fashionologie

Talks Between Marc Jacobs and Christian Dior Said Proving Difficult

fashionologie — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 08:36:16 PDT

>> Last month, Marc Jacobs was said to be frontrunner for the currently-vacant Christian Dior creative directorship. That still seems to be the case, according to WWD sources, but there have been a few sticking points.

One such hitch in the talks? It's believed that Jacobs and his long-time business partner Robert Duffy are seeking a substantial increase on their current salary and benefit packages from LVMH, which already place them among the highest-paid designers and fashion executives in the world.

Dior is a more demanding job than Jacobs's current position at Louis Vuitton, with two couture collections in addition to two ready-to-wear shows and pre-collections. And Jacobs would be required to spend more time in Paris working with the atelier, given the intense craftsmanship involved with forming a couture collection.

If Jacobs does make the move to Dior, Phoebe Philo has been reported to be first in line to succeed him at Louis Vuitton. But according to WWD's sources, as of last week, she had yet to commit to the project or enter negotiations.

Robert Duffy on When Marc Jacobs Was Addicted to Heroin - "He Would Eat a Whole Wedding Cake"

fashionologie — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 14:53:28 PDT

>> Louis Vuitton is mounting a retrospective of Marc Jacobs's designs, to be unveiled during Milan Fashion Week; Robert Duffy suggests in a recent interview that Jacobs is ready to take on a couture line; and now, Jacobs has pushed back his New York Fashion Week show date - all fueling speculation that he's busy focusing on saying goodbye to Vuitton and doing a deal with Dior.

But, whatever happens, Jacobs won't be saying goodbye to one person - his business partner of 28 years, Robert Duffy. In a new profile exploring their partnership, Jacobs says of opportunities over the years: "Wherever we were, it would seem to the owner that one of us was the more valuable of the pair. But we always stood by each other ... it's not about what I do and what Robert does. The two of us together are Marc Jacobs. The two of us together are Vuitton. I don't think without him or without me we could achieve all that we've achieved."

More highlights from the profile, below.

Duffy on working with Jacobs for 28 years: "Marc honestly hasn't changed that much. He is very fragile and childlike. But when he's pushed against a wall and he really believes in something, he'll come back fighting. I think it's something he's learned from me. I guess that's how I've seen him change. He's more confident about what he has the right to say. He's definitely learned his craft and become an amazing technician. He could do a couture line. Of course, once he got sober, the natural thing to do was to get healthier. I don't know if you've ever known a heroin addict. He would eat cake, a whole wedding cake from a pastry shop. I would be like, 'You're the only fat heroin addict I know.'"

Duffy on what Jacobs would be without him: "I think if we weren't together, Marc would be a designer of renown, but he probably would have stayed small. He would never embrace social media. He wouldn't have done Marc by Marc. When I wanted to open Marc by Marc, he said, 'You think I want to design another line? You've got me working at Louis Vuitton, you've got me working here. You want to do it? It's yours. I'll come in and help when I need to.' But I have to be profitable, especially in the partnership with LVMH. I have to fund his collection line and the fashion shows."

Duffy on Jacobs's last-minute decisions: "Marc is famous for deciding things two weeks before the show, like, 'Oh my God, I want Stephen Jones to make polka-dot hats.' He expects the impossible from every single person. He expects everybody to just get with the program and get it done."

Jacobs on not always seeing eye-to-eye: "Sometimes we disagree on creative situations. He'll look at me like I'm out of my mind, like when I wanted to play 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow' for last fall's show. He said, 'You're not really going to use that?' And then he sort of said, 'All right.' He's never stopped me from doing something. Sometimes we see each other constantly and sometimes there are weeks or maybe even a month where we don't speak. We don't micromanage each other."

