WWD: Please sum up the state of American fashion as you see it?
Alex Bolen: I think it would be awfully presumptuous of me to sum up the state of American fashion. I have one point of view, which is the point of view from our company and that’s a view as a manufacturer, as a retailer, as a designer.
I think that the term “American fashion” is perhaps a bit of an anachronism, one that used to mean some things design-wise. I think American companies were known for certain things, sportswear, whatever — and everybody’s doing everything now. And I don’t say that with any sort of sense of regret. I think it’s an evolution. So the idea of American fashion is a little more amorphous.
Now, New York-based fashion companies, that’s something else. Los Angeles-based fashion companies may have some different opinions on the matter. But I think that we as a group of manufacturers in New York could do a better job of looking out for our common interests.
I am not one who is particularly in favor of a group thing. I don’t think that solutions are one-size-fits-all, and I think that everybody has to, I wouldn’t say fend for
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