1.) A teaser for the new Chanel No. 5 campaign:
And more of a peek (in French, and featuring Audrey Tautou):
2.) Cartier Cuts Back Hours on Workforce:
“Richemont, the world’s second-largest luxury goods group behind LVMH, is cutting working hours at its main Cartier factory as the economic slowdown dampens demand for pricey timepieces . . . Employees in watch production at the top-end brand will work at 40 percent for a three-month period starting in May, a spokesman for Richemont said. ‘In this way, we can retain the staff and production flexibility whilst avoiding a build up of finished goods inventory. We do not want to lose any of our employees,’ he said . . . Swiss newspaper L’Agefi reported around 500 employees would be affected.”
Meanwhile, Nero fiddles, Rome burns, the show must go on — Cartier’s Star-Studded 100th Anniversary Party. No trouble here, folks — everything’s just dandy.
And just when you thought it was safe to go back to the mall — Swine Flu Threatens Luxury-Goods Sales: “Luxury goods stocks continued to slide on Tuesday as the swine flu outbreak raised fears it could hold back travellers, traditional buyers of upmarket handbags, watches and other pricey items . . . Bernstein estimated that about 20 percent of luxury products are purchased by people when they travel for business or leisure.”
The housing bust, stock market ponzi schemes, the increase in international piracy, massive government debt throughout the world, volatile currency markets, the resumption of nuclear saber rattling . . . and now a new swine flu. It’s like a bad episode of Punk’d with Ashton Kutcher as our god. Ugh. That thought just made me ill.
3.) Because Who Doesn’t Want to Follow Karl Lagerfeld on Twitter?:
*sigh*
It’s enough to make me forgive him for being so stubbornly resistant to the Internet as a sales venue.
4.) Mango Awards Honor Oscar de la Renta:
“Oscar de la Renta took the gold — the ‘Gold Button,’ that is — honoring the longevity of his fashion career at Wednesday night’s El Botón-Mango Fashion Awards held in the Hangar, a corporate design facility on the outskirts of Barcelona . . . De la Renta said, ”I was very proud to be included in these difficult economic times. I was honored to receive the Golden Button for my achievements in the fashion world.’”
It’s been a tough year for de la Renta: the luxury industry is struggling, the Metropolitan Opera bypassed him and chose a bevvy of European designers for their recent costume designs, he had to debase himself on The View as an apology for criticizing the fashion choices of Michelle Obama and now his wife is caught up in the middle of a juicy court battle over the estate of the late Lady Astor. It’s about time the guy caught a break.
Watch Oscar grovel on The View:
Speaking of a struggling luxury industry — Down and Out: Store Closings Spread in L.A.: “Mulberry, Sergio Rossi and bankrupt Lambertson Truex have shut on exclusive Melrose Place . . . Dozens of stores have closed along Santa Monica’s Montana Avenue, a main shopping thoroughfare, including contemporary boutiques Jane Smith, Saylor and Il Primo Passo shoes . . . French Connection … has shuttered its stores at the Beverly Center mall and . . . Frédéric Fekkai is set to close a flagship salon on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills.”
5.) The Top Ten Chinese Fashion Brands to Watch:
“Increasingly, ‘Made in China’ is replaced by ‘Created in China.’ Sandra Halliday, WGSN’s global managing editor for business resource and analysis at WGSN, says: ‘China’s status as the world’s largest manufacturing country has given its fashion designers a low profile internationally. But we now expect this to change as Chinese creativity moves center stage in the years ahead and the country’s role as a leading consumer market with home-grown brands strengthens.’”
The ten names to watch are: Ma Ke, Liang Zi, Guo Pei, He Yan, Li Xiaoyan, Liu Xing, Qi Gang and Lu Kun. That horrible crashing you hear in the background is the sound of European luxury executives jumping out their office windows.
6.) Prada’s Profits Fall 22%:
“The Prada group, which controls the Prada, Miu Miu, Car Shoe and Church’s labels, has reported a drop in earnings of 22 per cent against last year . . . Prada SpA revealed that standalone stores actually gained 5.6 per cent at constant exchange and that most of the profit impact was as a direct result of the drop in wholesale demand, particularly from the US.”
While all the luxury houses had their sights set on burgeoning Asia, they forgot to mind the already established markets, resulting in the U.S. recession hitting just when brand loyalty is at its lowest. Turning former luxury houses into mere production lines for disposable bling was a fantastic idea when girls just wanted to have fun, but now that consumers are looking for high-quality goods that are made to last . . . ?
Oh I get it — now we’re supposed to take you seriously:
7.) Is the Beijing Economy Doing Better Than Expected?:
“I took a quick stroll around the block to shake off some jet lag. In that short time, I noted two new malls filled with Prada, Gucci, Versace and other upscale brands. Gone are the Citigroup Inc. (C) advertisements, but in their place are Deutsche Bank AG (DB) branches, as well as those of domestic China banks, which remain spectacularly liquid – meaning they’ve escaped the vast majority of the credit-crisis contagion.”
Meanwhile, New York isn’t doing quite so well. NYC retail fixture Henri Bendel is “restructuring” (code for ditching all their clothing lines and laying off staff): “Henri Bendel, is planning to stop selling clothes this summer and focus on accessories and beauty products as it struggles to lure shoppers during a prolonged recession . . . Several employees briefed on the plans said on Thursday that they were told that Bendel had decided to eliminate the fashion departments because there was no sign of a turnaround in the sale of high-ticket items, but that beauty and gift products were selling well and typically with much higher margins.”
They’ve even taken the step of renting out their third floor to bring in extra cash.
Here’s a link to a video clip of Henri Bendel before the luxury bubble burst: French Tuesday at Henri Bendel, November 2007
As if to underscore Henri Bendel’s point about apparel being a dead weight in this economy, Abercrombie & Fitch just announced that they’re laying off 170 office employees: “Abercrombie & Fitch Co. is cutting 170 jobs at its home office in the wake of a steep decline in sales . . . It is the second round of layoffs this year for the purveyor of pricey casual clothing for young people. In January, the company terminated about 50 employees at its New Albany headquarters, and confirmed that it would not fill dozens of open positions.”
Abercrombie made news earlier this year with their refusal to mark down the goods on their shelves, believing that heavy discounting would ruin the brands reputation. Well, an utter lack of moving any product off the shelves can ruin a brand, too.
Update: Even 111 shirtless men couldn’t put A&F’s balance sheet back together again:
