J.W. Anderson’s Comfort Zone

It was never Jonathan Anderson’s aim to be so closely bound to androgyny—he never set out to be the designer who would unleash the unisex creature that’s now stalking men’s catwalks worldwide. In fact, the designer of the London-based J.W. Anderson collection and the creative director of Loewe doesn’t like the A-word at all. He believes what he’s doing with his shrunken, body-baring knitwear, jewel-like sculptural embellishments and off-the-shoulder pinstripes is much more nuanced—and provocative. “I never set out to work on the concept of androgyny. For me, it was more about trying to find a wardrobe that would fundamentally appeal to both men and women: Trying to find the right shirt, the right jeans, the right trouser—but on different landscapes. Trying to find a uniform, something we’ve been doing from Day One,” he says from the Loewe studio in Paris. “I find androgyny quite a dated concept. I feel it’s kind of like a pun, and that it represents a period of time in fashion.” Who can blame him? Androgyny, as an aesthetic, comes and goes with every generation in fashion, hair or makeup—and the word itself has become a cliché. “My vision is trying to find this balance within the taboo of

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Holt Renfrew Taps Into African Culture

In its second installment, Holt Renfrew’s H Project is back with a continent’s worth of craft and culture to uncrate — that of Africa. The pet project of Alexandra Weston, director of brand strategy at Holt Renfrew, who immerses herself in the local life of a chosen region as she searches for artisans and craftspeople, “H Project: Uncrate Africa” in-store shops will open April 1 at select Holt Renfrew stores. H Project supports local artisans by buying an assortment of apparel, accessories, home and beauty products, as well as items made from socially conscious materials and those that support a charitable cause. “We’re helping small groups that were never properly exported and also teaching our internal people to be a little more patient,” Weston said. Over 22 designers — including Dannijo, Stella Jean, Lemlem, FEED Africa, Mark Holden, Indego Africa, Me to We, Otago, Kiya Kenya and Chantecaille — collaborated on exclusive collections, with each giving back in a unique way. “I’ve always had a passion for India,” Weston said. “I went there with my family and with my husband on our honeymoon. The Dannijo girls were in Toronto during Uncrate India [the launch of the Project H] and said, ‘We love this concept,

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Fall 2015 Trend: Cream of the Cropped

Some styles revealed just a hint of skin. Others invited creative accessorizing via textured hosiery and statement boots. Cropped pants for fall came in an assortment of silhouettes — and in materials that conveyed everything from street chic to tailored ease.

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Rockettes ‘New York Spring Spectacular’ Makes Fashiony Splash

NEW YORK — Radio City Music Hall’s “New York Spring Spectacular,” the venue’s first spring show since 1997 that features the Rockettes and many others, wants to make a big fashion statement. Weinstein Live Entertainment, which produces the show along with Madison Square Garden Entertainment, helped secure the involvement of Diane von Furstenberg, Zac Posen and Isaac Mizrahi to create costumes for the show’s fashion segment, a tribute to New York Fashion Week. In the scene, female lead and Tony Award-winning actress Laura Benanti suggests that the ensemble attend a fashion show — as the stage transforms into a moving catwalk — and the 36 Rockettes strut down the runway wearing costumes designed by each of the three designers. Von Furstenberg, Posen and Mizrahi make cameos during the scene via video voice-overs. The production, which also stars Derek Hough, Jared Grimes and Lenny Wolpe, features additional voice work by Whoopi Goldberg, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Bella Thorne, Donald Trump and Martha Stewart, among others. None of the designers are novices in creating costumes for the stage. Von Furstenberg previously dressed the Rockettes for a performance at Vienna’s Life Ball in 2010, and Mizrahi has designed costumes for the Metropolitan Opera, the American Ballet

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New Exhibition Spotlights Yves Saint Laurent’s 1971 Collection

PARIS — A new exhibition at the Fondation Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint Laurent shines the spotlight on the late couturier’s infamous 1971 collection, which was inspired by the Forties. Curated by Olivier Saillard, director of the fashion museum at Palais Galliera, the show features 40 outfits from Saint Laurent’s spring couture line, which caused a scandal because of its perceived vulgarity and its references to a dark chapter of history, the Nazi Occupation of Paris during World War II. “Yves Saint Laurent 1971, La collection du scandale,” which opens Thursday and runs through July 19, also features accessories, sketches, film footage of the show and magazine spreads by the likes of Helmut Newton. “We conducted a forensic inquiry into this show and we are displaying everything we found,” Saillard told WWD. “I don’t think there has ever been an exhibition before that was entirely devoted to a single collection.” Known as “The Forties” or the “Liberation” collection, it featured 80 styles in total, which were shown to clients and editors at Saint Laurent’s former headquarters on rue Spontini in Paris. With little in the way of production — six models and no soundtrack — the focus was squarely on the clothes, and editors were outraged. “Saint-Laurent:

