“Is Taylor Swift playing in the room or just in my head?” That was the first question I asked Daniel Roseberry, creative director of Schiaparelli, last November when I traveled to Paris to do an interview that will be published in a few weeks in this same medium. It turns out that the Texas designer is a fan of the Pennsylvania artist’s music, and since I am too, I changed the subject so that the object of our affection would not monopolize the conversation. When we said goodbye to her, yes, I asked her if she would like to dress her. She told me that she didn’t dream about it, because when you meet someone whose work you admire it can disappoint you.
I don’t know if you’ve gotten to know her, but last Sunday she signed the dress with which Swift collected a Grammy, with which she made history and spread hundreds of headlines and mentions on social networks. Were the gloves that accompanied her look unnecessary? Was she wrong to take Lana del Rey by the hand to the stage? Was it right for her to take advantage of the gala to announce a new album? Does she have the right to use the word “poets” in the title of that album? The more she acts as if she doesn’t care what people think, the more people want to give their opinion (and consume the opinion of others).
It is so evident that if in recent months she has been so exposed (dinners with friends, NFL games) she has done so with an objective (she handles the arts of marketing as well as word games so well) that at this point her public image seems to be more beneficial to others (the media, the NFL) than to herself.
New York Fashion Week began yesterday, although in some way it began and ended eight days ago with the Marc Jacobs show, which has presented its collections outside the official calendar since 2020. The designer celebrated the 40 years of his brand with garments of oversized proportions until the models become paper dolls. Unintentionally he also captured the exact feeling of when you have to move on as if nothing had happened after someone makes you feel small.
The North American capital of fashion has not been what it used to be for years, but there are those who have preferred to change Paris for the Big Apple. Ludovic de Saint Sernin will present on Sunday a collection made in collaboration with the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation (the first time the designer referred to the photographer’s work as inspiration was when he presented his signature in 2017) and which will feature a series of jewels that He has drawn and produced with Tous. Another Spanish brand, Delpozo, reappears on the New York calendar to begin its relaunch with the private presentation of a collection that celebrates its 50th anniversary.
If at the end of January Bernard Arnault announced better-than-expected annual results for LVMH, on Thursday François-Henri Pinault, CEO of Kering, announced results that are in line with his analysts’ forecasts: its net profit fell by 17% to 2,980 million euros and its sales decreased by 4%, reaching 19,570 million euros. The executive and his financiers do not expect the situation to improve in the first part of 2024, but they are confident that Gucci will gain speed (sales of the Italian house, which represents more than half of the group’s total turnover, fell by 6% ) when the first Sabato de Sarno clothing and accessories go on sale in the coming weeks and are committed to “promoting high-potential adjacent businesses” and the beauty division of their brands.
They are not the only ones who rely on cosmetics to improve their numbers. Coty announced this week that it has reached an agreement with Marni, part of the OTB group, to “develop, produce and distribute” the firm’s perfume and other cosmetics starting in 2026. Marni’s first fragrance went on the market in 2013 from the hand of two divisions of The Estee Lauder Companies that no longer exist today, Aramis and Designer Fragrances, and disappeared quietly shortly thereafter. Coty also created Miu Miu perfumes, which could soon be taken over by L’Oréal along with a makeup line that is apparently in the development stage.
Another issue that harms luxury brands, especially those that increase the prices of their products every year, is the second-hand market. This week, a jury ruled in favor of Chanel and against What Goes Around Comes Around, a New York-based vintage store, which now owes the French house $4 million for trademark infringement, false association , unfair competition and false advertising.
The conflict dates back to 2018 and there is still a second phase in which, if an agreement is not reached between the parties, the extent of said damages will be determined. Considering Chanel’s turnover (it has not yet made public its 2023 financial results, but in 2022 it reached 16 billion euros), the objective seems more to intimidate those who wish to sell their second-hand bags than to obtain compensation. economical.
