kmart to revamp apparel/2 ghesquiere on n.y.’s …by david moin and vicki m. young new york...

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RibbonDevelopmentNEW YORK — Talk about the ties that bind.

Ribbons have captivated ready-to-wear designers

of late, and now those charming details are being

translated into bridal looks, too. Here, Monique

Lhuillier’s jeweled silk satin, lace and tulle gown.

For more on wedding gowns, see pages 6 and 7.

KMART TO REVAMP APPAREL/2 GHESQUIERE ON N.Y.’S ENERGY/8Women’s Wear Daily • The Retailers’ Daily Newspaper • April 27, 2004 • $2.00

WWDTUESDAYReady-to-Wear/Textiles

By Julee Greenberg

NEW YORK — Beyoncé Knowles cannow at last add the title of designerto her résumé.

At least it appears that way.According to sources close to the

singer-actress, Knowles has signeda deal with Ecko Unlimited toproduce a line of women’s clothingunder the A Touch of Couture label.Executives at Ecko Unltd. refusedto comment on whether they have

signed a deal, but the relationshipbetween the megastar and the $350million company would make sense— Ecko Unltd. already has its placein the celebrity clothing industry as

Beyoncé’s Fashion Song: Star Said in Deal With Ecko Unltd.

See Beyoncé, Page 3

The silk and lace dress at left, which appearedon page 11 Monday, is by Morgane Le Fay. Thecaption was deleted due to a printing error.

● ● ●

Jacqueline Singer is group marketing director,Coty Beauty U.S. Her title was incorrect in apage 9 article on Friday, April 16.

Corrections

By David Moinand Vicki M. Young

NEW YORK — Kmart on Mondaysorted out the home, and is nowlooking at revamping the closet.

Following Kmart’s agreementto extend its licensing deal withMartha Stewart until 2009, end-ing a court fight and ensuringthat the convicted, domesticdiva’s sheets, towels and otherproducts continue to fill storeshelves, the discount retailer toldWWD it was revamping its entirewomen’s apparel line this fall.

Kmart said it will unveil a re-focused and redesigned apparelcollection with a wider range ofproducts. On March 18, Kmartopened an office for its designgroup in New York at 111 EighthAvenue, marking the first productdesign presence Kmart has heldin New York.

The group is headed by LisaSchultz, senior vice president andchief creative officer. Schultz’sdesign team includes divisionalvice presidents June Beckstead,for women’s, girls, infant and tod-dlers; Orlando Carreras, men’sand boys; Matthew Morris, home,and Kim Omae, intimate apparel,sleepwear and accessories.

Kmart, which has long had areputation for offering scratchy,low-grade apparel, said the de-sign team will focus on “qualityand style” and “redefine Kmart’sexclusive brands with a wider

range of products” while main-taining low prices.

The design team is composedof industry veterans who honedtheir skills at specialty retailers.

Schultz, who joined Kmart inSeptember of 2003 as senior vicepresident and chief creative offi-cer, a newly created position, isresponsible for the creative vi-sion of Kmart. Previously, shewas executive vice president ofproduct development and designat The Gap Inc. for 14 years. Shealso held executive positions atRalph Lauren and Calvin Klein.

Beckstead served as vice pres-ident of product design at Gapwhile Carreras previously led themen’s design team at PacificSunwear. Morris is a former con-sultant to Donna Karan and

founder of Blue Ribbon Dog Co.Omae, who has been with

Kmart for nearly five years, hasbeen promoted to divisionalvice president for intimate ap-parel, sleepwear and acces-sories. Omae served most re-cently as a design director.

Kmart is currently seekingmore design talent to expandthe team in New York.

Regarding the lawsuit, KmartHolding Corp. sued a subsidiaryof Martha Stewart OmnimediaInc. earlier this year over the cal-culation of royalty payments owedto MSO for the Martha StewartEveryday-branded products soldat the discounter.

The revised agreement allowsboth companies to claim victory.Kmart gets to eliminate mini-mum guarantees in product cate-gories. Instead, royalties will becalculated using an aggregateminimum guarantee formula.

Stewart, whose sentencingdate is set for June 17 in a Man-hattan federal court after beingconvicted on March 5 of conspir-acy, false statements and obstruc-tion of justice, gets her name onnew categories that includeready-to-assemble furniture.

But she may be reiterating herfamous line — “It’s a good thing”— in jail. Her legal troublesarose from suspicious statementsshe made surrounding the sale ofImClone stock. Stewart has since

Kmart to Overhaul Apparel

By Robert Murphy

PARIS — LVMH Moët HennessyLouis Vuitton said Monday thatRoberto Menichetti would suc-ceed Michael Kors as artistic di-rector at the house of Celine.

This confirms a WWD front-page report Monday.

The 37-year-old Italian, whowas creative director at Bur-berry for three years during itsrelaunch, begins at the Paris-based house this week. He pre-sented his own line in February,which he will continue with apresentation this fall in NewYork. He also has designed at JilSander, where he was influentialin establishing the men’s collec-tion, and Claude Montana.

Celine said his runway debutfor the house is slated for Octoberin Paris.

“Roberto has wide knowledgeof and experience in luxury andfashion,” said Jean Marc Loubier,president and chief executive of-ficer of Celine. “He has imagina-tion and he knows how to turnthat inventiveness into a [sell-able] product.”

For his part, Menichetti seesCeline as a brand “for a Parisianwoman with lots of allure, femi-nine yet modern at the same time.”

He plans to spend more timein New York, and shuttle backand forth between Gubbio, Parisand Milan.

Known for his motocross stylesand love of leather at Burberry,Menichetti’s nascent namesakeline concentrated on detailed, lux-urious clothes, such as hand-knitcashmere sweaters and sharpleather miniskirts. Born in Buf-falo, N.Y., Menichetti’s fashionlink also encompasses his family’sprivately owned apparel factoryin Gubbio, Italy, where he lives.

Loubier said Menichetti’s ar-rival at the house signaled an“evolution” in the brand’s estab-lished image, geared to “a Paris-ian state of mind. Our customeris refined and energetic,” hesaid. “She’s a Parisian in spirit,but that doesn’t mean she lives inParis. She’s also from London,New York and Tokyo.”

He added that one shouldn’texpect to “see what [Menichetti]has done in the past, or what

Celine has done in the past. It’s amove forward, in keeping with thehouse’s well-defined customer. Wewant to go a step further. Robertowill bring great creativity.”

Menichetti arrives at Celine ata time of robust growth. Sales in-creased double digits last yearand sales in the first quarter of2004 were up 30 percent. Marketsources estimate Celine’s sales atabout $200 million a year.

Kors’ easy, jet-setting style wasseen as a good match for Celine.But Kors left after his swan songin March to concentrate on hisown New York-based house.

During his tenure, the brandgained retail accounts and Lou-bier worked hard to move thehouse into the black, slashinglead times and improving its re-tail network. Celine operates 100boutiques worldwide. Ready-to-wear accounts for about 42 per-cent of sales, with accessoriesand licenses making up the rest.

“We are in a development timenow,” said Loubier on Monday.“We’ve accomplished the turn-around period and are movingforward fast.”

LVMH Confirms Menichetti Pick for Celine

GENERALFASHION: Bridal designers are tapping into a more streamlined sensibility, showinggowns with body-skimming shapes, cut-out details and a dash of glamour.

Democrat John Kerry said President Bush has failed to fight unfair tradepractices at the expense of U.S. workers and businesses.

Beyoncé Knowles has apparently signed a deal with Ecko Unlimited toproduce a line of women’s clothing under the A Touch of Couture label.

On the same day Kmart extended its licensing deal with Martha Stewart,the discounter said it was revamping its women’s apparel line this fall.

EYE: The lions roared, the Jaggers swaggered and the ladies lunched at asmattering of events that split the New York social scene into factions.

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WWDTUESDAYReady-to-Wear/Textiles

● LVMH UPGRADE: Standard & Poor’s, the debt ratings agency,on Monday upgraded its outlook on LVMH Moët Hennessy LouisVuitton from “negative” to “stable,” saying the French luxuryconglomerate had improved its debt coverage on the back of ro-bust sales in the first quarter and improved cash flow. S&P alsoaffirmed LVMH’s “BBB-plus” long-term and “A-2” short-term rat-ings. LVMH sales gained 1.7 percent in the first quarter to $3.39billion, or 2.85 billion euros, gaining momentum in an improvingclimate for luxury. Organic sales growth was 10 percent in thefirst quarter. S&P predicted that the group’s second-quarter rev-enues should benefit from last year’s low comparisons, affectedby SARS and the war in Iraq.

