fashionologie

Brioni Terminates Womenswear, Contract with Alessandro Dell'Acqua

fashionologie — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 10:45:11 PDT

>> Italian label Brioni, which just hired Allessandra Dell'Acqua in May 2010 to raise its womenswear profile, is discontinuing the line. Dell'Acqua, who WWD reports was just in talks to extend his yearly contract for three more years - with a clause giving Brioni exclusivity over the designer - will have his contract terminated.

Brioni's change of mind is attributed to ongoing talks between PPR and Brioni about the French luxury conglomerate acquiring the Italian brand. One industry source told WWD: “This was supposed to be a long-term investment for Brioni. The collection was selling very well, and Brioni was planning to open a number of women’s stores, so I can only assume the entrance of a new shareholder was instrumental in determining this new course.”

If PPR does invest in Brioni, the women's line may not be revived, another source cautioned: “PPR may only want to focus on men’s. It already has so many women’s lines.”

Si Newhouse on Ousting Anna Wintour From Vogue - "Never. I Hope She's Here 10 Years From Now"

fashionologie — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 11:27:14 PDT

>> Mario Testino photographed Anna Wintour for the April 2011 cover of WSJ. - likely at her request (he often shoots Vogue's covers). Because if there's one thing about Wintour, it's that she does things on her own terms.

Si Newhouse (chairman of Advance Publications, which owns Vogue) attests with an anecdote about a Fashion's Night Out meeting Wintour held in Paris, which had 30 international Vogue editors and publishers in attendance: "It was the first time anybody had gotten them all together. She didn't need my authority to do it - she has a remarkable ability to impose her will. If I had had reservations, she probably would have gone ahead anyway."

Marc Jacobs, too, confirms: "If I get a request for something I don't want to do, first I get an email, then a phone call from someone at Vogue, and now I don't even bother to say no - I know the next call is from her." And New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, who Wintour has worked with on a number of initiatives - including Fashion's Night Out - says: "Behind all Anna's grace and poise is some pretty tough resolve. She's not a person you want to say no to."

Even the Costume Institute has bowed to Wintour's requests (she has raised a grand total of $75 million for the organization, after all). For last year's gala, she had a 30-foot hot-air balloon trucked in from South Dakota to float above the museum's Engelhard Court. "When we first saw it, we go, 'Never! We can't have gas in the museum!' " says Met president Emily Rafferty. "Anna's changed our attitude - she's brought us to new levels of thinking of what we can do, but without ever losing sight that we're working in a museum context here."

Needless to say, Wintour's reach extends much further than fashion. Harvey Weinstein, who has known Wintour for 15 years (and more recently married Marchesa's Georgina Chapman), notes: "I'm a streak player, but Anna's there, good or bad. When I wasn't doing so well, Anna would throw a party and put me next to Bernard Arnault." Although he declined to be specific, Weinstein said that he had several business deals come out of that party. And Baz Luhrmann, who just recently cast Wintour favorite Carey Mulligan to star in his upcoming film adaptation of The Great Gatsby, says: "I always talk to Anna about what I'm up to, and I always listen to what she has to say."

Within fashion, too, Wintour is more than just an editor. As Francois-Henri Pinault, head of PPR, says: "She tackles things that are really much bigger than what any other editors take on." Because of Wintour, Pinault is currently discussing how to financially support young designers with the French government. But Wintour never straight-out asks him to do something: "She's much more subtle than that."

She's also something of a matchmaker - whether it's designer to brand (in the case of placing John Galliano at Christian Dior back in 1996; Bernard Arnault - chairman of LVMH, which owns Dior - says of Wintour: "She pointed us towards unexpected choices. I speak very openly to her, and this was quite audacious - it was not about picking the big names of the moment. It took her to see that there was a stylistic closeness between John and Dior. She was the discoverer.") or brand to financier (in the case of Bottega Veneta and Gucci Group or Michael Kors and Sportswear Holdings). "She does this very discreetly, but she's really a kind of consigliere to the entire fashion and retail industry," one former colleague who worked closely with Wintour says. Another former colleague, who attended several corporate matchmaking meetings with Wintour, adds: "I came to realize that she's really the McKinsey of fashion." As for Wintour's word on the matter? "We can suggest," she says, "but in the end, everybody makes up their own minds."

It sounds like Wintour isn't going anywhere anytime soon. Vogue is Conde Nast's most profitable publication, Si Newhouse confirms, adding that he has no successor in mind: "Never. I hope she's here 10 years from now, 20 years from now." Wintour, for her part, says: "With all the new media outlets out there, with all the noise, a voice of authority and calm like Vogue becomes more important than ever. The more eyes on fashion, the more opinions about fashion, the more exploration of fashion around the world, the better it is for Vogue. Vogue is like Nike or Coca-Cola - this huge global brand. I want to enhance it, I want to protect it, and I want it to be part of the conversation."

A few more quotables from the WSJ. profile:

Marc Jacobs on Wintour's cold reputation: "She gets such a bad rap. She stands by the people she believes in, and if you're not one of those people, perhaps you take a different view."

