Tuesday, March 18, 2014

L’Wren Scott Dies at 49

Say it ain't so...L’Wren Scott, a fashion designer whose creations were known for their discreet elegance, though with a soupçon of daring and glamour evoking her days as a celebrity stylist in Hollywood and her romantic partnership with Mick Jagger, was found dead on Monday in her Manhattan apartment. She was 49.
Pierre Rougier, a spokesman for Ms. Scott, confirmed the death. Two police officials said that the cause appeared to be suicide, but that the medical examiner had not yet made a determination.

Saturday, October 26, 2013

Mr Thomas at Sylvia's Scholarship Fund

Those of that know Mr JJ Thomas ( A Bloomingdales Legend) know that he is a straight forward and stern as they come...but its always great to see him let his hair down
Enjoy

Friday, April 5, 2013

Versace to Go Public...BAD IDEA

WHAT?!!!!
With profits and sales climbing at Gianni Versace SpA, the question arises again: When will it go public?

The answer: not just yet. Good - look at what happened to Prada.

As the fashion house on Thursday reported growth in net profits and sales in 2012, Gian Giacomo Ferraris, its chief executive officer, repeated there are no immediate plans to take Versace public or sell a stake. But he set a target for when that might happen: when the company hits sales of 500 million to 600 million euros, or $641.2 million and $770 million at current exchange.

While building retail clout in established markets, Versace is also expanding in new regions.

The company will open three new stores between this month and May in São Paulo, Curitiba and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, which it entered with its own branch at the end of last year.
Just how much the company can or should grow is top of mind for Ferraris and the Versace family, who tapped Goldman Sachs and Banca IMI as advisers last year to look at ways to add help fuel expansion. While no answer is definite yet, noted Ferraris, “the Versaces have every intention of staying on as owners of the firm. They are aware that the more the company grows the more it is their duty to explore ways to be competitive against larger fashion conglomerates.”

Siblings Santo and Donatella Versace hold 30 and 20 percent stakes, respectively, and Donatella’s daughter, Allegra Versace Beck, owns 50 percent of the firm. As he charts the company’s growth strategy, Ferraris said he also will continue to “educate the company to transparency,” and has begun to book numbers on a monthly basis in 2013.

RELATED STORY: Versace Fall 2013 >>

Investments in retail and increases in the U.S. and Asia helped lift profits by 7 percent in the year ended Dec. 31 to 8.5 million euros, or $10.8 million, from 7.9 million euros, or $10.9 million, in 2011. (Tax adjustments obliged the company to restate the latter figure in April 2012 from 8.5 million euros.)

Group revenues climbed 20 percent to 408.7 million euros, or $523.1 million.

Dollar amounts have been converted at average exchange for the periods to which they refer.

“There was a sleeping giant under the ashes,” said Ferraris, whose restructuring helped return the company to the black in 2011.

In an interview at the company’s headquarters here, Ferraris underscored his pride in the growth of the signature line in terms of both ready-to-wear and accessories, while noting investments of 25 million euros, or $32 million, last year to expand the company. In comparison, Versace invested 15 million euros, or $20.8 million, in 2011 and 5 million euros, or $6.6 million, in 2010.

“Last year we set in motion important projects, such as e-commerce, new beachwear and innerwear lines, the Young Versace collection and Atelier Versace, and invested in growing Hong Kong, China, Malaysia, the U.S., Europe and Brazil. Now we will reap the rewards,” said Ferraris, who expects double-digit growth in the next three years. “The year 2013 has started in an encouraging way, with retail revenues in the first quarter up more than 20 percent,” he added.

The company has grown more than 50 percent over the last three years.

In 2012, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, adjusted for currency movements, rose 15 percent to 44.5 million euros, or $57 million.



Retail sales for the year were up 39 percent to 224.5 million euros, or $287.3 million, while wholesale revenues grew about 5 percent to 149.4 million euros, or $191.2 million. Royalties were in line with the previous year at 34.9 million euros, or $44.6 million.

Sales were evenly split between the men’s and women’s divisions.