● URBAN INVESTMENT: Urban Brands Inc., owner of the AshleyStewart and Marianne nameplates, has secured a $20 million eq-uity investment from New York-based asset management firmTrimaran Capital Partners. An initial $13.5 million investmentwas made on April 19, with the remaining funding to be made inup to three additional closings. Once complete, Trimaran willhave a controlling interest in the company. Under terms of thedeal, Robert Grayson, a Trimaran affiliate and former chief ex-ecutive officer of Limited Stores, will join Urban’s boards of di-rectors. The company intends to use the funds to repay debt andboost working capital levels.

● PACSUN’S NEW VP: Teen specialty retailer Pacific Sunwear ofCalifornia Inc. has hired C. Joseph Harris as vice president ofsourcing and production. Harris will oversee those areas forPacSun’s private label merchandise, as well as for the chain’surban-inspired Demo stores. He will report to Tim Harmon,president and chief merchandising officer of the Anaheim,Calif.-based company. Harris most recently served as the execu-tive vice president of New York-based Rousso Apparel Group, amanufacturer that is the licensee for Oleg Cassini sportswear.He will replace Diane Nance, whose 10-year stint at PacSunends Friday.

In Brief

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WWD, TUESDAY, APRIL 27, 20042

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Kmart extended Martha Stewart’s

licensing deal through 2009. Here,

Everyday’s 4-Star towels.

Continued on page 9

Continued from page oneit has been manufacturing 50 Cent’s G-Unit col-lection since its launch about a year ago and isplanning to launch a G-Unit women’s collectionfor spring selling.

Knowles appeared on an entertainment TVshow over the weekend saying she had finallysigned a deal to produce her apparel line, but shedid not divulge the manufacturer.

Rumors of a deal for Knowles to produce hercollection have been circulating for months, andsources said the line is sure to be reminiscent ofher style, since her mother and stylist, TinaKnowles, will have a creative hand in it.

Tina and Beyoncé Knowles could not bereached for comment.

The two revealed plans for their own cloth-ing collection last fall, when they were ubiqui-tous at fashion shows in New York and Milan.They admitted they were doing research, at-tending such shows as GF Ferré, Rosa Cha,Badgley Mischka, Baby Phat, Dolce & Gabbanaand BCBG.

At the Grammy Awards in February, Knowleswore a gold gown, designed by her mother. Whenthe singer was asked whose design it was, she re-sponded, “A Touch of Couture.”

“I am sure they signed with Ecko [Unltd.],”said one source close to Knowles. “They were intalks for a really long time and that’s the way theywere leaning.”

However, another source said Tina has beendemanding and a deal might have collapsed atthe last minute.

“The last thing I heard was that Ecko [Unltd.]was going to sign the deal and may have pulledout at the last minute because Tina was so de-manding,” another source said.

As reported in WWD in October, the singersaid she hoped to launch two collections — one ajunior-oriented line with a hip-hop feel and asecond, more sophisticated range of dresses andseparates.

“People my age love fashion and want to dressin designer clothes, but can’t afford it,” Knowlessaid in October. “I want to do something that is af-fordable, but sophisticated and sexy and femi-nine — something I would wear.”

Tina Knowles said last fall in Milan that sheand her daughter were in final negotiations withtwo New York-based manufacturers, but de-clined to give names or elaborate on collectiondetails at that time.

“We’re hoping to have the line ready for sum-mer 2004,” Tina said. “It’s a bit ambitious, butwe’re going to try.”

There had been rumors over the last fewmonths over who would produce the line, withspeculation ranging from Rocawear to TommyHilfiger. Rocawear earlier this year declined tocomment on whether it was in talks withKnowles, while Hilfiger didn’t dismiss the possi-bility. However, he said the first priority was towork with the singer on the new multiyear agree-ment she signed with The Estée Lauder Cos. —Hilfiger’s beauty licensee — for Knowles to ap-pear in the advertising for a new Hilfigerwomen’s fragrance, reportedly called True Star,

to be launched in the U.S. in September androlled out globally in October.

Knowles would join a flood of hip-hop artistsinto the apparel business. Two weeks ago, MissyElliott launched a collection with Adidas, whileMary J. Blige, Ashanti and Alicia Keys all haveexpressed interest in one day doing their ownclothing lines.

NEW YORK — The Prada-sponsored yacht Luna Rossa has founda place in yachting history. A model of the sleek silver-and-redvessel, loser of the 2000 America’s Cup competition, has becomepart of the New York Yacht Club’s permanent collection, whichshowcases miniature replicas of almost every America’s Cup de-fender and challenger since 1851.

Prada Group chief executive officer Patrizio Bertelli, a sailingaficionado, presented the almost 3-foot-long model of Luna Rossa toyacht club commodore Lawrence S. Huntingon last week.

“The Prada Challenge represents the best aspects of theAmerica’s Cup effort: superb management, a top-flight skipperand crew, a fast boat and, in the Challenger finals, some heart-stopping action,” Huntington said.

Luna Rossa won the Louis Vuitton Cup in 2000, qualifying it torace in the America’s Cup, the international yacht competitionthat takes place every three years. Luna Rossa lost to Team NewZealand in a best-of-nine series of races.

Prada’s PatrizioBertelli with NewYork Yacht ClubcommodoreLawrenceHuntingon and amodel of theLuna Rossayacht.

3WWD, TUESDAY, APRIL 27, 2004

Knot Too Shabby

Beyoncé Brings Touch to Fashion

SELLING OUT: Sources close to Fendiin Milan say that Carla Fendi,president and head ofcommunications at Fendi, isnegotiating the sale of her 16percent share in the Rome-basedluxury goods firm to parent companyLVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton.As of last May, LVMH controlled an84.1 percent stake in Fendi. CarlaFendi is the only member of thefounding family retaining shares. AFendi spokeswoman said thecompany had no comment.

GUESS GOES TO PARIS: Never acompany to back away from notoriety,Guess Inc. has chosen socialite ParisHilton for its fall ad campaign, co-chairman and co-chief executive PaulMarciano confirmed through arepresentative late Monday. The LosAngeles-based company, which set itslast ad campaign in Las Vegas, tends toemphasize the steamy side of fashionin its spots.

CONTINENTAL CONFIDENTIAL: JohnGalliano, who often travels to far-flung locales to research upcomingcollections, is bound to keep themguessing this season. Over the pastfew weeks he visited Vienna andIstanbul, and on Monday he wasspotted in London taking in thesheep and sharks in formaldehyde atthe Saatchi Gallery. Before his galleryvisit, Galliano and his trustedassistant, Steven Robinson, also tookin the Vivienne Westwood exhibitionat the Victoria and Albert Museum.The V&A show attracted another typefrom LVMH Moët Hennessy LouisVuitton — Marianne Tessler, theformer president of Givenchy. Tessler,who was spotted strolling down NewBond Street on Monday, said she’snow working in accessories for LVMHand advising some Italian companiesthat were acquired by the luxurygiant’s investment arm, LV Capital.

BAYOU NO MORE, SORT OF: Halstoncreative director Bradley Bayou isclosing his 1,000-square-footnamesake salon in West Los Angeles— and reopening it as the HalstonLos Angeles Atelier. It will be the firstfreestanding Halston door since thecompany’s New York store in the earlySeventies. Although not officially setto open until August, the overhauledspace, with an additional 3,000square feet, including the secondfloor, could be ready as soon as themiddle of May. The storefront at 517North Robertson Boulevard, just astone’s throw from Maxfield andChrome Hearts, already quietlyunderwent the name change thismonth. And Bayou, a closet interiordesigner who’s overseen 22 houses,including his personal digs up the hillfrom the atelier, is injecting the retailspace and private design lab with thespare elegance of Halston, he saidThursday during a break from histrunk show at Bergdorf Goodman inNew York. “I do all my designing inCalifornia and I love that location, soI wasn’t about to leave it.”

GROWING ZAC: What’s first on ZacPosen’s agenda now that Sean “P.Diddy” Combs is an equal partner inhis fashion business? “Eat and getsome sleep,” laughed Posen at acocktail party last week at NeimanMarcus’ flagship in Dallas, whichbenefited the Dallas Children’sCenter. “Becoming partners withSean will further help to grow mybrand and the infrastructure of thecompany. I definitely want to launcha lower-price women’s line and amen’s collection.”

Posen said he’s already designedjackets for David Bowie and Combs,and especially loves the sartorialaspect of the men’s business. “Ilearned a lot about tailoring when Idid an internship in London while Iwas in college,” said the designer.

Fashion Scoops

EckoUnlimited

alreadyproduces amen’s linefor G-Unit.

Beyoncé Knowles in A Touch of Couture at the GrammyAwards earlier this year.

Marc Ecko may be close to a deal with Tina and Beyoncé Knowles.