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Marie Claire Goes Native for April

NATIVE SOLE: Despite publicizing its Kerry Washington cover for April, Marie Claire has decided to give subscribers the native advertising treatment. The magazine has released its first native cover sponsored by Stuart Weitzman to its 877,000 subscribers, who constitute roughly 87 percent of its print magazine readership. (The other 13 percent are buying the magazine at the newsstand and get to see Washington’s face front and center without the ad.) Although Marie Claire has experimented with native covers before — it ran a denim cover wrap which opened with a paper zipper that revealed an interior Guess ad — it hasn’t yet run a fully sponsored cover. The subject of native advertising running on magazine covers has been a hot topic since WWD learned that the American Society of Magazine Editors was in the process of updating its editorial guidelines to reflect the changing landscape. Current rules suggest that magazines should keep ads off their covers. “Don’t Print Ads on Covers,” ASME writes on its site, explaining that ads printed on “false covers or cover flaps” should be labeled as advertising. (The Marie Claire cover does not, but simply carries a tag line that says “Presented by Stuart Weitzman.”) “Before we did

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Tourneau Opens Third Manhattan Unit

Tourneau on Monday opened its third store in Manhattan, a 3,330-square-foot unit at 3 Bryant Park at the corner of Sixth Avenue and 42nd Street. The store in Bryant Park’s backyard has been called a “game-changer” for a neighborhood in transition, where rents are rising and higher-priced retailers are moving in. Sources estimate Tourneau is paying about $500 per square foot in rent and the store is expected to do sales of more than $5,000 per square foot. The store design, which is a circle within a square, represents Tourneau’s newest retail concept with elevated materials such as ebony, stone and hand-painted wall coverings. Seventeen premiere luxury watch brands are featured. Rolex, Cartier, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Panerai, IWC, Breitling, Tudor and Longines have in-store shops. Other featured brands include Franck Muller, Glashütte Original, Bell & Ross, Devon, Bucherer, Nomos, Frederique Constant, Hamilton and Tourneau’s own watch brand, TNY. Ira Melnitsky, chief executive officer of Tourneau, said the Bryant Park store has fewer watch brands than typically found in a Tourneau unit. “The brands chosen for this location are some of our strongest brand partners,” he said. Asked if Tourneau will open more stores in New York, Melnitsky said, “We’re always looking. We don’t have a specific number

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Redbook Adds Nicole Lapin as Finance Columnist

REDBOOK EXPANDS TEAM RED: Redbook is expanding beyond fashion, makeup and home. Starting in its April issue, the women’s publication will add Nicole Lapin to it roster of Team Red contributors. Lapin will become the magazine’s first personal finance columnist. She joins celebrity stylist and “Fashion Police” co-host Brad Goreski; make up artist Mally Roncal and HGTV’s design star Emily Henderson, among others. Lapin was a former anchor at CNN, CNBC and Bloomberg Television, as well as a contributor to MSNBC and the “Today” show. Meredith Rollins, Redbook’s editor in chief, said, “Redbook readers care enormously about how they grow and save their money, so they’re craving this information.” According to Lapin, “Every aspect of our lives comes back to money, and it’s more important than ever to be able to join the conversation.”

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Terry J. Lundgren Conference Agenda Set

Can retailers be “everywhere at once” for customers? That’s the industry’s biggest challenge given the rapid integration of shopping channels — stores, online and mobile. It’s also the theme of the 19th annual Global Retailing Conference organized by the Terry J. Lundgren Center for Retailing at the University of Arizona, April 23 to 24 at the Westin La Paloma Resort in Tucson. Headliners include Terry J. Lundgren, chairman and chief executive officer of Macy’s Inc.; Margo Georgiadis, president of Americas at Google; Annie Young-Scrivner, president of Teavana and executive vice president of Starbucks; Kip Tindell, chairman and ceo of The Container Store, and Calvin McDonald, president and ceo of Sephora. Lundgren said that “what makes this conference extraordinary and unique is the interaction with faculty and high-potential students from the University of Arizona and other colleges who are considering a career in retail, wholesale or a related field. They bring fresh thinking and a discerning eye that help all of us to better understand the Millennial customer and employee, and what works and what doesn’t for this new generation of shoppers.” Also set to speak are Thalía Sodi, the Latina songstress and soap star who this month launched an exclusive fashion collection at Macy’s;

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Louis Vuitton Unveiling New Objets Nomades Collection at Salone del Mobile

GETTING SET FOR THE SALONE: Louis Vuitton is taking over Palazzo Bocconi during Milan’s annual Salone del Mobile. The brand is unveiling its latest Objets Nomades collection, with the introduction of new travel-inspired, foldable furnishings — lamps, stools, hammocks — from nine established and emerging design talents, who will be on hand from April 15 to 17 in the Art Nouveau-style palazzo to answer questions about their creative processes and craft. This year’s roster is composed of Patricia Urquiola, Atelier Oï, Barber & Osgerby, Nendo, Campana Brothers, Gwenaël Nicolas, Raw Edges, Damien Langlois-Meurinne and Maarten Baas. In addition to the Palazzo Bocconi festivities, Louis Vuitton is planning special window displays featuring these objects at its Via Montenapoleone and La Rinascente locations, as well as its newly expanded Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II store.

