Antimicrobial solutions provider Noble Biomaterials has joined forces with product design and development group Bemis Associates to develop seamless, conductive advanced material that allows for the integration of electronics into apparel.
Eton Systems, which supplies unit production systems to the apparel industry, is looking to strengthen its local presence by relocating to the US as part of plans to be more flexible and offer optimised delivery precision.
The jeanswear division of US apparel giant VF Corp, which includes its Wrangler and Lee brands, is partnering with the University of North Carolina to incorporate 3D design technology into its curriculum, to help prepare students for careers in the apparel and retail industries.
Jerry Lorenzo isn’t the typical men’s fashion designer. He holds an MBA instead of a degree from a fashion school, and he prefers to scour vintage stores and flea markets rather than sketch. He also waited 16 months before unveiling the latest collection for Fear of God, his cult label that has attracted fans such as Justin Bieber, Russell Westbrook, Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid.
In Fear of God’s Fifth Collection, which is the equivalent of a fall 2017 release, Lorenzo stuck with high school in the Nineties as his theme. This time, though, he walked across the hall from the classroom where the grunge rockers who inspired his Fourth Collection hang to the spot occupied by the hip-hop crew that also excels at sports.
“The muse is more of this high school athlete of the Nineties who, at the time, dictated what is cool in fashion,” he said during a preview at his studio in downtown Los Angeles.
Speaking this muse’s athletic language, Lorenzo introduced mesh and put a lot of attention on sweats, basketball shorts and jerseys. He also veered off course into punkish plaid pants with drawstring waists and unzipped ankles and pajama-style shirts and coats. He expanded his textile
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NEW YORK — After a year without a fashion show, Badgley Mischka will be back on the runway Feb. 14 at Skylight Clarkson Sq here.
The New York Fashion Week return of Mark Badgley and James Mischka coincides with this week’s launch of sportswear — a first for the 29-year-old company.
In March, in a joint venture with footwear licensee Titan Industries Inc. and apparel licensee MJCLK LLC, Badgley and Mischka acquired the rights to the Badgley Mischka trademark and other Badgley Mischka IP from Iconix Brand Group for $16 million in cash.
Through a joint venture with the China Ting Group, the pair have spent a lot of time in China lately on the company’s 300-acre campus, using golf carts to get from one work assignment to the next. The fact that the company weaves many of its fabrics was a plus, as well as its experience with other designer labels.
During a preview of the sportswear, which ships to stores in July, Badgley said, “Our couture will always be our core business but the world has gotten so casual.” That was something they heard repeatedly from loyal customers, trunk show shoppers and via the brand’s social media platforms.
As a result, their version
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OBSESSED: Clique Media Group has become a staple at social media-forward events.
So it was no surprise to find the company’s cofounder Hillary Kerr participating in a spirited discussion this weekend with Rebecca Minkoff ahead of the designer’s spring 2017 presentation at The Grove shopping center in Los Angeles. The two sat before a group of about 50 to talk about entrepreneurship, leadership and social media before Kerr caught WWD up on the latest at Clique Media — the parent of digital brands such as Who What Wear, My Domaine, Byrdie and Obsessee.
Social media content maker Obsessee, one of the company’s newer brands, was at The Grove last summer for a brief pop-up. It marked Obsessee’s first foray into the brick-and-mortar world when it took over The Grove’s pop-up-designated glass pod at the center lawn.
The store was unique in that customers purchased items using social media currency. That is, instead of cash or credit to pay, they were required to post on places such as Instagram or Twitter to earn currency.
“It went so well. We had a line around the block the entire time we were there,” said Kerr, who herself went in to buy a pen using social currency.
The pop-up was such
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PARIS — Could Virgil Abloh be a contender to succeed Riccardo Tisci at Givenchy?
According to sources, the French fashion house has held discussions with the American designer behind the Off-White label, who is also Kanye West’s creative director.
Givenchy confirmed to WWD exclusively last week that Tisci has exited the house after a 12-year tenure, in the latest chapter of creative upheaval in the top ranks of international fashion, launching immediate speculation about who could succeed him.
Asked about the Abloh rumors, a spokeswoman for the house said on Monday that it had no comment. Reached on Monday, Abloh also declined to comment on Givenchy specifically, though he reiterated his previously stated aim of eventually taking the reins of a leading luxury house. “My trajectory is to update and provide something new in the fashion industry by way of creating a project and using it as a case study on how to update a luxury house,” he told WWD.
Part of a rising generation of young designers that includes Demna Gvasalia at Balenciaga and Vetements and Gosha Rubchinskiy, Abloh designs men’s and women’s collections and has spoken in the past about how he would like to shake up the establishment.
“I have a litany of
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SAPPHIRE SOVEREIGN: Queen Elizabeth II has broken yet another record: Britain’s longest-serving monarch, who turns 91 this year, has become the only one to mark a Sapphire Jubilee. It was 65 years ago that King George VI died and Princess Elizabeth became queen (as all of those watching “The Crown” on Netflix can attest).
To mark the occasion, Buckingham Palace has reissued a portrait of Queen Elizabeth by David Bailey. Shot in 2014, it shows the queen wearing the sapphire jewelry her father gave her in 1947 as a wedding gift. The original photograph was taken in 2014 for the British government’s “Great” campaign, to promote the U.K. globally.
“She has very kind eyes with a mischievous glint,” said Bailey. “I’ve always liked strong women, and she is a very strong woman.”
Princess Elizabeth became queen following the death of her father King George VI on Feb. 6, 1952, and sapphire is the gemstone that marks a 65th anniversary. The necklace dates from the 1850s, and is made with sapphires and diamonds. It has matching drop earrings. The Queen had the necklace adjusted with the large stone turned into a pendant.
While the monarch is not publicly celebrating her sapphire jubilee, events are being
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Valentino has opened a 1,076-square-foot store at Iguatemi São Paulo, the upscale shopping center whose tenants include Chanel, Cartier, Gucci, Prada, Saint Laurent and Ferragamo.
The store, which is Valentino’s first unit in Brazil, represents a concept developed by the brand’s creative director Pierpaolo Piccioli and British architect David Chipperfield. Valentino operates stores elsewhere in South America in Argentina, Chile and Columbia.
During the Aughts, when a newly minted middle class was shopping with gusto, luxury brands flocked to Brazil. However, the pipeline of high-end names slowed in recent years as the economy softened with high interest rates and rising inflation sapping consumers’ spending power.
A new Brazilian president, Michel Temer, took office in May after his protégé, Dilma Rousseff, was removed following her impeachment. Consumer confidence has improved, albeit from record lows. Brazil’s economy is expected to grow a feeble 0.2 percent this year.
Valentino has been courting Brazilian customers, dressing actress Marina Ruy Barbosa and other celebrities.
With areas for ready-to-wear, accessories and fragrance, the store combines old and new elements into the design. Piccioli and Chipperfield moved away from the traditional store model, using architecture to suggest a palazzo. “This is the idea of a new future that’s not nostalgic, but full of memories,” Piccioli said. “The architecture is designed
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Welcome to the new Calvin.