's division at Ford in March.

Five months later, he finally speaks publically to T about the switch: “I’ve always had this obsession with Ford, this curiosity. I love the name, I love the brand. I’ve always had this thing in the back of my mind where I thought it would be cool to go and put my own touch on it. I thought it would be cool to do what [Marc Jacobs] did, [reinvigorating Louis Vuitton] but within a modeling agency. That was where I got the idea. I just thought it would be amazing if I could breathe some new life into the image of Ford.”

What type of model is he looking for? »

>> Last week, the New York modeling agency scene experienced a great shakeup when Women and Supreme founder Paul Rowland and Ford women's division head Caroline Poznanski essentially switched places. The fallout is expected to take weeks to settle, but in the meantime, some models have already started switching agencies to stay with their original management — Tao Okamoto and Hanne Gaby Odiele among those reported yesterday, and today, word comes of more movement: Lakshmi Menon has followed her agent Poznanski to Supreme, while Ranya Mordanova, Daiane Conterato, Karolin Wolter are all said to have moved from Supreme to Ford.

Fashionista cites a source saying that Chanel Iman, too, has left Ford to follow her booker to Supreme, while it appears that Jacquelyn Jablonski is staying put at Ford for the time being. But the source also notes: “No one is clear if models are moving back and forth — it’s all up in the air.”  In the same vein, The Imagist reports: "A new wrinkle emerged this morning around the allegation that the former head of one of the world's most powerful agencies is set to join a certain Dream Team currently in formation."

>> Last week, rumors of a major shift in the New York modeling agency setup floated around; eventually, it came out that Paul Rowland, the founder of Women Management and its Supreme offshoot, was leaving Supreme to head up the women's division at Ford.

According to Page Six's industry insider, Rowland, who sold the company which he founded in 1988 a few years ago, "had a huge salary there, but wasn't really getting along with management. So basically, he just left." Ford "cleaned house and canned everyone," says another source, to make way for Rowland and the agents he was bringing with him.

Caroline Poznanski, meanwhile, who ran Ford's women's division until Rowland's arrival, has been chosen by Supreme to take Rowland's old job. "It's one big game of musical chairs," reports the source. "There were rumors around that Supreme was just going to close, but instead they hired Poznanski and absorbed some other people who had been let go from Ford."

One booker notes: "The models at these places are in a tailspin. A lot, including [Ford girls] Chanel Iman and Jacquelyn Jablonski, don't know if they're staying or going. There will likely be a spate of lawsuits because both Paul and Caroline are trying to bring their girls over, but they have noncompetes in their contracts."

Some models have already switched »