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• Everybody's Talking About | Comme des Garcons for H&M 21 août 2008

  Some H&M collaborations of the past (Roberto Cavalli, Viktor & Rolf) were more memorable for the pre-launch buzz and subsequent hysteria around the world than they were for the clothes themselves. So ever since Rei Kawakubo announced her upcoming Comme des Garcons collection for H&M, fashionistas have been wondering whether Kawakubo will bring some of the best of Japanese avant-garde fashion to the masses without diluting her signature style.

  Well the wait is almost over. W Magazine wrote about the collaboration in its September issue and on Friday, Fashionista.com posted the first photos of the complete collection. In typical lightening speed, the blogosphere has been passing judgment and at first glance, it seems many CDG fans are underwhelmed by Kawakubo’s efforts, while mainstream customers don’t quite get it.

  Over at Cafe Mode, France’s pre-eminent fashion blog (which is now owned by the French daily, L’Express), blogger Geraldine Dormoy says that she will show up on the day the collection debuts, but mostly to see who will actually be buying the clothes. That’s not a ringing endorsement either.

  It makes one wonder why Kawakubo decided to do this collaboration at all. It was always going to be tough to translate CDG’s directional, deconstructed aesthetic for mass market tastes. And, since the brand’s many loyal fans are already willing to drop some serious money for a piece of Comme’s coolness and since there are already more accessibly priced Comme des Garcons pieces available for those with tighter budgets, the target market for this collection is unclear.

  Could the basis for the collaboration be publicity and brand building? Roberto Cavalli worked with H&M to build brand awareness amongst younger customers and attract private equity investment. Similarly, Viktor & Rolf’s designed for H&M to establish themselves in the high-street fashion consciousness (and they recently parlayed this into an investment from Diesel’s Renzo Rosso). Kawakubo, on the other hand, is notorious for being reclusive and media-shy, and it is unlikely that she is looking for investment (as her business is self-financed and she seems unwilling to pander to private investors).

  That leaves the design fee. In addition to the massive PR boost, Stella McCartney reportedly also earned a huge design fee for designing for H&M. Could Kawakubo be looking for some quick cash injection from H&M to maintain her financial independence?

  The real answer probably has more to do with Kawakubo’s knack for collaborating with others. She recently unveiled a collaboration with Louis Vuitton, and she has built her own collective of designers under the CDG banner, including Junya Watanabe and Tao Kurihara.

  In any case, it’s all speculation at this stage as to how the collection will perform, but as more and more ‘hi-low’ collaborations are announced and the novelty has begun to wear off, designers should be very clear about the objective of such collaborations, and ensure that the rewards are commensurate with the risks. We’ll see how it all turns out when CDG for H&M his the floors in November.

  UPDATE: IMAGES FROM FASHIONISTA.COM REMOVED AT THE REQUEST OF LAFORCE+STEVENS ON BEHALF OF H&M.

  Photo courtesy of W Magazine. article from http://www.businessoffashion.net

• The Death Of Trends: Part I 06 août 2008

  The Death Of Trends: Part I

  Back in February 1988, Vogue’s “Point of View” column constantly alluded to the “right” style. Pants in this category were “narrow over the hip, softer and wider through the leg,” while jackets were “longer, sharply tailored…often graphic in its design,” hemlines were short, the proper color was green and the best accessory a scarf.

  Twenty years on and the diktats of cool have become much less defined. Elle’s March 2008 issue advises readers to stock up on cargo pants, mannish trousers, skinny jeans, denim cutoffs and flares, to pair with floral blouses, white tees, pajama tops or gypsy-inspired camisoles. And, while the apparel list seems rather extensive, every proper fashionista’s list of must-have shoes also includes sculptural heels, wedges, gladiator sandals, ballet flats, open-toed booties and moccasins.

  When it comes to fashion in 2008 the only prevailing trend is that there are no prevailing trends. From excess to minimalism, free-spirited ingénue to tailored sophisticate—and everything in between—designers are mining just about every culture, decade and mood to create a distinctly “anything-goes” aesthetic.

  “It’s always been difficult to define an era’s trends without generalizing, but nowadays, it’s difficult to even define what a trend is,” says Ben Whyman, writer and lecturer at London College of Fashion and arts editor of Issue One magazine. “It’s safe to say the ‘80s were the age of the Yuppie and the New Romantic, while the ‘90s were about grunge on the streets and minimalism on the catwalks. But in these tight economic times, designers and shops are desperate for customers, so they’re offering up lots of mini-trends within trends to appeal to as wide an audience as possible. It’s hard to pin a season down to a single idea anymore,” he adds.

  In this absence of a clear-cut sartorial zeitgeist, “Designers are focusing more on their own brand identities, despite what everyone else is doing,” explains Stephanie Meyerson, Director of Youth Culture at trend resource agency Style Sight. “Balenciaga, Marc Jacobs, Gucci, Prada—all have an unwavering sense of brand vision and creativity, regardless of fleeting trends.” It’s an evolution that, though great for creativity, has made the editor’s job of pinpointing “the new black” much more difficult.

  It’s not just designers who are contributing to the end of boldface trends, however. Armed with broadband and blogrolls, consumers, too, are rejecting the commandments of the editorial elite, taking inspiration from peers around the world to craft their own personal interpretations of style. Rather than buy into one trend from head-to-toe, like the “preppy” or “punk” movements of decades past, consumers are appropriating eclectic influences and remixing them like a DJ does with music. It’s now common to see stylistic mash-ups, like a demure Stella McCartney floral-print blouse coupled with Alexander Wang’s grimy cutoffs and finished off with a pair of Balenciaga’s erotically charged knee-high gladiator sandals.

  Sure, mixing different influences isn’t particularly groundbreaking, but the current difference is the result of access. The boldness of the aforementioned outfit, for example, is no longer unique to the creative enclaves of London, New York and Paris. We’re now seeing this kind of independent dressing everywhere from a flea market in Perth to a gig in St. Louis or a lounge in Prague.

  “With the rise of ‘fast-fashion’ retailers, consumers have an overload of trends to choose from,” explains Meyerson. “They ingest so much information from magazines, internet and TV that they’re able to quickly digest the trends, buy what they want and style things in a unique, smart way. Not to mention the economy is making us think twice about each purchase, which brings a natural creative consciousness back to fashion.” Adds Whyman: “The consumer is now so savvy that they choose only what’s right for them and their lifestyle. I think this is the fundamental difference from 10 or 20 years ago, when people were more likely to loyally buy into one designer’s ethos.”

  In the run-up to the spring/summer ‘09 collections, we’ll be taking a closer look at how the trend is being re-defined, from the role of retailers in its shortening life cycle to the influence of alternative media in its proliferation. We may be just as baffled once show season rolls around, but hopefully there will be a little more context to the chaos.

  (This is the first in a three part series. The subsequent articles will appear on the next two Mondays, August 11 and August 18.)

  text by Erin Magner source: from http://jcreport.com