Wintour's take on her reputation: "I care deeply about my friends and my family and they know it, but work is work."

Wintour on cover choice regrets: "I'm not terribly proud of putting the Spice Girls on the cover."

Wintour on the John Galliano scandal: "This is all so tragic."

Wintour on being criticized for using the same people in Vogue: "I try to remain open to new people, but obviously there's a stronger element of trust with people you've known for a long time. I think we have a Vogue vocabulary, and there are certain people we like to have as the backbone of the magazine - Vogue's signposts. We try very hard to integrate the familiar signatures with people we feel are new and up-and-coming, but I would rather err on the side of being a little more familiar than being too . . . What's the right word? . . . Edgy."

WSJ. on Wintour's morning habits: "When I met Wintour in her big, artfully tidy office at Vogue, she had been up since 5 am - her normal waking hour. On most days she goes off to play tennis at 6, but lately she's been nursing a sore elbow and can't play. Which didn't mean no tennis."

Stefano Pilati Finds All the Yves Saint Laurent Rumors an "Infuriating Distraction"

fashionologie — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 09:44:23 PST

>> Stefano Pilati has numerous times over the years been plagued with reports of his imminent demise at Yves Saint Laurent. But despite the house's denial of the latest round of rumors, he says, “You know, it affects me . . . I am a creative person, so I am very vulnerable by nature. When you have the idea for a collection, you are really happy, and when you don’t have the idea, you are upset and down and grumpy. That is your daily life. And that vulnerability . . . it can also be fragility.”

Pilati adds that he has at times wondered if the rumors might be true, and that they have been "an infuriating distraction because he thought that they were driven by jealous colleagues or those who were seeking to unseat him," the New York Times reports.

“I don’t let it go,” he says. “What is it about? I should be here, thinking about how beautiful my job is, and come to the office every day and work with colors and fabrics. But no, you have something that undermines you.”

Yves Saint Laurent just recently posted its first significant profit - of about $15 million - after almost a decade of stunning losses; PPR chairman Francois-Henri Pinault credited Pilati as having played a key role in the turnaround. Nonetheless, Pilati has questioned his place in fashion and whether the pressures are worth it: “I have worked and worked and worked hard again. I have been a monk here [at Yves Saint Laurent].”

But he's staying in the game for now - his contract with the house runs through March 2012, he says, but he will likely start discussing a new contract this Spring - he wants to stay with the brand.

Armani Denies Plans to Hire Stefano Pilati; PPR CEO Francois-Henri Pinault Praises the Designer

fashionologie — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 09:04:48 PST

>> Yesterday, Yves Saint Laurent took to Twitter to dispel rumors of Stefano Pilati's imminent exit, and when reached for comment Thursday, PPR CEO Francois-Henri Pinault also firmly denied any plans to discharge the designer. In fact, he credited Pilati with helping Saint Laurent back to profitability in 2010, and just last week praised Pilati at PPR's results presentation for Saint Laurent's current momentum, and teasing him good-naturedly about filling all the upcoming new YSL stores with merchandise. As for the rumors of Pilati heading to Armani after Giorgio Armani's retirement, a house spokesperson replied: "The rumors are untrue." [WWD, Vogue UK]

Will Hedi Slimane Be Announced Yves Saint Laurent's New Designer Around Paris Fashion Week?

fashionologie — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 08:53:06 PST

>> For the better part of a year now, Stefano Pilati's standing at Yves Saint Laurent has been under intense scrutiny. After reports circulated that he had renewed his contract at the house for three more years in October, the rumors of his imminent departure subsided - until Saint Laurent CEO Valerie Hermann, who with Pilati restored the house to profitability, announced last week she was stepping down to become CEO of Reed Krakoff on April 1. She helped recruit her successor at YSL, former Lanvin CEO Paul Deneve.

Then, a couple of days ago, someone tweeted under Kenzo's PR handle: "Just heard BIG news about this being a certain designer at an established French house's last season and being replaced by someone major!!" and "CEO has just left and now the designer replaced by someone who has moved away from design the last couple of yrs but stayed in fashion." The tweets - which seem to point to Pilati as the deposed and Hedi Slimane as the successor - have since been taken down (Note that YSL is under the PPR umbrella, whereas Kenzo is part of LVMH).

Now, Hint is reporting that according to sources, Hermann didn't leave her post last week, but rather was let go because of low sales volume. And Slimane - who designed for Saint Laurent before Dior Homme - has been chosen as Pilati's replacement, partially due to his friendship (read: ability to get along) with Pierre Berge. Word is, one way or another, the matter will be addressed by a spokesperson around Paris Fashion Week.

And in the aftermath? There's already been suggestions that Carine Roitfeld with consult for Slimane at the brand, and of course, there's the rumor that Pilati is set to take over at Giorgio Armani after the designer's retirement.