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The lions roared, the Jaggers swaggered and the Ladies WhoLunch, well, lunched. A smattering of events last Thursdaynight split the New York social scene into factions.

The charity set — including Jessica Seinfeld, Muffie PotterAston and an eight-months-pregnant Malaak Compton-Rock —gathered at the Calvin Klein store for the Safe Horizon

kickoff party. Fashion visionaries from Kate Spade to Reed Krakoff took agander at the “Fashioning Fiction in Photography Since 1990” exhibit atMoMA Queens, sponsored by the CFDA. A glittering group of maskedliterati (Karenna Gore Schiff, Candace Bushnell and Luke Janklow amongthem) ventured to the New York Public Library for the Young Lions Blackand White Ball, with four guests in attendance who had been at TrumanCapote’s original in 1966: WWD’s Aileen Mehle, Dominick Dunne, KittyCarlisle Hart and Kenneth Jay Lane. And the international jet set (as well asa few uptown girls like Tory Burch, Gigi Mortimer and Jennifer Creel, who’dall been at an Hermès lunch earlier in the day) danced to salsa music tolaunch Jade Jagger’s jewelry collection for Garrard.

Jagger’s party was by far the most unpolished and off-the-cuff, thoughthat was the intention: “It’s why we chose Ian Schrager’s Gramercy ParkHotel,” Jagger explained, taking a lay of the pre-renovated land beforemoving up to the private party on the roof. “It’s so grungy here.”

Not every boldfacer was willing to pigeonhole himself into a singlecategory. Gilles Mendel, for instance, who had been mingling with Moby,Amanda Hearst, Chris Noth and Christina Greeven Cuomo at the Black andWhite Ball changed out of his tux into a tan suit to hang out at Garrard withSean Penn, Brooke Shields, Iman and Margherita Missoni, who’s now studyingacting. And, though Michael Kors kept on his trademark blazer and jeans, heparty-hopped like he had Friday off. “I’ve been to three events already,”bragged Kors. “I’ve been all over New York — I’ve even been to Queens.”


eye®

Party Politics

Candace Bushnellin Peter Som.Candace Bushnellin Peter Som.

Nan Kempner inJean PaulGaultier at theHermès lunch.

Nan Kempner inJean PaulGaultier at theHermès lunch.

Gigi Mortimer inCarolina Herrera atthe Hermès lunch.

Gigi Mortimer inCarolina Herrera atthe Hermès lunch.

Lisa Airan inYves SaintLaurent at theGarrard party.

Lisa Airan inYves SaintLaurent at theGarrard party.

ImanIman

JessicaSeinfeldJessica

Seinfeld

Malaak Compton-Rock in Calvin Klein.Malaak Compton-Rock in Calvin Klein.

BrookeShieldsBrookeShields

ClarissaBronfmanin Pucciat theGarrardparty.

ClarissaBronfmanin Pucciat theGarrardparty.

Kitty Carlisle HartKitty Carlisle Hart

Margherita Missoni in Missoni and Garrard jewelry with Federico Forlani.

Margherita Missoni in Missoni and Garrard jewelry with Federico Forlani.

Kate Spade and MichaelKors at MoMA Queens.Kate Spade and MichaelKors at MoMA Queens.

Karenna Gore SchiffKarenna Gore Schiff

Alex Kramer in Chanelwith Fernanda Niven inCarolina Herrera at theBlack and White Ball.

Alex Kramer in Chanelwith Fernanda Niven inCarolina Herrera at theBlack and White Ball.

Christina GreevenCuomo in Peter Som.Christina GreevenCuomo in Peter Som.

Margaret Streeterat the Black andWhite Ball.

Margaret Streeterat the Black andWhite Ball.

Moby with StaceyBendet in Valentino.

Moby with StaceyBendet in Valentino.

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Bianca Jagger in CalvinKlein and Jade Jaggerin Louis Vuitton, bothwith Garrard jewelry.

Bianca Jagger in CalvinKlein and Jade Jaggerin Louis Vuitton, bothwith Garrard jewelry.

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NEW YORK — Not every girl dreams of getting married in a big, blown-out princess dress. Right now, designers are tapping into a

slightly more streamlined sensibility, showing bridal looks with body-skimming shapes, cut-out details and a dash of Old Hollywood glamour.


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Carolina Herrera

Vera Wang

Elizabeth Fillmore


By Rosemary Feitelberg

NEW YORK — Brides-to-be aren’t always the easiest people to please,but some designers are doing just that and building their businesses.

The $32 billion bridal industry is better known for gowns than bignames — with the exception of Vera Wang and the late Priscilla Kidder,the force behind Priscilla of Boston, who died last year. Here’s a look atthe designers behind seven companies.

AMSALE ABERRA, PRESIDENT AND CREATIVE DIRECTOR AT AMSALEBackground: Seventeen years have passed since Aberra started designing

bridal gowns. Shortly after her 1986 wedding, she decided to give up herpost as a design assistant at Harvé Benard. “I had a hard time designing myown dress,’’ she said. “I kept shifting between high fashion andtraditional. Before that, I didn’t have any interest in bridal.”

Her Brides: Prefer something clean and understated, butmodern. They like simplicity, know what they want and useher accessories.

Wholesale Prices: $1,250 to $5,000.Changing Attitudes: Brides are more savvy and seem

to be more educated than before. They take a little bitlonger. They like to see different things.

Trying Times: “We are in the business of high cus-tomer service,’’ she said. “It’s critical. For that rea-son, we do our production in the U.S. and need to bevery organized. My husband, Neil Brown, vice presi-dent and chief operating officer, has a Harvard MBAand I’m much more old-world handmade. At times,that’s difficult, but it’s also our style.”

What’s Next: Design more bridesmaid dressesthat double as eveningwear. She will continue touse her Madison Avenue store to sell made-to-order dresses and eveningwear. Footwear’s comingin the next couple of years.

ANNE BARGE, OWNER AND PRESIDENT OF THECOMPANY BEARING HER NAME

Background: Fresh out of college in 1969, shetrained under Jim Hjelm at Priscilla of Boston. Later,she ran her own bridal store in Atlanta, before mov-ing on to oversee Saks Fifth Avenue’s bridal salons.In 1997, Barge teamed with Richard Branson tolaunch Virgin Bride. Ads were not needed, sinceBranson shaved his legs and wore a wedding gownon the runway at the company’s launch event. In1999, Barge opened her own wholesale business.

Her Brides: “Like real classic dresses withdraped skirts, roses and ribbons,” she said.

Wholesale Prices: $2,500 to $4,500.Changing Attitudes: “My generation raised a

generation of girls who don’t want to look likeanyone else. If it’s been advertised, that’s the kiss ofdeath,” she said. In addition, 25 percent of her bridalsales are for destination weddings. “In a lot of cases, the wed-ding is less expensive that way because the guest list is smaller. My the-ory is, if you don’t have to wear pantyhose, you’re not stressed.”

Trying Times: “Girls are really educated and they know good fabrics,’’Barge said. “Before, we could run a dress for 10 years if it was really

good. But now, they don’t want it to havebeen seen.”

What’s Next: More lightweight styles,even for big dresses. Plugging the com-pany’s new eveningwear.

FRANCESCA PITERA, HEAD DESIGNER OFJIM HJELM

Background: After nine years at St.John Knits, Pitera and her husband re-located to the East Coast where shestarted working at Jim Hjelm in June.

Her Brides: “They have great taste butfinancially, they can’t afford high-enddresses,” Pitera said.

Wholesale Prices: $700 to about$1,300.

Changing Attitudes: “A lot of girls outthere want stylish silhouettes,’’ shesaid. “They want a little bit of embel-lishment but not overkill. They likeclean and classic but they wantfresher-looking things with a twist.They want eveningwear dressesthat aren’t so bride-like.”

Trying Times: “Designing myown wedding gown wouldhave been too intense. Iwas already doing my

bridesmaid dresses,leaving St. John’s after

a long time and get-ting ready to move,’’

she said. “I wore aBadgley Mischka

strapless taffetadress. I felt amazing in it,

and thought I would love to do this for a living.”What’s Next: The collection has expanded to 17 styles

from 12 with a wider price range than in seasons past.

MAGGIE NORRIS, DESIGNER OF ULLA-MAIJABackground: After 14 years at Ralph Lauren, she

joined Ulla-Maija in 2000. “Bridal offers a de-signer an opportunity to delve into fantasy,”said Norris, who also does a signature line ofcustomized clothes on her own.

Her Brides: “She is someone who is interest-ed in style,’’ Norris said. “When she walks in,we ask what is her movie about because she isthe star of the movie.”

Wholesale Prices: $2,000 to $8,000.Changing Attitudes: “Not everything is so typ-

ically bridal anymore,’’ she said. “There’s beeninnovation with new fabrics [and] silhouettes,and we’re using embroidery in a different way topush the envelope.”