Marc Jacobs Shifts Spring 2012 Show Back Due to Hurricane

fashionologie — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 11:53:21 PDT

>> Marc Jacobs has rescheduled his collection show from Monday evening, Sept. 12, to Thursday, Sept. 15 at 8:30 pm, according to Robert Duffy. WWD reports that the switch was made to "allow Jacobs and his staff to make up for time lost this past weekend when the entire design and sample room staffs were scheduled to work before Hurricane Irene intervened." The move - which places Jacobs in the upcoming New York Fashion Week's closing spot - could complicate traveling for those headed to London Fashion Week, which begins the following morning on Sept. 16. The Marc by Marc Jacobs show, meanwhile, has been bumped up from Tuesday afternoon to the Monday evening slot. [WWD]

Report - Marc Jacobs Could Be Headed to Dior and Phoebe Philo to Louis Vuitton

fashionologie — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 07:14:24 PDT

>> A couple of weeks after rumors popped up suggesting that Marc Jacobs was at the top of the pack to take over as Dior's new designer, reports corroborate that the rumors just might be true.

According to WWD, Bernard Arnault is in talks with Jacobs about moving from Louis Vuitton to Dior, and meetings have reportedly been scheduled in Paris this week between Dior officials and legal representatives for Jacobs. Jacobs, who signed on as Vuitton's artistic director in 1997, has been in the midst of renewing his employment contract at Vuitton, but those discussions are said to have been put on hold, pending the outcome of Jacobs's discussions with Dior.

One source cautioned WWD that deal with Jacobs is not done, but both the designer and Dior management are so far "excited" about the prospect. If the deal goes through, Jacobs will get his first opportunity as a couturier, and his business partner Robert Duffy would come with him. Dior declined to comment on the reports, and Jacobs could not be reached for comment.

As for who would replace Jacobs at Vuitton, it sounds like Phoebe Philo could be first in line. LVMH has already reportedly held preliminary discussions with Philo, who is said to be "intrigued" by the project. If the shuffling plays out, it's reportedly likely she would design Vuitton in addition to Celine.

WWD reports that a number of potential candidates have been approached to succeed John Galliano, who exited Dior in March, including Alber Elbaz, Nicolas Ghesquière, Sarah Burton, Haider Ackermann and Hedi Slimane. Elbaz and Ghesquiere, who both have equity stakes in and strong commitments to the houses they design for, have withdrawn themselves from the running, and Burton is said to have rebuffed overtures. Talks with Ackermann and Slimane, meanwhile, did not end in an agreement. As for Riccardo Tisci, he is still considered a dark-horse candidate, and has been championed by Delphine Arnault, Dior deputy managing director and Bernard Arnault's daughter.

Robert Duffy Strips To Briefs in Marc Jacobs YouTube Video

fashionologie — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 11:28:59 PDT

>> Marc Jacobs president Robert Duffy, who is in the midst of a sex discrimination lawsuit filed by a former Marc Jacobs executive - the plaintiff Patrice Lataillade alleges that he was “subjected to a discriminatory environment” which included the display of gay pornography, and that he was “fired in retaliation for objecting to that environment” - doesn't seem to be worried about the allegations, even though the lawsuit is still very much under way. A video was posted on the official Marc Jacobs YouTube channel today, showing Duffy in the stock room, "working up a sweat" and stripping down to his briefs.

UPDATE: The video, in which Duffy appears to have used a body double, has since been taken down - Huffington Post has a few screenshots.

Marc Jacobs on His "Great Talent" and Trying to Top the Last Louis Vuitton Show

fashionologie — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 14:54:00 PDT

>> In anticipation of his Lifetime Achievement Award, which he will receive during the CFDA Awards Monday, Marc Jacobs (who notes of the award, "It’s not my achievement, number one. It is Marc Jacobs as a company") sat down with WWD to wax philosophical on everything from Alexander Wang to Twitter to whether he considers himself a "great talent."

Highlights from the interview, below.

On what he did for Memorial Day: “Memorial Day? I don’t think I’ve had a Memorial Day off in 30 years. We’re all here [at the office]. The design team’s here, working through Saturday, Sunday, Monday. I’ll go to the gym every morning, but I’ll be here after the gym. It’s resort.”

On his success and being recognized in public and approached by fans: "I can’t help but remember the days when Robert [Duffy, his business partner] and I were interviewed for 48 Hours [in 1988]. Robert was building a runway. I’m vomiting in the bathroom because we hadn’t slept in three days and we were delirious and hallucinating. So none of that ever goes away."

On whether he's a "great talent": "No. I still wouldn’t say I am ... I don’t mind if you say it but I’m not going to say it myself."

