Among shoppers in the West, the notion persists (pdf) that ”Made in China” indicates—to put it bluntly—junk. Many still prize labels boasting a product was made in, say, Italy—even if a growing number of Italian products come from factories that are Chinese-owned and staffed.
Amancio Ortega, the Spanish fast-fashion baron behind Zara—known for peddling cheap, trendy items like $15 crop-tops—has surpassed Warren Buffett to claim the title of world’s second-richest person.
In the 1980s, China was far from the economic heavyweight it is today, but it was already in the midst of the economic reforms that would help make it the world’s largest economy by some measures. Today, plenty of retailers, especially luxury brands, have capitalized on China’s new consumer class. And while there are still opportunities to grow sales in the country, brands are already looking for the next China.
Because of their business ties to soccer, the world’s two largest sportswear companies, Nike and Adidas, have been pulled into the ongoing corruption scandal surrounding FIFA, soccer’s governing body. And that’s great news for their competitor Under Armour.
Luxury labels count on the perceived value of their brands as a major selling point, so there’s some logic to assigning an actual dollar value to a brand’s label and its connotations, not just to its product.
Gucci must be anxious to start the next phase in its history, when it can finally say goodbye to the work of its former creative director, Frida Giannini, and welcome the new regime of Alessandro Michele and his nerdy, flowery, romantic vision for the brand.
This post has been updated.
Fashion retailer Net-a-Porter has an undeniably valuable brand. It’s known as an e-commerce power player because of its clean design, glossy editorial content, and selection of some of the best high-end designer products on the market.
Manhattan shoppers, it seems, just can’t get enough cheap clothes. On May 20, the Swedish fast-fashion retailer H&M opened its largest store in the world, at 63,000 square feet, in the midtown shopping district of Herald Square—just steps away from two other large H&M stores.
The numbers: Solid. Burberry reported sales of £2.5 billion ($3.9 billion) for the fiscal year ended March 31, an increase of 8% over fiscal 2014. It doesn’t quite match the growth of some previous years, but it was “a strong full year performance,” as CEO Christopher Bailey phrased it in the press release (pdf).
Making large volumes of clothing is an inherently dirty business—mainly because of the way the raw materials are produced and processed. Cotton, for instance, is a notoriously water-intensive crop (pdf), and tanning leather can have disastrous effects on the areas where it’s done and on the workers who do it.
When Ascena Retail Group announced on May 18 that it is acquiring Ann Inc., owner of the Ann Taylor women’s clothing brand and its Loft line, for $2.16 billion, it became one of the most powerful specialty retailers of women’s clothing in the US.
This post has been corrected.
Luxury group Kering, parent company to numerous global fashion brands including Gucci, Saint Laurent, and Bottega Veneta, is suing Alibaba. It’s accusing the world’s possibly largest online commerce company of encouraging rampant counterfeiting of its products through its “ecosystem.”
The word “artisanal” gets thrown around a lot these days, but sometimes the term is warranted. Consider the work of the Austrian fashion designer Carol Christian Poell. He dips the kangaroo-leather sneakers he creates in latex and hang-dries them, freezing the latex in perpetual drip, and he places titanium inserts in the split elbows of his jackets, like prosthetic armor. These pieces come together by hand in limited quantities, and people—primarily men—pay handsomely for them: His most stratospherically priced leather jackets can reach $8,000.
To launch a new series of collaborations with fashion designers, IKEA is working with the famously strange, iconic Belgian designer Walter Van Beirendonck, who protested terrorism and censorship in his last show by sending clothing adorned with large, colorful butt plugs down the runway. He’s also made shoes decorated with penises and giant hats shaped, again, like penises.
Mad Men, America’s favorite television show about the repressed ennui of 1960s advertising executives, ends its eight-year run on Sunday (May 17). There is plenty to remember it by: Jessica Paré crooning “Zou Bisou Bisou,” graphic depictions of the perils of too much alcohol and too many oysters (be warned). But the wardrobe of Mad Men will surely be one of the show’s most enduring legacies, particularly for men.
If there’s one theme that unifies fashion’s big resort shows these days it’s this: location, location, location. Bystanders can confidently rely on brands showing in unexpected and exotic locations, and this year hasn’t disappointed.
Last month, Bank of America Merrill Lynch released the compellingly titled report, “Vanity Capital: The global bull market in narcissism,” which put a price tag on the amount we spend globally on products and services that enhance our appearance or prestige. That price tag is huge: $4.5 trillion, according to the report—larger than the fourth largest economy in the world, Germany, with its GDP of $3.7 trillion—and still growing.
US president Barack Obama traveled to Nike headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon, today (May 8) to promote his big trade deal, the Trans-Pacific Partnership. The pact would reduce tariffs and lower other trade barriers between the US and 11 other nations, mostly in Asia and Latin America.
Filmmaker Wes Anderson has a knack for creating fictional spaces with attention paid to the last excruciating detail. His latest space is real, though, and even better, you can get a drink there.
Net-a-Porter, the glossy e-boutique that’s set to merge with Yoox and create an online luxury-tech giant, announced this morning that it will launch its own mobile-app-based social network. Called The Net Set, its users will be able to interact and share images like most social networks—with a twist. The company’s image-recognition software will analyze the images and find the closest match in Net-a-Porter’s inventory, then offer it up to users for purchase.
Of the many photo-worthy moments, dresses, and guests at yesterday’s Met Gala, Amal Clooney in her tiered, ruby gown, was among the most elegant. The gown, created by John Galliano—who was named creative director of Maison Margiela late last year—was an elaborate construction; its armor-like bodice contrasted with the skirt’s soft, occasionally embellished folds.
Warby Parker, the online seller of inexpensive eyeglasses favored by young, quirkily fashionable Americans, is now reportedly worth $1.2 billion, based on a recent $100 million round of funding.