Trying Times: “We do customized dresses soeach client has her own needs. If someone has asize 6 top and a size 10 bottom, we’re not goingto take a 10 from the factory and size it down.Meeting with brides, we see all kinds of figures.

We have to make each one look beautiful for oneof the most important days of their lives.”

What’s Next: Considering Norris wore a Chanelsuit for her wedding 14 years ago, it’s logical shewould introduce separates for Ulla-Maija.Organza blouses and skirts, a lace coat and ashrug. “It shows what’s happening with fashioncan relate to bridal.”

ANGEL SANCHEZ, DESIGNER AND CHIEFEXECUTIVE OFFICER OF THE FIRM BEARING HIS NAME

Background: The designer started makingcustomized bridal dresses in 1989 in his home-land of Venezuela. In 1998, he designed his firstbridal collection. Eveningwear is a key portion ofhis business because Sanchez didn’t want toonly be known for bridal.

His Brides: “They like a little fashion,” he said.Wholesale Prices: $1,800 to $3,000. Changing Attitudes: “Women are more fashion-oriented and are not

too traditional. They look in magazines and then they go to stores.”Trying Times: “It’s not easy to do a real wedding dress for a 58-year-

old woman,” said Sanchez, but a customer is a customer. The designerstaged his first runway show in February as part of 7th on Sixth.

What’s Next: Sanchez has launched a pale-colored fur collectionto coordinate with his bridal and eveningwear collections. The

company is broadening its reach beyond the U.S., Mexico andVenezuela to Brazil and Japan.

RANI TOTMAN, DESIGNER AND PRESIDENT OF ST. PUCCHIBackground: In 1983, the then-Bangkok-based designer agreed to show her cus-tomized special-occasion and ready-to-

wear collections at a friend’s charityevent in Dallas. A pink wedding gown,the only bridal piece of the 200 out-

fits Totman took, was shown and “bridaljust took over my life,” she said. In 1985, she

relocated to Los Angeles and opened her own bridal business. Thecompany owns a factory in Thailand, where 180 people produce 300bridal gowns each month.

Her Brides: They like lilac, butterscotch and ivory. Lisa Kudrow worelavender for her wedding on NBC’s “Friends.” “How many brides lookgood in white? It’s a difficult color to wear,” said Totman.

Wholesale Prices: The Sposa collection starts at $2,000 and St.Pucchi’s high-end line tops out at $12,000.

Changing Attitudes: Seventy-five percent of women marry twice, and“they spend a lot more” the second time around, she said.

Trying Times: One bride requested an embroidered matching dress forher chihuahua — a $2,000 indulgence.

What’s Next: Launched eveningwear during Los Angeles FashionWeek and is looking for a second store in Los Angeles near Rodeo Drive.

URSULA HEGEWISCH, CO-DESIGNER AND CO-OWNER OF WEARKSTATTBackground: After studying costume history at the Art Institute of

Chicago, the designer planned to work in a museum. That changedwhen she met her future husband, Jonas Hegewisch, a Fashion Instituteof Technology graduate, working at Patricia Klein. He was eager to starthis own business. Wearkstatt focused on contemporary bridal dresses —then a relatively uncrowded market. The couple share design duties andownership. The name refers to the German word for workshop and is anod to Wiener Werkstätte, the design movement led by Josef Hoffmanand Koloman Mose in Vienna in 1903.

Her Brides: “They’re not dramatic,’’ she said. “They like things a littlemore subtle and appreciate architectural dresses.”

Wholesale Prices: $1,300 to $2,000.Changing Attitudes: “They’re spending more time looking at dresses.

When you offer people so many choices, it’s a little confusing. When westarted, people wanted to be more experimental. They aren’t quite so in-dividualistic.”

Trying Times: The sublet of its SoHo store to a furniture company in2001 to focus on the wholesale business, which now generates almost1,000 units in sales annually.

What’s Next: The couple plans to introduce men’s wear with a twistnext year.

Toiling in Tulle

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Angel Sanchez

Romona Keveza

From top, bridal

looks from

Wearkstatt, Anne

Barge and St.

Pucchi.


By Eric Wilson

NEW YORK — For a designer who typically sends his models down the runway at abreakneck pace and to a kinetic soundtrack, Nicolas Ghesquière has had somethingof a slow, quiet year in Paris, his ambitious plans for Balenciaga on hold during themanagement and ownership transition of the brand’s parent company, Gucci Group.

After opening stores in New York and Paris last year, talks of further locations inMilan, Los Angeles and Tokyo were temporarily shelved in favor of upgrading existingretail real estate. In addition,while Balenciaga’s runway showsin New York were always fairlymodest in scale, Ghesquière hasshown his last two collectionsless formally in his Paris show-room. Both moves were made be-cause of financial constraints.

“It’s true I had to make somechoices with the budget and fi-nancial situation, but it was not abig compromise,” Ghesquièresaid during an interview hereMonday. “My only regret is nothaving been able to show in NewYork anymore.”

So it was with some surpriseto the designer that, upon touch-ing down in New York Saturday,he felt a sudden rush of nostalgianot only for the city, but also forits speed.

“You see all the people in T-shirts running in the park andyou have this shot of energy,”Ghesquière said. “I realized Imissed it here. It’s been over ayear since I have come, and thisyear has been more quiet inParis than when I was here withthe show and opening the store.”

Ghesquière returned to NewYork for the Metropolitan Mus-eum’s annual Costume Institutegala Monday night and to host aparty at Ian Schrager’s Hudsontonight with actress DianeKruger, followed by a presenta-tion of his fall line and vintageBalenciaga capsule collectionat his Chelsea store Wednesday.While he has already forged anartistic downtown image for theBalenciaga brand by collaborat-ing with artists on his store de-signs and staging his fashionshows in the gallery districtwest of 10th Avenue, Ghes-quière chose to make his head-quarters for this trip at thestodgy Carlyle Hotel, where themusic more commonly moves tothe beat of Bobby Short.

“I’m discovering uptown,”Ghesquière said. “The Met is soclose, but I thought it would befunny to be uptown. Definitely,the people are different up herethan downtown. In Paris, there isthat contrast, too, but here it istwo different worlds. I love thelooks of some of the women uphere. Yesterday, I saw the Whit-ney Biennial, where I saw a wo-man who was quite old; her hairwas perfectly done and she waswearing these big sunglasses.That was the perfect idea of theuptown woman.”

Some element of that woman,the art on display at the WhitneyMuseum or the Upper East Sidein general could easily maketheir way into a future Balenciaga collection, since it is Ghesquière’s notion of refer-encing moods, images and feelings in the abstract sense that has defined his ap-proach to reinventing the label.

After three years as the designer of Balenciaga, it is only with the fall collection thathe has begun to directly mine looks from the archives, re-creating five pieces from col-lections dating from 1932 to 1968 that will be sold exclusively at Balenciaga’s stores andat Barneys New York, and shown at the Chelsea store Wednesday. Kruger, who stars asHelen of Troy in the upcoming release of “Troy,” and who once appeared in aBalenciaga ad campaign during her modeling days, was planning to wear a dress based

on a 1932 look by Cristobal Balenciaga to the Met. Ghesquière said the dress evoked the18th-century theme of the party in its material and color, but not its silhouette.

“It was very interesting to evoke the time of the evening, not through shape, butthrough the refinement of color and luxury,” he said, noting the thick silk dresswas the shade of pink champagne. “I almost never do long dresses. It was the situa-tion that created the need. I don’t make a lot of really dressy clothes. This is whatwe’re working on now.”

In the most obvious case of a situation creating a need in his life, Ghesquière hasremained diplomatic about thechanging guard at Gucci Group,which acquired Balenciaga in2001 and contracted the design-er’s employment there. With thedeparture at the end of this weekof Domenico De Sole and TomFord, a lot of questions havebeen raised about the newregime’s commitment to Gucci’sso-called “emerging brands.”Analysts who cover the companyhave asked whether Gucci wouldbe likely to continue the DeSole/Ford policy of brand nour-ishment and hold onto labelslike Stella McCartney, AlexanderMcQueen and Balenciaga thatmay have potential, but are notcurrently generating big profits.

“The general situation isgood,” Ghesquière said, althoughhe challenged the classificationof Balenciaga as emerging, con-sidering the history behind thehouse. “We are growing. It’s threeyears now, so it is the beginningof the story. We are really tryingto put Balenciaga back on themap, but it’s not a new brand. I’mmaybe an emerging designer, butBalenciaga is not an emergingbrand. I wish this would be reallyunderstood in the future.”

Ghesquière is taking a laissez-faire approach during the man-agement transition, saying hewill continue to focus on improv-ing Balenciaga’s production andrestoring the house archives,which now count in the neigh-borhood of 500 to 600 pieces, in-cluding accessories and theatri-cal costumes, far more expansivethan many people had thought.He is closely involved with re-cent business moves as well, di-recting the design of in-storeshops at Printemps in Paris andSelfridges in London during thepast six months.

The industry has witnessed aspate of recent battles betweendesigners and their conglomeratepartners over the control of suchdetails, a circumstance Ghes-quière feels is entirely normal,given the evolution of the businessand the changing roles of design-ers during the past 15 years.

“When we made a deal it wasabsolutely clear that we had to bein a partnership,” Ghesquièresaid. “They give me a percentageof Balenciaga. Especially atGucci, they always want design-ers to be involved with the busi-ness side. In a more general situ-ation, the brand is the most im-portant thing, but the designer isimportant, too. It is normal thatcontracts are very sensitive.Before, you wanted to be a de-

signer, now you want to be a creative director, so it is normal that there is a strugglewith the contracts. The designers deserve it and the brands need it.”

If there was one thing that would make Ghesquière happy at this moment, he said,it would be to have the opportunity to bring the presentation of the Balenciaga collec-tion back to New York, at least every now and then.

“My ideal situation would be to show winter in New York and summer in Paris,”Ghesquière said. “I adore New York and I love Paris. You get two different feelings. Ilove so much the idea of traveling with the collection and showing here, being withinthe galleries and the synergy of the city. That’s the energy I need.”

PHOT

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Ghesquière Misses New York’s Buzz

Nicolas Ghesquière,outside the Carlyle Hotel.Nicolas Ghesquière,outside the Carlyle Hotel.


Continued from page 2requested a new trial based on ev-idence about a juror’s checkeredpast that wasn’t disclosed duringjury selection.

Richard Hastings, retail econo-mist at Bernard Sands, a creditratings firm, described the re-vised agreement as “contractuallya good deal for Kmart.”

But Hastings said Kmart “stillhas to do more to convert MarthaStewart Everyday shoppers intobuyers of her products. So far,Martha’s brand represents a smallpercentage of Kmart sales. Moreimportantly, we don’t know howmany of those who buy her brand-ed products are also buying otherthings while at Kmart.”

Hastings noted that the deal isgood for Stewart’s firm since mer-chandising has always been thestrongest part of the MSO empire,which “so far, seems immune tothe side effects of Stewart’s guiltyverdict and personality issues, allof which badly affect her ability tomake television appearances.”

At this point, analysts arestressing that both companiesneed their symbiotic relationshipto not only thrive, but survive.

Gary Drenick, a director atBIGresearch, a consumer marketintelligence firm, said his compa-ny’s surveys indicate that Kmart’ssales have been off this month.Drenick, who polls 8,000 to 10,000consumers monthly, indicated thatin April, 1,500 respondents saidthey shop at Kmart. So far, linensand bedding is Kmart’s largest

sales category, beating electronics,footwear, men’s apparel andwomen’s apparel.

However, Drenick said that inthe April survey of shoppers withannual incomes of $50,000 or less,year-over-year sales of soft homegoods showed a decline. It’s impor-tant to note that Kmart was stillclosing stores before it exited bank-ruptcy last May, which would be apartial contributor to some of thedecline. By comparison, sales ofsoft home goods rose at Bed, Bath &Beyond, Linen’s ’n Things and J.C.Penney’s, and were flat at Wal-Mart.

Sales of women’s apparel atKmart, Drenick said, was downthis month compared with lastyear, with 2.3 percent of respon-dents stating that they shopped atthe retailer. This compares to 3.2percent in April of last year and

3.9 percent in April of 2002.According to the national surveysby Drenick’s firm, sales at Kmarthave been “trending down.”

Stewart also faced some heat inconsumer surveys. BIGresearchthis month posed its customaryquery, “What’s hot and what’s not.”The two choices were Stewart andshock-jock Howard Stern. Bothwere in a dead heat, with 12.4 per-cent stating Stewart was hot versus12.3 percent for Stern, and 87.6percent giving her the thumbs-down versus a similar 87.7 percentfor Stern.

Executives at Kmart and MSOcould not be reached for commentwith regard to the lawsuit. In state-ments, each firm seemed pleasedto leave the suit behind.

Julian Day, president and chiefexecutive officer of Kmart, said,“We are pleased to have extendedand deepened our relationshipwith Martha Stewart Living Omni-media. Kmart is committed to pro-viding the highest quality andvalue-driven products to our mil-lions of loyal customers nationwide,and the Martha Stewart Everydaybrand is a great example of thiscommitment.”

Sharon Patrick, president andceo of MSO, said in a statement,“This is an exciting development.We are delighted that Kmart willcontinue to be a foundation part-ner for MSO throughout thedecade and that our two compa-nies have found mutually agree-able ways to improve upon ourbeneficial relationship.”

Kmart Renews Stewart DealBLYTH INDIFFERENCE: Themedia elite turned out inforce Monday at Moremagazine’s luncheon inhonor of “Alpha Woman ofthe Year” Sen. Hillary

Rodham Clinton (D., N.Y.). Those packed into the Four Seasonspool room included Katie Couric, Barbara Walters, Barry Diller, StarJones, Mary Steenbergen, Erica Jong, “Scrubs” actress Judy Reyesand Carolyn Kepcher of “The Apprentice,” who seemed to attractmore sideways glances than anyone save the former First Ladyherself. About the only person not in attendance was Myrna Blyth,More’s founding editor and former editorial director of sister titleLadies’ Home Journal. Could her absence have had anything to dowith “Spin Sisters,” Blyth’s recent exposé on the allegedly secretliberal agenda of women’s service magazines? Asked about this,More publisher Carol Campbell snorted, “Huh, I wonder.” PeggyNorthrop, More’s new editor in chief, was more candid: “Myrna’smanaged to piss off a lot of the people in this room,” she said.

For Northrop, Monday was a double occasion: It also marked herfirst official day on the job. She was hired away from Organic Stylelast month to replace Susan Crandell, who has retired. Northrop saidshe has yet to make any hires or major decisions. “It’ll be a whilebefore you start seeing my input.” — Jeffrey Bercovici

LOST FACE: The fate of The Face has been sealed. Despite reportsthat potential buyers had been in talks with Face parent Emap tosave the fashion and pop culture title, no bid made the mark.

“Despite initial interest from a number of different parties,Emap Consumer Media has been unable to secure a suitable buyerfor The Face,” Emap said in a statement. “Emap Consumer Mediahas therefore decided to close the magazine.”

This follows an announcement in March that publication of TheFace was to be put under review and suspended after the Mayissue, 24 years after it launched.

London City financial types and small, independent publisherswere among the contenders believed to be in talks to buy the titlefor a price in the neighborhood of $6.3 million, or 3.5 millionpounds. Peter Howarth, managing director of the publishingcompany Show Media, and Ashley Heath, editorial director of ArenaHomme Plus, another Emap title, were also tipped to be in talks.

Emap stressed that the decision had to do with price and withmaking sure the staff was headed somewhere with solidopportunities.

Five years ago, The Face’s circulation was 71,000 but nowstands at 24,500 in the U.K. and Ireland. — Ellen Burney

MEMO PAD

Despite legal woes, Martha Stewart and

Kmart will continue licensing deal.

Wife. Mother. Grandmother. Great-grandmother.

Entrepreneur. Businesswoman.

Legend.

We mourn her passing and extend our deepest sympathies to her family,friends, colleagues and all those who were privileged to have known her

and were touched by her intelligence and her warmth.

Estée Lauder

By Daniela Gilbert

NEW YORK — The sophisticated and the whimsical hadequal footing at last week’s pair of summer 2005 textiledesign shows: Directions and Printsource, both held atthe Hotel Pennsylvania here.

The shows featured fresh offerings such as African-inspired motifs, as well as spring trends that included sce-nics inspired by the Prada runway, Fifties’ sketchy floralsand sophisticated conversationals.

At Group Four, which exhibited at Directions, theoperative word in ethnic prints was primitive.

“The look is softer and a bit cleaner than in the past,”said Vittoria Di Rosa, an artist agent for Group Four.

At Keelergordon, part of Printsource, ethnic looks fig-ured in geometric motifs.

“This season, the ethnics are not as literal as before,”said Ali Matthews, sales executive at Keelergordon.“The look is made more contemporary by adding unusu-ally bright colors.”

Other looks included a return to glam and hippiestyles. At Westcott Design at Directions, owner PeterWestcott described them as “sassy…embroideries in

deep, bright colors that include strong greens, cobaltblues, neon-y yellows and shocking pinks.”