On winning this year's CFDA Lifetime Achievement award: "I haven’t even sat down to write the [CFDA] speech yet but I’ve been thinking a lot about it, about what does this mean to me and what does this mean to us. I just turned 48 but I don’t feel 48. I still feel like a young person but I really see the difference in the work. I’m trying to understand what all of that means and how I feel about it."

On younger designers: "People ask me about the younger designers, Alex Wang and all of them, I think they’re great. I couldn’t do what they do. It’s not what I do. But just like in pop music and in the art world, people always want new work from the artist that they like but they also want new artists. I don’t think one changes the other. There’s always room for new designers, new musicians, new artists, new writers. Madonna, I don’t think is showing any signs of slowing down, but that doesn’t mean Lady Gaga isn’t taking over the world."

On the most recent Louis Vuitton show: "I loved the Vuitton show. I think as a show it was probably my favorite presentation we’ve ever done of a collection. I really loved it ... I’ve spent the past two weeks, which is superpremature, thinking that I don’t know what we’re going to do to top that last Vuitton show. I thought it was the most beautiful presentation. I think, 'Why am I doing this to myself?' but it’s inevitable. When I get back to Paris two weeks from now, I’m just going to be like, 'What are we going to do? What are we going to do?' The answer won’t come right away."

On designers he admires: "I think the greatest contributors to fashion are women. Chanel, Vionnet. I think Vivienne Westwood; I think Miuccia Prada; Schiaparelli, Rei Kawakubo ... The one that I probably feel the most strongly about is Miuccia, because of the aesthetic and the mood. There’s something so shocking and so tender about it, and it’s also very real ... There’s an eccentricity but there’s also a chic old world sophistication, but it’s so new. It’s young but never vulgar. There’s a sex appeal that’s kind of naïve. It’s all the things I love."

On his debt to Tom Ford: "I felt that [being hired for Vuitton] was all born from Tom [Ford’s] success at Gucci. I believe Mr. Arnault was aware of that and said, 'We can do that with Vuitton.'"

On working for Bernard Arnault: "I meet with Mr. Arnault every time I’m in Paris. He’s such a hands-on sort of guy. He goes to every store in every country and he discusses things with me ... He was thrilled with the last [Vuitton] show. He felt that one and the one around the fountain were how he would like women to see Vuitton’s image as a fashion brand. He’s very up front and honest with me about what he likes and what he doesn’t like, what he thinks works and also what he thinks works in other places. Not that he’s asking me to do what someone else does, but to look at the success of certain things."

On the resources available to him at Louis Vuitton: "If you look at our first Vuitton show, we wanted to send out a nice collection of simple clothes with all the logos on the inside and one single bag on Kirsten Owen. It has evolved into, ‘OK, this is Paris. Let’s have three elevators.’ I asked for six; I got three. So we’re like, ‘Let’s get Kate Moss, Naomi [Campbell]. Let’s fly in Stella [Tennant]. Let’s fly in Carolyn [Murphy] and Amber [Valletta].’ You want a show? Okay guys, I’ll give you a show."

On critics: "You are dealing with a whole lot of highly sensitive people who [will react] depending on their mood and how they’re feeling that day or what they did or didn’t eat for lunch. I have no problem going on record with this and probably have gone on record with this before, there aren’t that many people who I respect. There just aren’t. I think journalists have the right to their opinions but I think their opinions should be based on history and what they see, not what they feel, how long they’ve been waiting or whether it’s raining or it’s snowing or whatever."

On whether traditional media matters anymore: "I’m not sure it does as much as it used to, and I’m not sure how much it ever did ... [But] I feel like it affects the energy of all of us. In fashion we all gossip about it because within our community it’s extremely important. I think it breaks momentum or a sort of energy when there’s harsh criticism, and I think when the critique is positive, we all feel quite robust and we’re out there. In that way, it has an effect. But in another, I think a woman’s going to go into a shop to find a coat or a jacket and I just don’t think she’s not going to go into a shop because of a bad review she probably didn’t even read."

On joining Twitter: "I’ve got better things to do. I don’t need to talk to like schoolteachers from New Jersey about what was valid [in a collection] and what was invalid and what was derivative and what was referencing. I mean, I’ve just got work to do. I really don’t care to argue with you."

