Back in February, Louise and I visited the Las Vegas Anya Hindmarch boutique in the Caesar’s Forum Shops where, amid a sea of 50% off signs, Louise got into an in-depth discussion with a sales manager about how much she liked the Hindmarch brand, but that the decision to create a lookalike collection for Target for Fall 2008, using much cheaper materials and low-wage labor, had caused her to think twice about purchasing any further Hindmarch products.
Leather Anya on the left ($1100.00) and PVC Target Anya on the right ($44.95)
The sales manager remarked that they had heard similar complaints from other customers, and that even the company’s accountants had said it might not be a good idea despite the substantial payday offered Hindmarch by Target. Sales for luxury goods were declining at the time, but sales for fast-fashion chain retailers like Target and H&M were declining even faster, and the accountants questioned if the potential for alienating the core Hindmarch customer was worth the risk.
***Note: to be fair, Hindmarch put herself on the pop-culture map back in 2007 with her 100% cotton, made in China and very inexpensive “I’m Not A Plastic Bag” tote bag that caused a frenzy upon its release, with customers standing in line for hours outside London’s Sainsbury’s supermarket just to get their hands on one — the bag had several sell-out runs, and was eventually offered in the U.S., as well. Hindmarch may have viewed the Target opportunity as a means of connecting once more with those same consumers.
Fast forward seven months and I’m standing inside the Anya Hindmarch boutique in New York City’s SoHo neighborhood, checking out what Hindmarch is now offering that might #1) help her once regular clientele forgive her for knocking off her own handbags in cheap PVC, and #2) induce those same customers to open their recession-nervous wallets and splurge on something brand new.
One red handbag ISO the perfect sunset backdrop
I wasn’t impressed with the majority of colors on display — a lot of somber, muted hues: black, grey, brown, navy blue, a dark, pine needle green. Designers over-reacted to recessionary pressures in 2008 and produced an abundance of safe, “classic” (i.e. boring) colors for Fall of 2009. They’ve since seen the error of their ways, and vibrant, bright colors are now finding their way back to retail shelves.
The Hindmarch assistant in the SoHo boutique assured me that Anya’s upcoming Resort and Spring collections would be shot through with saturated brights as their clients were clamoring for accessories in cheerful, uplifting colors.
Let me just throw my gorgeous hardware over the side, like so
I did, however, find one shoulder bag in a true red that stood out from the rest of the sober pack lining the shelves — I liked its art-deco flourishes, and Hindmarch managed to pay a good deal of attention to the details (front buckle with magnetic closure, back zipper pocket, interior slip and zip pockets, pen pocket, key holder, heavy chain links on the leather shoulder strap, and a tan suede lining trimmed with red leather) while keeping the overall cost below $1000, a key psychological sticking point with consumers this fall.
True beauty is defined by interior slip pockets and pen holders
I also snagged an iridescent blue snakeskin envelope clutch that showed a new workhorse, can-do spirit in its ability to reverse to a more casual, smooth leather for double-duty as a day clutch. Again, under $1000, which for snakeskin *anything* is fairly surprising — though I’ve mentioned before how reptile farmers have suffered huge drops in demand and are now desperate to unload backstocks of skins on the cheap.
This makes working with snakeskin a much less expensive proposition than in previous years when demand was white hot. Not such a great situation for reptile farmers, but a total win for consumers and designers, alike.
***Note 2: I have no idea yet who’s getting these bags, but I knew they deserved good homes and I couldn’t bear to leave them, forlorn, on a cold retail shelf. Though, to be frank, the sales clerks in the Hindmarch boutique had the heat cranked to a few degrees shy of the pit of h*** — I was sweating by the time I got out of there, and it wasn’t because the bags cost that much. Yes, it was bitterly chill outside that weekend, but come on!