At Brewster, showing at Printsource, vibrant toneswere used on a variety of large-scale paisley embroi-deries. “They are absolutely Seventies-inspired,” saidNancy Harris, head of women’s wear sales.

Some studios, however, went the softer route when itcame to ethnic looks. At Directions’ Milkprint, forinstance, the feel was more vintage and worn-in, withfaded tones and blurred images.

Ombré prints and tie-dyed looks were also includedamong the ethnically inspired. At Tom Cody, which exhibitedat both shows, brightly colored sequins were embroidered onequally colorful tie-dye grounds, giving a costume-y feel.

“People are really understanding color now,” saidAlberto Sala, sales manager. “Even ethnic looks are fea-tured in brighter tones.”

At Printsource, Mint showed more Americana-styled ver-sions, while Directions’ Whiston & Wright did well with itsselection of retro-inspired tropical scenics. Some studioscombined their scenics with a variety of decorated accents.At Printsource’s Baxter Fawcett, a photographic scenic wasframed with floral embellishments. Marilyn Kern and The

Colorfield, both at Directions, featured a variety of motifs —from sketchy street scenes to ones combined with florals.

“They continue to be strong since the spring season,”said Paul Harding, sales director at The Colorfield.

Equally strong were scribbly, Fifties-style florals insaturated hues of pink, red and green.

“These looks are very salable, which is always impor-tant,” said Karen Tweedie, design director for moderatesportswear at Federated Merchandising Group.

For Irene Vlak, director of print and textiles at TheLimited, it was the softer hue of many of the florals thatwas key. “It’s just better for our customers than thebrighter tones I saw at the spring shows,” Vlak said.

Conversational prints, meanwhile, took on a moresophisticated edge.

“They’re a bit more hip, not as cutesy,” said Tweedie.Many studios mixed conversationals with florals,

while others such as 280, a new exhibitor at Printsource,went for a cleaner, more graphic look. At The Works, alsoat Printsource, a neutrally colored embroidered beachconversational featured chiffon appliquéd on some of thescenes for a shot of color.

Daniel Sager, also at Printsource, showed beach con-versationals with a crafty lookthat featured appliqué andembroidery techniques on neu-tral bases with brighter accents.In terms of color, pink was stilldominant. However, in place ofthe softer hues that have beenso prevalent, the tones werehotter and brighter. StevenLeavitt, design director at Evan-Picone, a division of JonesApparel Group, called them“Bollywood” pinks.

Also key were a range ofgreens, from mint to kelly, aswell as many with blue casts.


Textile & Trade Report

280 Design

Baxter FawcettThe Works Brewster Milkprint

Daniel Sager Westcott Design

The Colorfield

KeelergordonMarilyn KernGroup Four

Ethnic Patterns Focus on Africa

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By Evan Clark

NEW YORK — DuPont’s pending$4.2 billion sale of its Invista fiberunit, marking the end of DuPont’sparticipation in the textile busi-ness, has left competitors such asRadiciSpandex and Nylstar U.S.waiting and watching to measurethe response of the market andadjust their strategies.

DuPont, based in Wilmington,Del., has been the leading U.S.fiber company. It invented nylon,polyester and acrylic, basicallycreating the synthetic-fiber indus-try, and produced brands, includ-ing Lycra spandex and Tactelnylon. DuPont on Friday is toclose the Invista sale to Wichita,Kan.-based Koch Industries Inc.Koch plans to merge Invista andits KoSa polyester unit, creatingan $8.4 billion business that willbe the world’s largest fiber firm.

“We’re all waiting to see howit’s going to unfold,” said B.B.Sonny Walker, president of nylonproducer Nylstar U.S. “The ques-tion is, with a new owner, what dothey plan to grow and not grow.So there’s a lot of unknowns atthis point. We competitors arejust waiting to see what the newstrategy will be.”

The biggest unknown iswhether privately held Koch willpursue the marketing approachDuPont has used to turn its indus-

trial components into householdnames. On Monday, DuPont saidin a Securities and ExchangeCommission filing that Invistalast year took a $37 million netloss on sales of $5.68 billion. Thequestion becomes whether effortsto improve margins would resultin drastic cuts to the marketingbudget. Were that to be the case,competitors would look to musclein on Invista’s customer base.

“Historically, DuPont createdmost of the products and mar-kets that the industry enjoystoday,’’ Walker said. “Whether ornot they’re going to continuedoing that, I don’t know.”

Walker, like many synthetic-fiber executives, is a DuPont alum-nus, having worked in its polyesteroperations in the Nineties. Nylstarhas focused on research anddevelopment, and working withcustomers to come up with newproducts, Walker said.

“I’m waiting and watching to seewhat Koch does,” said Bill Girrier,vice president of marketing andsales at RadiciSpandex. “Are theygoing to be market makers?”

While DuPont did a “tremen-dous” job at creating markets forits products, Girrier, whose compa-ny produces spandex fibers from15 to 5,000 deniers — a deniermeasures the thickness of a fiber— there’s now pressure on con-verters and mills to do the same.

“I don’t think we’re going tohave market makers like thatanymore,” he said.

DuPont’s existing or potentialcustomers “are coming to us nowas an alternative and asking us ifour product really is the samething and our stuff in most casesis the same thing,” he said.

Invista executives said theyplan to stay focused on develop-ing products and supportingthem. “The company absolutelyis planning on continuing to fuelinnovation,” said an Invistaspokeswoman.

Fiber industry executives saidthere’s room for competition.

Molly Kremidas, merchandisingmanager at Nilit America Corp., afine-denier nylon producer, said,“There’s been ample opportunitythere for our business.”

Nilit, whose heaviest denieryarn is 140, is developing fineyarns at 30 denier and under, arange were market availabilityhas lessened, she said.

“Manufacturers that areusing some fine-denier nylonsaren’t getting the yarn,” saidKremidas. “Now there seems tobe this hurry-up-and-get-therepush for us because a lot of thewarp knitters here in the U.S.are not able to get those yarns.”

Brad Miller, commercial direc-tor for Dow Fiber Solutions, said ofthe Invista-Koch deal, “This is a

pretty natural thing. As the indus-try has matured, it is very naturalfor the supply base to consolidate.”

Dow produces an elasticfiber, Dow XLA, that is resistantto heat and chemicals.

Joe McConnell, vice presi-dent of strategic sourcing atKellwood Co., said one strengthof Invista has been its help indeveloping products and findingthe mills able to make them.

“They have been very strongin giving us direction in sourc-ing,” he said.

By steering manufacturers tomills that used their yarns and

making sure those mills producedhigh-quality fabrics, Invista washelping itself by helping vendors.McConnell said he worriedwhether Invista would keep offer-ing those kinds of services.

“This is very costly and I’mnot too sure, with the merger, ifthis type of thing will continue,”he said. “They might not evenoffer this kind of service to theirapparel customers.”

The Invista spokeswomansaid, “We will continue to pro-vide value-adding information toour trade, like trend and con-sumer insights.”


Fiber Firms Brace for Invista SaleOn the last Tuesday of every month, WWD publishes the current,month-ago and year-ago fiber prices. Prices listed reflect the costof one pound of fiber.

Price on Price on Price onFiber 4/26/04* 3/29/04* 4/25/03*

Cotton 68.40 cents 69.70 cents 59.81 centsWool $2.59 $2.65 N/APolyester staple 60 cents 60 cents 57 centsPolyester filament 58 cents 56 cents 65 centsMarch Synthetic PPI 105.2 104.9 106.6

*The current cotton price is the March average on fiber being delivered to Southeasternregion mills, according to Agricultural Marketing Services/USDA. The wool price isbased on the average price for the week ended April 23 of 11 thicknesses of fiber,ranging from 15 microns to 30 microns, according to The Woolmark Co. The year-agowool price was not available. Information on polyester pricing is provided by theconsulting firm DeWitt & Co. The synthetic-fiber producer index, or PPI, is compiled bythe Bureau of Labor Statistics and reflects the overall change in all synthetic-fiber prices.It is not a price in dollars, but a measurement in how prices have changed since 1982,which had a PPI of 100.

The Fiber Price Sheet

to learn moretel 919-549-3531 • fax 919-549-8933web www.aatcc.org

One Davis DriveP.O. Box 12215,

Research Triangle Park,NC 27709, USA

Mark your calendar now for aone-of-a-kind event that bringsstudents and industry together.It’s at Fashion Institute of Technol-ogy in New York on Wednesday,May 19, from 5:30 – 8:00 p.m.”

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Sourcing Expo — Indian Apparel is your opportunity to learn how to source in a quota-freeworld and protect your supply chain by engaging directly with quality apparel suppliers in avertically integrated country.