Ferraris described Versace’s product offer as “more complete now,” and the new store concept introduced in New York in October is the “new way to communicate it.” A new boutique modeled after this blueprint, conceived by Donatella Versace and English architect Jamie Fobert, will open in Paris “in a few days,” said Ferraris, as well as a 4,320-square-foot unit in Rome near the Spanish Steps in September, and one door in Venice this year.

Ferraris touted a “fantastic response” to the brand in the U.S., which was also boosted by the men’s formal wear and accessories categories. In the U.S., a market that last year showed 46 percent growth and accounted for 15 percent of revenues, the company plans to open a store in Orlando, Fla., and “probably” Chicago in 2013. There are currently 11 stores in the area.

Friday, March 15, 2013

Anna Wintour and Condé Nast

Anna, Anna, Anna...

For the last several years, Condé Nast has been preparing for when chairman S.I. Newhouse Jr., now 85, would wind down his duties at the publishing group. For a company whose prestige and reputation are so closely tied to one man, the question of who would follow in his footsteps has all the gravity of a papal succession.

At a time when other companies are shrinking or being spun off, the preservation of Condé’s image was all the more important. The executives in place are all money guys — consumer marketers, really, and even by their admission, unlikely to inspire the cult of personality Newhouse stoked for decades. Condé was in need of its own version of the Columbia Pictures’ logo, someone to symbolize the culture of the place as much as the image it sought to convey.


In Condé’s view, there was no one better suited for that role than Anna Wintour, 63.

“She’s maybe the greatest marketer we have in this organization,” said chief executive officer Charles H. Townsend. “What she stands for is the epitome of what Condé stands for — her accomplishment, her success, her unyielding commitment to excellence and content creation.”

Condé executives had been looking to elevate Wintour to a larger corporate role. On Tuesday she was anointed artistic director, a newly created position that encompasses duties once held by Newhouse and, much earlier on, by Alexander Liberman, the group’s legendary editorial director. In theory, the role grants her enormous influence over the editorial direction of the company’s magazines, from The New Yorker to Vanity Fair.

Wintour’s coronation was received by some as a positive development for a company that some believe had lost its shimmer as Newhouse became less involved. But there was also confusion. Save for Vanity Fair editor in chief Graydon Carter and New Yorker editor David Remnick, Condé’s not in the habit of consulting with top editors about major institutional announcements like this. So when the official statement went out, it raised more questions than answers. Will Wintour attend print order previews? How would she divide her loyalties between Vogue and the magazines she’s ostensibly been tasked with advising?

“We’re not all friends here,” said an insider. “This is a competitive building. We use the same photographers. We compete for the same celebrities. This will be a gradual process as she finds areas she’d like to investigate. Why else would she take the job if she wasn’t going to do things with it?”

Wintour has been part of the Condé family since 1983, rising from editor in chief of British Vogue to the company’s shiniest star. In that time, she’s also broadly expanded the definition of editor in chief. She is the ultimate brand manager — there are Vogue-branded events, documentaries, online encyclopedias — and a power broker, one of the most influential forces in fashion, with a say on everything from the stewardship of the world’s oldest fashion houses to the industry’s place in the American economy.

What was there to do after all that? Last year, the question came up during a casual get-together with New York editor in chief Adam Moss. They were both restless, eager to do something else. But Wintour came down on the side of pragmatism, said sources familiar with their conversation. The minute she leaves Vogue, she told Moss, she would just go back to being another former editor.

One way to expand her circle of influence beyond fashion and media was politics. She campaigned and raised substantial sums for Barack Obama in 2008, and repeated her efforts in the last election cycle, hosting lavish fund-raisers in his honor. As the campaign was drawing to a close, she lobbied hard for one of the sought-after ambassadorships that are usually passed down to influential donors, such as Paris or London, several sources said.

Last summer, Wintour signed a three-year contract that came with financial penalties if she left early. Though the possibility of a new corporate title had been discussed, by December no firm agreement had been reached.