Robert Duffy Sued By Former Marc Jacobs Executive for Creating a "Hostile Work Environment"

fashionologie — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 08:51:08 PDT

>> A former Marc Jacobs executive filed a sex discrimination lawsuit earlier this week against Robert Duffy, Marc Jacobs International, and LVMH. Jacobs himself was not named in the suit.

The plaintiff, Patrice Lataillade, who was CFO and COO of Marc Jacobs International until his dismissal last September, alleges that Duffy “uses company funds for personal expenses and does not censor what he does or says.” The suit also gives examples of "Duffy's conduct which created a hostile work environment," including "his displaying [of] gay pornography in the office and requiring employees to look at it; his production and dissemination of a book which included photos of MJI staff in sexual positions or nude; [and] his requirement that an MJI store employee perform a pole dance for him."

Lataillade, who had worked at LVMH since May 1996 (and joined MJI in 2002), said in court papers that he complained of Duffy's behavior to MJI executives and the LVMH general counsel, but nothing was done. Other employees had also complained, the suit says, but a woman was told she needed a "thicker skin" and a man was instructed to "go home early and have a drink." Lataillade was fired "within less than a week" after his lawyers sent an email to the CEO of MJI and the LVMH general counsel regarding the "legal situation," and he alleges that he was “fired in retaliation for objecting to a discriminatory environment offensive to him.”

A Jacobs spokeswoman called the claims "false": "Patrice Lataillade was terminated as CFO and COO of [Marc Jacobs International] for serious matters unrelated to the allegations made in the complaint." And an LVMH spokeswoman said similarly: “The allegations contained in the complaint are false. Patrice Lataillade was terminated as chief financial officer and chief operating officer of MJI for serious matters unrelated to the allegations contained in the complaint. MJI, LVMH Inc. and Robert Duffy will vigorously defend the case in court.”

At the time of his discharge, Lataillade's compensation package was $1 million a year; he is seeking lost wages, compensatory and punitive damages, lawyer's fees, and other relief deemed appropriate by the court.

Are the Current Pressures of the Fashion Industry Causing Designers to Crash? Karl Lagerfeld, Marc Jacobs, and More Speak

fashionologie — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 14:24:21 PST

>> Between Alexander McQueen committing suicide last year, John Galliano's drunken, anti-Semitic outburst, and Christophe Decarnin being sidelined for depression treatments, many are starting to wonder if the fashion industry and its current pressures - particularly the demand for more and more collections, released faster and faster - are to blame for designers spinning out of control. Karl Lagerfeld, Michael Kors, and more address the issue:

Karl Lagerfeld: “I see designing, running a company, like a high-level athletic activity. I don’t want to hear anything about the fragility or any of those things. If an athlete is too fragile to run, he cannot run. And this is exactly the same. You don’t accept this kind of business if you’re too much of an artist. I believe in discipline, so I’m not the right person to cry about weakness and things like this, but maybe I’m not human.”

Marc Jacobs: “You don’t think bank tellers have problems? You don’t think people in the middle of the suburbs have problems? Blaming is such a complete waste. I mean, it’s so pointless. To say, you know, my mother was absent and therefore I ran amok, it’s ridiculous. It’s a self-destructive nature, it’s a mental, physical and a kind of spiritual malady . . . people who are happy and healthy and spiritually well don’t do things to hurt themselves.”

Yves Saint Laurent's longtime business partner Pierre Berge: “I have a lot more sympathy for people who have to take the train to work every day. What a load of nonsense! No, no, no. Designers are artisans who are extremely privileged to have a poetic profession. They are not artists. We have to stop saying that they are.”

Marc Jacobs's longtime business partner Robert Duffy: “You cannot blame the industry. The majority of actors are not drug addicts, the majority of designers are not drug addicts.”

Theory founder Andrew Rosen: “I don’t see fashion as an industry being ahead of the world in terms of this issue. It’s a devastating and unfortunate condition that happens in every walk of life. It doesn’t make it better or OK, it’s a devastating illness to all those around it. Drug addiction, and addiction in general, is unfortunately part of society today. Maybe because we’re so close to our industry, we feel it more. Whenever it happens, it’s horrible.”