This trade mission will be combined with an educational component featuring speakers such asRodney Birkins,Vice President of JC Penney Purchasing Corporation, Jerry Cook,Vice Presidentfor International Trade, Sara Lee Branded Apparel, Wendy Wieland Martin, Director of Trade andCustoms Services for Kellwood Company,Ted Sattler, Executive Vice President of ForeignOperations for Philips-Van Heusen, and Thomas G.Travis, Managing Partner of Sandler,Travis &Rosenberg, P.A. , discussing the post-quota environment and future sourcing strategies.

Don’t miss the industry’s first comprehensive look at the impact these liberalizing trade measurescan have on your textile and apparel business. Register for this FREE, two-day event today!

You could win the 2005 IBERC Diagnostic Program!*Register today and you could win an assessment that includes an analysis of your products’sourcing matrix and strategic recommendations on crafting a forward-looking sourcing strategytailored to your needs.

*A $15,000 value. See our website for contest details.

Prepare for a New SourcingRelationship with India!


By Joanna Ramey

WASHINGTON — Democratic presidential candidateJohn Kerry, singling out the domestic textile industry,said Monday that President Bush has failed to fight un-fair trade practices at the expense of U.S. workers andbusinesses.

Kerry, in a speech and a report on trade agreementenforcement issued by his campaign, sought to counterallegations from Bush that he is a trade protectionist.

“We need trade, we always have,” the Massachusettssenator told mine workers in Wheeling, W.Va., at thestart of a three-day bus tour in the state that will contin-ue to Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan. The four statescombine for 470,000 of the estimated 2.7 million manu-facturing jobs lost since Bush took office, includingabout 340,000 textile and apparel positions. “But I thinkwe can all agree that we must enforce these tradeagreements on terms that are fair, in line with our basicvalues and help our workers and businesses compete.”

In the campaign report, Kerry suggested he wouldbe more aggressive in imposing quotas to limit Chineseimports, which is allowed under China’s World TradeOrganization entry agreement. Kerry criticized thepresident, who has set safeguard quotas on three tex-tile and apparel import categories from China, for put-ting procedures in place that have “severely restrictedU.S. firms’ ability” to get requests for quotas fulfilled.

Kevin Madden, a Bush campaign spokesman, did notrespond to several phone and e-mail requests for com-ment. The Bush administration has previously cited suc-cess in lowering foreign trade barriers, including a casetwo years ago involving India and U.S. carpet dye ex-ports. The White House also imposed quotas last year onthree Chinese textile and apparel categories. In addi-tion, the administration has taken steps to temporarilyshield U.S. steel makers against imports and has said it’smaking progress on curbing Chinese counterfeit goods.

Erik Autor, vice president and international tradecounsel with the National Retail Federation, said, “I

don’t know how much more aggressive you can be ontrade remedies. Every election year, the White House,no matter the party, gets accused for not being aggres-sive enough on trade remedies.”

The Kerry campaign report said Bush hasn’t proddedthe Chinese enough to stop keeping its currency artifi-cially low. Kerry said in the speech that he would “gettough on day one” to compel China, as well as Japan, tobring their currencies in line. He didn’t provide specifics.

The study also said the Bush administration has beenlax in bringing cases of unfair trade practices before theWTO. The White House has brought 10 cases in just overthree years, while trading partners have levied 32 casesagainst the U.S. During the Clinton administration —from 1995, when the WTO was created, to 2000 — theU.S. filed 65 cases, 14 more than U.S. trading partners.

“We have rules for a reason and they need to be en-forced,” said Kerry, repeating his campaign pledges ontrade, including a 120-day review of compliance of ex-isting trade agreements.

By Kristi Ellis

CHARLESTON, S.C. — Pressureis building in the apparel pipe-line that stretches from the facto-ry floors of China, Bangladeshand India to the shelves ofMacy’s, Wal-Mart and J.C. Penney.

As the end of quotas for allWorld Trade Organization mem-bers nears, at stake are billions ofdollars worth of merchandisethat could bottleneck at the endof the year.

Sourcing and logistics expertsfrom several big apparel firmsconvened in Charleston, S.C., lastweek at an American Apparel &Footwear Association conferenceto address their concerns and gettips on how others in the industryplan to navigate through the landmines in the second half of theyear, as quotas fill and categoriesstart to embargo.

“We have a lot of questionsright now,” said Wendy WielandMartin, vice president of interna-tional trade for Kellwood Co. “Wehave to decide what to do withthe pipeline and carriers have todecide what to do. They are notgoing to double the ships goinginto the port in one month andthat could be a huge disruptionthat could bring the whole thingto a standstill.”

China is expected to becomeeven more dominant in textileand apparel trade after 2005, butin the meantime apparel im-porters are holding their breathas they take a gamble on whichcontractors and countries will re-main competitive. The buzz aboutChina hung in the humid Charle-ston air and the speculation wasthick about whether the U.S.would further restrict Chineseimports. The Bush administrationlast year imposed safeguard quo-tas on three Chinese import cate-gories, including bras, robes anddressing gowns and knit fabric,and importers are worried therewill be a lot more.

Grant Aldonas, undersecre-tary for international trade atthe Commerce Department, laidto rest some of their fears in thekeynote address.

Seemingly softening his stanceon a comprehensive quota agree-ment with China, Aldonas said, “Idon’t think there is going to be acomprehensive agreement. Wewould continue to pursue it if theU.S. industry across the board

thought that was a good idea, butthe fact of the matter is theChinese aren’t there on this.”

The Bush administration iswalking a fine line between ap-peasing the beleaguered domes-tic textile industry and its intenselobbying effort about the threatChina poses on one side, and theChinese and U.S. importers onthe other.

Aldonas raised apparel im-porters’ hopes on the issue ofsticking to the schedule of quotaelimination, but at the same time,he dampened the hopes of alarge international textile andfiber coalition pushing for an ex-tension of the global quotas on allWTO member countries, whichwill expire at the end of the year.

“The worst thing we could dofor our industry, and I mean onthe textile side as well as the im-port-apparel side, is to slow theprocess down,” Aldonas said.“What we have in a lot of ways isan industry that has become veryfragmented behind a protectedwall, and until they go through thesame sorts of changes that everyother industry has faced in theU.S over the past 40 years, theyaren’t going to be competitive.”

However, he also squelchedany hopes importers or foreignsuppliers had in getting addition-al quotas this year to preventearly embargoes, which could

wreak havoc on the supply chain.“We are trying to strike a bal-

ance between what was promisedto the textile industry during theUruguay Round [which ended in1994] and the needs of the rest ofAmerican industry,” said Aldonas.“We are coming to the end of the10 years [of quota phaseout] andthe most important thing is tokeep our eye on that goal and tomake sure the WTO agreementremains enforced and that peopledon’t chip away at that. The priceof that may be there is no [quotacarry forward].”

Global trade rules will takeaway the ability of countries to

borrow quotas from the follow-ing year, which has been an in-dustry safety net for years.Without that mechanism, knownas “carry forward,” and the abil-ity to pad the quotas this year,importers are sure that crucialquota categories will fill early,which could leave them holdinghuge amounts of merchandisein warehouses, and leave retail-ers with empty shelves.

John Windham, executivevice president of Kellwood’sCalvin Klein division, told theaudience of 120 executives toprepare for an increase in spotinspections by the Bureau ofCustoms and Border Protection,which can slow down merchan-dise that enters ports by as muchas 30 days.

“You need to evaluate yourproduction methods that are atrisk of increased customs exams,”warned Windham. “We havetaken steps to put together an en-tire format of documents to satis-fy Customs inquiries and made anoverall document package forvendors involved in outward pro-cessing.”

Customs, which recently tar-geted imports of socks, said itwould start scrutinizing ship-ments in April of knit-to-shapeitems, such as sweaters, to de-termine if they’re correctlyidentified for country of origin.

Importers Wary of LogjamNEW YORK — The things AmySpindler loved, as recounted byElizabeth Stewart, her closefriend and a stylist at The NewYork Times Magazine, included agood steak, salty things like herlanguage, Bob Mackie fashionshows and Manolo Blahniks.

Other Spindler favorites:funny people; her dog, namedCliché; her husband, RobertoBenabib; maps to famous peo-ple’s homes so that she couldpeek over their gates and pokefun at their taste; “words writtenand spoken, the wittier andsnarkier the better,” and, asStewart recalled, the fact that,while watching “Wayne’s World”at a cinema in Paris, “we werethe only two people laughing.”

To her friends, Spindler, whodied Feb. 27 at the age of 40,showed remarkable courage inher long battle with cancer, butat a memorial on Sunday nightat the Rainbow Room, theychose to honor above all else herirreverence, her curiosity, heroutspokenness and her tenacity.