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Chanel to Harmonize Global Prices

PARIS — Positioning its brand for the future in an increasingly flat and digital world — and one racked by currency fluctuations — Chanel said Monday it plans to begin aligning the brand’s global pricing. Effective April 8, the French fashion house is to harmonize sticker prices for three of its most iconic handbags, resulting in a sharp increase in Europe and a big drop in Asia. For example, an 11.12 model, now priced at 3,550 euros in Europe, is to cost 4,260 euros come April 8, while the same bag in China, now 38,200 yuan, is to drop to about 30,000 yuan. Meanwhile, the price of a Boy bag is to rise to 3,720 euros from 3,100 euros in Europe, while falling from 32,700 yuan to about 26,000 yuan. The 2.55 bag is the third classic model affected. Ultimately, worldwide prices at the company are to never fluctuate more than 10 percent above or 10 percent below the global euro benchmark, said Bruno Pavlovsky, Chanel’s president of fashion, noting other products would be harmonized starting with the cruise 2015-16 fashion season. He characterized the new pricing policy — which is bound to catch some of the brand’s competitors off guard — as a “better

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Men’s Fall 2015 Trend: Loosening Up

The tailored wardrobe is getting an update with a modern take on heritage fabrics, updated double-breasted suits and statement overcoats.

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Alex Badia’s Runway Diary: Fall 2015

Day 1—London As if in a sequel to A Passage to India, I arrive at JFK carrying too many suitcases on my way to London Fashion Week. And without much time to think whether I’m ready for this, I’m seated at the Topman show. So my fashion tour starts… The show is a blend of early Seventies references and Far East psychedelia. Cropped denim bell-bottoms are not my delight but I will always have a soft spot for the Main Street retailer, after all, it was my teenage fashion mecca… Without missing a beat, I am headed to the London Eye to shoot the first #15secondswithalexbadia video of the series for @wwd Instagram. Am I ready for my close-up? Not really, but iconic backgrounds and monuments trend well, FYI… Next up is the MAN show, where Rory Parnell Mooney presents a collection full of ecclesiastical and Goth motifs while Nicomede Talavera channels Japanese-inspired shapes such as kimono and judo jackets. London continues to be a great source of fresh talent… Seated next to me at the Coach show is CFDA’s chief executive officer, Steven Kolb; we talk about July’s inaugural New York Fashion Week: Men’s and how to make it great. I am excited… Stuart Vevers’ runway

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Swarovski Launches Fine Jewelry

NEW YORK — Swarovski is turning 120 by entering a new product category: fine jewelry. The brand is expanding beyond fashion jewelry with a nature-inspired collection, due out in June. The project is fueled by consumer demand, according to Susan Popper, the newly appointed head of fine jewelry for Swarovski North America. “We always have had customers asking if we offer fine jewelry or when we will start offering fine jewelry,” said Popper, formerly head of new consumer segments for the brand. Before launching the full line, the company placed some fine jewelry in select Swarovski boutiques across North America from April through June of last year. The brand declined to provide specific sales figures of the trial sales period, though Popper indicated the experiment was successful. “We saw a customer buying both the fashion and fine jewelry at once, which affirms that we’re fitting their jewelry needs,” she said. The full collection features 60 pieces, done in sterling silver, 14-karat gold and 14-karat rose gold. The overall theme takes inspiration from the brand’s original home, the Alps, where Swarovski was founded in 1895. “Moving into a new segment, we wanted to craft an offering that makes sense to the fine jewelry purchaser

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Li Ning Teaming With Huami Technology for ‘Smart’ Running Shoe

RUNNING SMART: Chinese sportswear company Li Ning has linked with software company Huami Technology to develop “smart” running shoes as well as “explore big data opportunities in health and fitness.” Li Ning said this was the first such partnership between sports and technology in China. Human is the fitness wearable company behind the Mi band, which is part of the ecosystem of Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi. The companies have already been working together for a year, developing a “smart” chip that can collect data about a runner’s steps, posture and activity, connect to Xiaomi’s mobile app and make recommendations, Li Ning said. The companies expect to unveil a “smart running shoe” later this year at an “extremely affordable” price. The initial product will come in two versions, one of which will be an upgraded version of a popular running shoe, the “Furious Rider,” according to Li Ning. The companies did not provide further detail about the release date, cost or design of the shoes.

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