Page 3617 – Texadviser

Perry Ellis Supports Hispanic Culture With Cubavera Art Project

Perry Ellis International Inc. took its mind off Thursday’s shareholders’ vote to go private by occupying itself with creative pursuits.
National Hispanic Heritage Month may have ended Oct. 15, but that hasn’t stopped the company from observing its Latin American roots. Its Cubavera men’s wear brand keeps the party going with a live auction of original commissioned artworks through Nov. 1, within its multifaceted campaign #CubaveraIcons. Three works by Gustavo Novoa, Alexander Mijares and Edward Granger, who previously created custom guayaberas at a live painting event and has collaborated with Hermès and Ralph Lauren, premiered on the brand’s and artists’ web sites and social media channels before their live auction on Paddle8.com.
PEI president and chief executive officer Oscar Feldenkreis said the artists were each chosen for their unique style. “They represent a multicultural mix, again in line with the Cubavera brand, which has translated across demographics and has grown into a staple for a multicultural and multigenerational consumer,” he said.
The only parameters for the artists were to draw inspiration from the collection. Novoa zeroed in on its signature prints and PEI’s home base in Miami with a painting of Florida panthers primping in tropical shirts. Titled the Front Runners, his work starts at $3,500

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Josie Natori Honored at Children of Peace Awards for Humanitarian Efforts

HONOR ROLL: Josie Natori received the Edward Cardinal Egan Humanitarian Award Tuesday night from the Catholic Guardian Services’ 33rd annual Children of Peace awards at the Pierre Hotel.
CGS is one of the state’s largest foster-care providers, helping more than 1,000 children annually in the New York City area. The group also helps individuals with developmental disabilities and offers family support services.
Natori said the organization serves thousands of families who are in need because of homelessness, domestic abuse or needing foster care. “In this industry of ours, it’s nice to see some Christian conscience,” she said.
The designer got to know Cardinal Egan about 15 years ago. At that time, he encouraged her to help the archdiocese of New York, Natori said. (Her humanitarian efforts also extend to her native Philippines.)
She and the cardinal, who died three years ago, also shared another interest — playing the piano. As a seminarian in Europe, there was a piano that allowed him to play regularly. More recently, Natori and the cardinal performed parts of a concerto at a donor dinner that she hosted in her home.
“Just participating and giving back in different ways — where you can — is part of what we need to

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Celine Relaunches E-commerce With New U.S. Site

COMING SOON: Celine has relaunched its e-commerce site, but ready-to-wear is not yet part of the assortment.
The site, overseen by creative director Hedi Slimane, marks the brand’s entry into online selling in the U.S., after its launch in France, Italy, Germany and the United Kingdom beginning in December. Apple Pay will be added to the payment methods offered on the U.S. web site as an exclusive.
The revamped celine.com site features a selection of leather goods, small leather goods, jewelry and sunglasses from the current collection, alongside items from the spring collection, which are billed as “coming soon.” Rtw will be added at a later stage, a spokesman for the brand said.
Handbag styles available for immediate order include the medium Classic bag in box calfskin, priced $4,400, and the mini Luggage in drummed calfskin at $3,100. The black version of the 16, Slimane’s first handbag design unveiled by Lady Gaga on Instagram on Aug. 30, is listed as available for preorder from Oct. 22 priced $4,550.

A Celine medium C handbag in bicolor quilted calfskin.
Courtesy

Prices range from $335 for Animals stud earrings to $24,800 for a Triomphe bag in crocodile skin.
Celine temporarily suspended trading on the site in the run-up to Slimane’s

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Shanghai Fashion Week: The Pluses and Minuses

SHANGHAI — Experimental and energetic, showcasing incredible diversity, although still geared toward a domestic buyer and sometimes lacking in terms of workmanship — that was the verdict on the just wrapped week of shows at Shanghai Fashion Week.
The event, which drew 33,000 attendees, has carved out its place firmly as the capital of Chinese fashion, although it was still evolving rapidly in format, and for an international audience, hinged a lot on general curiosity surrounding a powerful developing market.
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Los Angeles-based Lorenzo Hadar, who has attended SFW for the past five years, said overall the feeling this season was much more mature and he maintains high hopes. But he wanted to see improvements in designers’ fabric selection. Brands tend to prefer to source within China instead of Italy or Japan because of costs and delivery time, he said, and it showed.
“The only weaknesses of Chinese designers’ brands are the quality of products and fabric they are using,” he said. “I think the efforts lack in the finishing and choosing the right fabrics, but the stylings are always avant-garde and unique, which differ from the rest of the world. Hence, it makes it distinctive and attractive to

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