After five years selling sophisticated activewear to men, Rhone is taking the plunge into women’s.
But the move should not be viewed as a full-on entry into the women’s arena, its founders stressed. Rather, it’s intended to honor the contributions of the women who work for the company and is being launched during Women’s History Month.
The capsule collection will be offered for sale only on the company’s web site beginning March 2. It will include tanks, hoodies, leggings and joggers created from Italian fabrics treated with the company’s GoldFusion technology, a proprietary process that infuses gold particles into the highest-performing fabrics and is soft, fast-drying, long-lasting and odor neutral. In addition, the leggings are made from sustainable fabrics created from reclaimed and recycled fishing nets removed from the world’s oceans.
The collection will retail for $64 to $138.
Nate Checketts, cofounder, said, “Let me be clear, we are not launching women’s wear. This is an extremely tight, limited capsule collection that really celebrates the women in our lives who have helped propel this brand forward.” Even so, he said he expects the collection to sell out quickly.
Checketts didn’t completely rule out eventually expanding Rhone into women’s wear, but said that if and when

Follow WWD on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.

Net-a-porter, which has been in business 20 years, is marking International Women’s Day on March 8 with the introduction of 20 exclusive T-shirts.
Now in its third year of partnership with Women for Women International, 100 percent of Net-a-porter proceeds will be donated to the charity which helps women living in conflict-affected countries to rebuild their lives. The T-shirts go on sale Friday and will be available exclusively at netaporter.com
Twenty brands and female designers were invited to submit designs for their T-shirts, including Stella McCartney, Gabriela Hearst, Alexa Chung, Isabel Marant, Amina Muaddi, Carine Roitfeld, Jimmy Choo, Rotate, Bernadette, Rosie Assoulin, Staud, The Attico, The Range, The Frankie Shop, Ganni, Nanushka, Charlotte Tilbury, Cecilie Bahnsen, Roxanne Assoulin, alongside Net-a-porter x Ninety Percent collaboration.
Each designer was asked to give her interpretation of women’s empowerment and strength. The Net-a-porter x Ninety Percent design calls out all “Incredible Women,” while The Attico’s Let Your Hair Down T-shirt inspires women to feel confident and comfortable in their own skin. McCartney’s T-shirt shows a sense of sisterhood and compassion, featuring an illustration from her fall/winter 2019 campaign, where women come together in mutual support and love of the earth. Jimmy Choo’s tongue-in-cheek wordplay says to “Choos”

Follow WWD on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.

Terry J. Lundgren, former chief executive officer of Macy’s Inc., will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the annual Delivering Good gala on Nov. 4 in New York.
This year marks the 35th anniversary of Delivering Good, which provides disaster and poverty relief with new product donations from companies in the fashion, home and children’s industries.
“Terry Lundgren’s leadership and generosity are legendary across the retail industry and the world,” said Andrea Weiss, chair of Delivering Good. “His career achievements, as well as his decades-long commitment to philanthropy, the arts, medical research and education, make him an inspiration to so many of us, and we couldn’t be more honored to recognize him this year with our Lifetime Achievement Award.”
The annual gala will be held at the Ziegfeld Ballroom. The event co-chairs are Stacy Berns, president of Berns Communications Group, and David Greenstein, chief executive officer of Wonder Brands, both members of the Delivering Good board of directors. At the event, Delivering Good will also honor the recipients of its Vanguard Award, Company of Change Award and Impact Award. This year’s gala will focus on the ripple effect — how a single action or event can continue to influence others —

Follow WWD on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.

New York designer Rachel Comey has opened a monthlong pop-up shop at 123 Rue de Turenne in the Marais.
The two-floor space features her showroom upstairs, and a store downstairs selling her spring collection, including her cult favorite Drill jumpsuits, Fetes sheer tulle wrap skirts, double-breasted boxy blazers, and glossy leather clogs.
This marks the third store for the designer after New York and Los Angeles (she also wholesales to Nordstrom, Saks and several multilabel boutiques in the U.S. and internationally, but no department stores in Paris — yet).
Why Paris, why now? “We love retail and having that direct relationship to our customers,” said Comey. “I was thinking where else to open a store, and nothing had clicked yet…But then we always come to Paris for market, four times a year, and it was an organic decision to do our showroom as a pop-up combo, so even our own accounts could walk through and see the whole collection and space.”
The pop-up is open until March 18, and Comey is hoping to connect more to the Parisian community while she’s here. As a start, she is featuring in the shop the work of Berlin-based Ketuta Alexi-Meskhishvili, an artist represented by the gallery just

Follow WWD on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.

Fashion Group International of Dallas anointed Lela Orr as an emerging fashion talent on Tuesday evening during its annual Rising Star Awards, which were held at the Statler Hotel.
“I’m just kind of shocked,” said Orr, a Dallas native who operates her business there. “Winning in your hometown means something special.”
Orr got national exposure in the U.S. last spring during her turn on “Project Runway,” where she placed eighth. The publicity enabled her to expand beyond custom clothing into producing a small collection called Ferrah, she said.
Focused on sustainability, Ferrah offers upscale contemporary sportswear fabricated of natural materials and dyes.
“We’ve quadruped our growth as of last year, and we’re opening a storefront on Earth Day,” Orr said. “It’s kind of a test — our first storefront.” Called Sept: Sustainable Designer Collective, the shop at Trinity Groves will present clothing and accessories from a rotating cast of eco-conscious designers, including fellow “Project Runway” alum Venny Etienne and contestant Brittany Allen.
“The goal is to have seven sustainable designers hanging or displaying at a time,” Orr explained.
The FGI Dallas Rising Star Awards also honored fine jewelers Barbara Kaiser Harvel and Stephanie Harvel of Kaiser Atelier for accessories; Matt Alexander, proprietor of Neighborhood Goods, for

Follow WWD on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.

The elegant, left-hand drive convertible is just one of 30 shipped to the US.

The fair is now officially taking place in June rather than in April.

The total nearly doubles the previous record of 540,000 visitors for a single exhibit.

That’s about $46,000 per panel.

Sample the finest haute cuisine while sailing through France.