Townsend confirmed he and Wintour had talked for over a year about expanding her purview but hadn’t come up with the right offer. There was talk of Wintour having oversight of some brands, but not all, according to sources. She had already played that role once in the past, overseeing editorial direction of several titles, not just Teen Vogue, but also Men’s Vogue and Vogue Living, two titles that were subsequently shuttered.

Townsend was aware of Wintour’s desire for a change, though they never discussed the possible diplomatic post.

“Twenty-five years is a long time,” he said. “I do think it’s almost the ideal moment to expand her horizons and maintain her enthusiasms for all the things this company stands for.”



sources: WWD

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Companys Go Shopping

The megadeal may be back.

The steadily tepid economy has aligned with low interest rates and a strong stock market to raise the prospects that there could be big, multibillion-dollar deals in the fashion world this year. The caveat is whether big-time buyers feel comfortable enough to bet on a consumer who’s still feeling her way forward cautiously.

Wall Street at least is ready to go and egging companies on, even if buyers are still in wait-and-see mode.



Rumors — not particularly credible ones — have bubbled to the surface lately that large, premier companies might change hands. Coach Inc., Tiffany & Co., Burberry and the troubled J.C. Penney Co. Inc. have all been the subject of whispers among investors in recent weeks. 


A deal for any of those companies would easily run over $5 billion.

That’s a boatload of money, but there’s plenty of cash sitting on corporate balance sheets and in private equity war chests. And extremely low interest rates, which are intended to prop up the economy, have also prompted banks and junk bond investors to lend money cheaply and with few strings attached.


Source: WWD

Sunday, March 3, 2013

Sean John Ramp Up

I was at a party on Wednesday with Jeff Tweedy of Sean John and he did not mention this to me.

As part of an ongoing effort to try to improve marketing and its in-store presence, Sean John has hired two key executives. Vincent Panzanella has joined the company as vice president of marketing and Dean Arcuri has been named vice president of creative direction.
Vincent Panzanella
Dean Arcuri

They assume responsibilities that were previously handled by LonDell Wright, who exited Sean John in January.

Panzanella is now overseeing marketing efforts including brand development, strategic partnerships, events, media planning and public relations. Most recently, he worked at Tommy Hilfiger as senior director of marketing. In that role, he oversaw general brand positioning, media campaigns and the marketing of multiple licensed product categories.


Both he and Arcuri report to Sean John president Jeff Tweedy.


Arcuri is handling the brand’s visual identity, managing the creative feel and direction of retail displays and overseeing the roll-out of new stores and shops-in-shop. His prior work experience includes serving as marketing director at Ralph Lauren.


Refocusing the line as a fashion collection, instead of one rooted in basics, has been a priority for Tweedy, who was promoted to president in November. Last year’s retail sales were said to be about $350 million, a significant improvement compared to recent years but not as strong as the company’s 2008 claim of $525 million.


Tweedy said of his two new hires, “I’m confident they will both play critical roles as we continue Sean John’s growth and work to re-energize the brand through dynamic new marketing initiatives and the creation of a strong visual identity in the media, at retail and online.”

Thursday, February 28, 2013

JCP: AWFUL NUMBERS!

The numbers are AWFUL!

J.C. Penney Co. Inc. fell deep into the red in the fourth quarter and full year, with losses of $552 million and $985 million, respectively, on comparable-store sales that dropped more than 30 percent in the quarter. The numbers came out after the stock market closed, but Wall Street still took its revenge, sending Penney’s shares down in after-hours trading by 15.1 percent to $17.96.

In a conference call with analysts, chief executive officer Ron Johnson issued a mea culpa on some issues and outlined shifts in his strategy for the retailer’s ongoing turnaround.


“As much as we accomplished last year, we also made some big mistakes,” he said. “I take personal responsibility for these. Experience is making mistakes and learning from them. I have learned a lot....We worked really hard and tried many things to help the customer understand that she could shop anytime on her terms. But we learned she prefers a sale. At times she loves the coupon. And always she needs a reference price.”


READ FULL STORY HERE: WWD