Michael Kors: "No question . . . I mean, I forget what season I’m in sometimes. I think every designer in today’s world, I don’t care whether you’re a designer who makes clothes that are phantasmagorical or very pragmatic, you have to figure out something that can ground you and bring you back. Whatever it is, if you go to the gym too much or you travel too much, you’ve got to have time to escape. I always tell everyone the crazy conversation I’ve had forever with actors, if they do two films in a row, and they’ve lived these characters and they’re on the set away from their friends and family, but then they take a year off. What are designers supposed to say? 'I’m tired. I’m not doing fall. Wear last year’s clothes, and maybe get some new nail polish.' It’s endless."

Photographer Mert Alas: “I’m the kind of person that I live under pressure, but I enjoy the pressure, so it very much relates to your own personality. Of course we’re all under pressure. The bus driver is under pressure. But, you know, it’s how you come out of it. If you can make good fun with it, pressure can be enjoyable.”

New York Times's Cathy Horyn: "For designers already at big houses, the pressures must reach absurd levels . . . Many people in professional and creative fields are under intense pressure, but for designers that pressure is manifested on the runway. The problem goes beyond having to produce multiple collections a year; it’s the nearly brutalizing feeling that something new and relevant must be communicated each season."

Co-President of PR firm KCD Ed Filipowski: “As a publicist, I have also taken on many times the role of ‘fashion therapist’ to my clients. Globalization, digitalization - the speed and scope of our work - has added a tremendous amount of pressure not only to the creative field but everyone in this industry. I would venture to say we are all doing at least twice as much work twice as fast as we were five years ago.”

Robert Duffy Thinks of Marc Jacobs as the "Crazy Mother" in the MJ Family

fashionologie — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 10:55:49 PST

>> Robert Duffy, Marc Jacobs's business partner, who spoke to Vogue UK this week, says he can't imagine a world in which he didn't work with Jacobs: "We have always worked together, for 27 years, and I don't think we'll ever go our separate ways. We've both done projects separately, of course, when we've been really broke or when we've been fired, but we just know each other so well now."

That longstanding relationship has translated into the Jacobs business as a whole. "We have a very low staff turnover," Duffy explains. "Some people have been here for 25 years . . . We're definitely like a family. I'm the dad and Marc is the crazy mother! It's like 'How is she today?', 'How are her mood swings?'!"

Duffy also revealed his strategy for getting the new Marc Jacobs store locations he really wants: "Partly it happens because I have a very small budget to find new sites, but it means there is an emotional thing behind every location. I think that's the best way to find a new store, I fall in love with the building and then drive the person that has it crazy until we get the lease! That way you already have a vision for the store and you put all your energy in to it. In LA, I wanted this store which was a carpet shop, on the intersection between Melrose Place and Melrose Avenue, and I visited the guy who owned it constantly until - five years later - we finally got it. Then, I found a store I loved on Mount Street in London - which I loved because it was on a corner, with lots of windows, but also because I always stay at the Connaught so I love the street - and went in to see the guy who owned it; it was a carpet shop too. After a while he said, you just bought a store from my brother in LA! It was his brother I'd been driving crazy, so he said 'Ok, you can have it!'"

Marc Jacobs Is In Contract Renegotiations with Louis Vuitton; Bernard Arnault Has Veto Power on John Galliano's Dior Designs

fashionologie — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 12:07:06 PST

>> Robert Duffy and Marc Jacobs are in the midst of negotiating the renewal of their respective contracts at Louis Vuitton, Duffy confirms. But he doesn't expect there to be any problems: “It’s just starting but, I mean, we both want to stay. I don’t think that’s any secret. When two people want to renew their vows, they do it usually.”

It sounds like the feeling is mutual from Louis Vuitton head Bernard Arnault. "I could have asked many other talented designers to do Dior, but it would not have been the same," Arnault told Tatler Asia. "Take Marc Jacobs, he has been a fantastic success at Vuitton, and he has a proximity to the Vuitton spirit, but I don't think it would have been a success with Jacobs at Dior and the other way around, if I had asked John [Galliano] to do Vuitton, it would not have worked. An essential ingredient in the success of the brand today is the real proximity of Galliano to the talent of Christian Dior." Arnault and Galliano meet at the LVMH offices in Paris to discuss each of Galliano's Dior collections before it is shown. "We meet in this room," explains Arnault. "I say, 'John, I think we should do something else. What you have done is too extravagant.' For Dior it's all about the details and John listens."