The Tom Ford Influence-Alberta Ferretti Employs Real Women as Models for Pitti Show; Erin Wasson Has a New Design Collaboration

fashionologie — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 12:26:02 PST

Alberta Ferretti took a page out of Tom Ford's book and had the likes of Camilla Belle, Carmen Dell'Orefice, Poppy Delevigne, Paz de la Huerta, and Marisa Berenson walk in place of models as part of her Florentine show to open Pitti Immagine Uomo last night, for which she created an exclusive 30-piece collection [Style.com, Fashionista]
The Costume Institute received a donation of $10 million from Jonathan and Lizzie Tisch to create a new gallery space; although this gift was the "tipping point" to start construction next year, fundraising for the project started several years ago and has been helped in large part by Anna Wintour and the Costume Institute Gala benefit [NY Times]
Gucci Group parent company PPR just created a new business unit dedicated to developing online retail. CEO François-Henri Pinault called e-commerce a "strategic priority," adding: “My goal [is] to increase our digital presence and accelerate our growth in online sales, which should reach 10 percent of Gucci Group and Puma’s consolidated revenues over the next few years” [WWD]
Bibhu Mohapatra, Pamela Love, Mandy Coon, The Lake & Stars, M. Patmos, and Study NY were all awarded $25,000 Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation grants to put toward their upcoming New York Fashion Week shows [WWD]
Erin Wasson is designing a capsule collection for Zadig & Voltaire [ElleUK]
W's February 2011 cover features a first look at sweet-looking Rooney Mara's transformation into punky Lisbeth Salander for David Fincher's upcoming The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo film [W]
Instead of pouting across the board as in seasons past, models have notably been captured smiling in both the Valentino and Chloe Spring 2011 ad campaigns [Garance Dore]
Jessica Stam's left arm is in a sling after she sprained and fractured it while snowboarding in Montana over the holidays [Modelinia]
Using the same technology that made the Death Star explode in Star Wars, Loewe blows up its Amazona bag over and over in a new brand video [Style File]

Linda Evangelista, Billionaire Peter Morton Have Split

fashionologie — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 09:50:54 PDT

>> Linda Evangelista, 45, and billionaire Hard Rock founder Peter Morton, 64, who began dating in late 2006 when Evangelista was pregnant, split at the end of the summer after a series of disagreements, Page Six reports.

According to one family source, "Some members of Peter's family were not too fond of her, and were dismayed when [Evangelista] appeared around last Thanksgiving with a large diamond ring on her finger. But the marriage never happened. Peter is very settled in Malibu and loves LA, while Linda liked to spend time in Canada and with her friends in New York."

Evangelista has never said who the father of her son, Augustin James, is, although it's rumored to be PPR CEO Francois-Henri Pinault, who is now married to and has a child with Salma Hayek. Page Six cites sources confirming that Pinault is the father of Evangelista's child - a fact which has caused some friction between Evangelista and Hayek. But one insider says: "They get along for appearances and when the kids are together."

Evangelista's agent declined comment last night, saying: "Linda has no press agent." Morton's and Hayek's reps also declined comment.

fashionologie — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 10:07:26 PDT

>> Is PPR Eyeing Burberry? -Reports from the UK financial markets that Burberry may be acquired - first it was by LVMH, now it seems to be PPR circling - won't die. Needless to say, Burberry is doing well - the brand experienced a 30.6 percent sales hike in the first part of the year - and PPR is reportedly in the process of building its portfolio of brands. But spokespeople from PPR and Burberry both declined to comment on the speculation. [WWD]

Alexander McQueen Label to Go On

fashionologie — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 06:14:03 PST

>> This morning, Francois-Henri Pinault, president of PPR announced: "The Alexander McQueen trademark will live on. This would be the best tribute that we could offer to him." Pinault noted that the decision was made quickly after McQueen's death, and said he was confident the house continues to hold "very important potential." Sales of McQueen clothes are reported to have surged 1,400 percent in the last week.

Robert Polet, president of Gucci Group, confirmed that the Fall 2010 collection the designer was finishing before his death will be shown at Paris Fashion Week next month. Polet said he spoke to McQueen a few weeks ago, and the two men decided that they had "transitioned from being the name of a designer to putting in place the building blocks of a brand." He recalled McQueen telling him: "That means that will be my legacy. That's something I will always leave behind."

On the subject of replacement »

Alexander McQueen's Death Confirmed as by Hanging; PPR Said to Comment on Brand's Future Tomorrow

fashionologie — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 11:15:00 PST

>> This morning, a coroner's inquest confirmed that Alexander McQueen, whose body was found at his home in London last Thursday at 10:30 am, died of asphyxiation and hanging himself in his wardrobe. The inquest has not yet formally ruled the death a suicide, but police said there were no suspicious circumstances. A suicide note was found in the apartment and is being examined by police.

The inquest has been adjourned to April 28, and full details of the autopsy will be available in a few months. Despite the fact that McQueen's family is now free to hold his funeral, there has been no word on details, although it's rumored to be very, very small, and followed by a larger March memorial. A spokeswoman for London Fashion Week said an event featuring a tribute to the designer is being planned, pending approval from the McQueen family.

As for McQueen the brand, no official word yet on that either, but owner PPR has indicated it will comment on the subject when it releases its 2009 figures on Thursday.