Customers have fled department stores in droves, causing sales to plummet. But physical stores haven’t shut down fast enough to keep pace.
All runway fashion is fantasy to some degree. Some designers present fantastical visions with their work, seeking to elevate clothes above the ordinary, or offer an alternate reality. Alexander McQueen was a master at it.
For anyone trying to reduce their impact on the environment, the task can be daunting. It’s difficult for businesses in particular, and maybe especially so for a fashion brand. It takes a lot of water, energy, and often pesticides to grow the materials for fabric, while the chemicals used to dye and finish them can result in nightmarish water pollution in countries such as India and China. Then, all those clothes that are sold are eventually discarded, and often wind up in landfills.
Prince, who was found dead in his home today (April 21) at the age of 57, was near impossible to categorize. As a child, he grew up in an expansive mix of cultures, and as a rockstar, his musical influences spanned R&B, funk, rock, soul, and pop. Nothing was off-limits.
Chinese shoppers buy more luxury goods than anyone else in the world. They account for 31% of global luxury purchases, according to consulting firm Bain & Company. They also do about 80% of their buying outside mainland China, where currency exchange rates and import tariffs mean higher prices. For these shoppers, Bain says (pdf, p. 5), Europe has become “the world’s largest in-season outlet.”
The Dubai Mall claims to be the most visited destination in the world. It reported some 80 million visitors in 2014, which it says made it more heavily trafficked than Times Square in New York, or the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Whether it’s number one or not, it is reportedly the world’s most visited mall, and in 2013 it accounted for a whopping 50% of all luxury goods sold in Dubai, the Middle East’s top city for luxury spending.
Maybe you associate knockoffs with products such as handbags, watches, and jewelry. And indeed, Louis Vuitton is a favorite target of counterfeiters, as is Rolex.
Valerie Von Sobel just had a birthday. In March, the philanthropist and artist noted her new age in an Instagram picture, dressed in second-skin leggings and a white blouse overlaid in a sheer black fabric, perhaps organza.
H&M probably talks about sustainability more than any other fast-fashion brand. It produces a Conscious collection made using sustainable and recycled materials, creates glossy ad campaigns to encourage garment recycling, and has a voucher program offering discounts to those who donate their old clothes at its stores. On April 18, it kicks off a major project intended to collect 1,000 tons of used clothes, called World Recycle Week, that it’s promoting heavily, even making a music video in collaboration with rapper M.I.A.
Advertisements are coming to NBA jerseys. The basketball league’s board of governors has approved a three-year pilot program that will allow ads on team uniforms for the first time in NBA history.
It’s official: the Golden State Warriors have broken the record for the most regular-season wins in NBA history.
For a lot of young adults in their 20s and 30s, Hypebeast has for years been a blog about what seemed to be a niche of fashion culture. It’s where you go for news about things like sneaker releases, or limited-run collaborations from Japanese designers.
As appearances go, the popular sneakers by French-Brazilian brand Veja are simple. Many take inspiration from your favorite classic court shoes, such as Adidas Stan Smiths, Keds Champions, or Nike Blazers. Others resemble stripped-down versions of high-end sneakers from pricey labels, such as Pierre Hardy or Visvim.
Prada is in trouble. On April 8, the Italian luxury group reported results for 2015 (pdf) that were its worst in years. Profit fell a staggering 27%, edging out last year’s dismal results. Today (April 11), the Italian label’s share price is plunging.
On April 18, H&M is kicking off a project it calls World Recycle Week. Its goal is to collect 1,000 tons of used clothing at H&M stores worldwide, and keep them out of landfills by recycling them.
Spring was supposed to be a season of renewal for Gap. After acknowledging the retailer’s style misses and disappointing results for the previous quarter, CEO Art Peck was optimistic back in February about the new products hitting the stores. At Gap, there was color and femininity. At the company’s Banana Republic chain, there was a return to the classics.
Apple today (April 7) revealed that it’s expanding its range of watch bands in partnership with luxury house Hermès. As of April 19, the Hermès bands will be available in four new colors—green, sapphire blue, white, and fire orange—at prices starting from $340. For the first time, the attractive bands in Hermès’ signature high-end leather will also be sold separately from the watch, allowing even those who didn’t buy the original $1,250 version of the Apple Watch to get a fancy Hermès strap.
In major markets around the world, you may be seeing more sights like this in a few years:
Sales of plus-size clothes to teenage girls in the US are rapidly growing. But before you panic about the obesity epidemic, know that there’s a positive reason for the news too.
Many of the biggest labels in fashion didn’t start out offering clothing for men and women. They were born from women’s couturiers, or leather-goods businesses, and over time they branched into other offerings, including menswear. That legacy still turns up on the runway today in separate men’s and women’s shows, even if many collections now have the same designer, as they do at Gucci.
Moncler’s down jackets are not cheap—they can cost upward of $1,000. And they keep gaining in popularity as more high-end customers buy winter outerwear fit for a polar expedition.
Yves Saint Laurent officially has a new creative director. Anthony Vaccarello, the 36-year-old Belgian known for a sleek, sexy vibe who just departed Versus Versace, was today (April 4) named to the position by Kering, the luxury conglomerate that owns the brand as well as several other top labels.
Clothing and accessories have long been big sellers online, but as of 2015, they’re the highest-selling category in the US, according to a new report by analytics firm comScore.
Mark Zuckerberg: innovator, CEO, philanthropist, and now, fashion icon. That’s if you believe a new site that popped up today (April 1) promoting a line by the Facebook founder for H&M.