It was a fitting tribute thatSpindler, whose last post at TheNew York Times Magazine wascritic-at-large for culture andstyle, would be remembered withmore laughter than tears, asIngrid Sischy, editor in chief ofInterview magazine, noted to anaudience of about 400. “You arenot here because you loved AmySpindler, but because she lovedyou.” The space, with its view ofManhattan from the top, and themusic, “I Hope You Dance” per-formed by Deborah Lippman,were symbolic enough of thedreams of a Midwest homecom-ing queen to someday write aboutfashion from the front rows ofParis and New York.

The audience — which includ-ed Karl Lagerfeld, Donna Karan,Michael Kors, Isaac Mizrahi,Helmut Lang, Stella McCartney,Miguel Adrover, Bryan Bradley,Leonard and Evelyn Lauder,Rose Marie Bravo and Elton John— proved that from Spindler’s as-pirations rose a critical voice thatcould not be ignored, whether itwas about the things she admiredor hated.

Tom Ford recalled a conver-sation in which Spindler railedagainst one of her pet peeves.

When it was pointed out to herthat she should let it go, Spindlerreplied that her illness shouldnot preclude her from such vitri-ol, using a favorite epithet to de-scribe herself that rhymes withand was, well, blunt.

“Some even thought she hadTourette’s Syndrome,” Ford said.“If you asked her not to say thatword, she would taunt you withit.” Taunt, taunt, taunt, taunt,taunt. “It is one of the few wordsleft in our language as potent oras sharp as her opinions.”

Her colleagues describedSpindler’s dialogue off the print-ed page in the terms of a dervish.

Andy Port, deputy editor ofthe Times Magazine, said whenshe came to work every morning,“I never knew who we were goingto hate today. I was her Ethel.She was my Lucy. I had to hatewho she hated.”

Inside of newsrooms, it is thissort of bluntness from which leg-ends are made. That Spindlerwas revered by her subjects — thedesigners themselves, even whenstung by her critiques — madeher a hero. Her lesson, said Dianevon Furstenberg, is that “We mustbe strong, intelligent, glamorous,of course, and successful in eachone of our endeavors. Amy was allabout courage, and courage shegave us.”

The things she hated, by theway, Stewart said, “were beingsick; my ex-boyfriend, who she gotrid of by introducing me to myhusband; underachievement, es-pecially in taxi drivers and air-line personnel, and especially,long speeches.”

— Eric Wilson

Amy Spindler: Outspoken,Opinionated and Revered

Kerry Report Criticizes Bush on Trade Policies – Notably Textiles

“The worst thing we could do for ourindustry, and I mean on the textile sideas well as the import-apparel side, isto slow the process down.”— Grant Aldonas, Commerce Department

Tom Ford at the Spindler memorial.


GENEVA — A World Trade Or-ganization dispute panel lateMonday issued an interim rulingfinding U.S. cotton subsidiesbreached global trade rules, ac-cording to trade sources. Brazilhad filed a complaint in Septem-ber 2002 over subsidies to U.S.producers, users and exportersof upland cotton.

The Bush administrationsaid the administration is ex-pected to appeal the ruling.

The WTO had not issued anofficial statement by press time.

The three-member panelfound the U.S. subsidies provid-ed during the marketing years

1999 to 2002 had caused seriousprejudice to the interests ofBrazil.

The same sources said thepanel found that the so-called“Step Two” certificate programpayments broke global subsidyrules. It also determined thatexport subsidies that exceedU.S. levels allowed under WTOfarm accords were at fault.

However, the panel concludedthat some export credits for cot-ton were not in violation. Accord-ing to news reports, Brazilian offi-cials were “extremely satisfied”with the outcome.

— John Zarocostas

WTO Rejects U.S. Cotton Subsidies

BERLIN — Score one for theWella AG minority shareholders.

On Monday, Wella and Procter& Gamble inked a “dominationand profit transfer” agreement,which not only meets a long-standing demand for such anagreement by the minority share-holders, but also raises the price— by 12.1 percent — that P&G iswilling to payfor the out-standing, non-voting sharesof Wella.

The agreement calls for rais-ing the price per share of theoutstanding, nonvoting shares ofWella to 72.86 euros, or $86.41,from 65 euros, or $77.09, whichwas the improved tender offer inMay 2003. All dollar figures arecalculated from the euro at cur-rent exchange rates.

Minority shareholders, whoseholdings represent almost 20 per-cent of total share capital, haveargued that P&G was unlawfullycompeting with Wella in the ab-sence of a domination agree-ment, which is set by Germanlaw. They recently tried to intro-duce a resolution on behalf ofWella claiming damages fromP&G at the upcoming annual gen-eral meeting. Until Monday’s an-nouncement, P&G maintainedthat a domination agreement wasnot required. Wella said P&G’sdecision responded to a requestfrom Wella’s management board.

Under the agreement, P&Gwill be entitled to give instruc-tions to the Wella managementboard, and profits of Wella AGwill be transferred to P&G. ButP&G still faces minority share-holder hurdles in terms of theoffered price and other compen-sation issues before it can effec-tively take control of the compa-ny. Although P&G owns almost100 percent of Wella votingshares, it only holds 80 percentof total share capital, not enoughunder German law to delist thecompany and fully integrate itinto the American group.

Speaking on behalf of minori-ty shareholders, Stephen Aulse-brook of Close Brothers said, “Ofcourse we are delighted to seeP&G finally acknowledge theneed for a domination agree-ment.” But he quickly added thatthe offer price was not highenough. Aulsebrook said thevalue on the outstanding shares“falls a long way short of man-agement’s own projections just a

few months ago.”He said minority shareholders

also will seek compensation bothfor P&G’s “unlawful interference”and “unlawful competition” withWella. “So there’s much to bedone,” Aulsebrook added.

The domination and profittransfer agreement was approvedby Wella AG’s supervisory board,

but is also sub-ject to approvalby Wella AG’sannual generalmeeting. The

AGM was scheduled for May 13but has been pushed back to June8 to accommodate the legally re-quired notice period resultingfrom Monday’s announcementand to avoid the necessity for twosuccessive AGMs.

As an alternative to the cashoffer, which applies to outstand-ing ordinary and preferenceshares, minority shareholderscan opt for a fixed annual com-pensation payment of 3.81 euros,or $4.52, per ordinary share and3.83 euros, or $4.54, per prefer-ence share from P&G based onthe prospective profits derivedfrom the enterprise value.

— Melissa Drier

Aventis Boards OK OfferPARIS — Sanofi-Synthelabo’s in-tended hostile takeover of phar-maceuticals rival Aventis took afriendlier turn this weekend.

On Sunday, Aventis’ manage-ment and supervisory boards ap-proved a Sanofi offer worth $65.6billion at current exchange rates,or 55.3 billion euros. Sanofi’soriginal bid had valued Aventis at$57.5 billion, or 48.5 billion euros.

The move, which will resultin the formation of a firm calledSanofi-Aventis, is supported bySanofi’s principal shareholders,L’Oréal and Total.

“L’Oréal rejoices at the friend-ly nature of the offer, the spirit ofwhich will facilitate the comingtogether of the two groups and thesuccess of the new entity, Sanofi-Aventis,” L’Oréal said in a state-ment. The French beauty giant,which currently holds a 19.6 per-cent stake in Sanofi, also said itplans to hold onto its shares.

Sanofi-Aventis, will becomethe third largest pharmaceuticalgroup in the world and the biggestin Europe. Sanofi chief Jean-François Dehecq will be its chair-man and chief executive officer.

— Brid Costello

Wella, P&G TruceRaises Offer Price

NEW YORK — Sean John, whichwill open its first store on FifthAvenue and 41st Street this sum-mer, has partnered with designfirm Yabu Pushelberg to createthe look of the flagship.

“Yabu Pushelberg is workingdirectly with the retail team atSean John to develop a sleek andclean retail application that is fo-cused on both creativity and com-merce,” said Charles Soriano, di-rector of retail for Sean John.“We chose Yabu Pushelberg be-cause of their tremendous knowl-edge base and their holistic ap-proach to designing exquisitelybranded interiors.”

Yabu Pushelberg was estab-lished in 1980 by George Yabuand Glenn Pushelberg, the firm’screative director and managingpartner, respectively. The firmhas built its reputation on provid-ing design and marketing solu-tions for Tiffany & Co., BergdorfGoodman and the Four SeasonsHotel Group, among many others.

“This store will be completelyoriginal. Sean John is clothes,music, entertainment and it’s away of life. We’re introducing‘fashiontainment’ to the world,”said Sean “P. Diddy” Combs,founder and president of SeanJohn, in a statement. “This is the

first spoke in the wheel of theSean John retail empire. We wantto take a new approach to the re-tail concept. Choosing YabuPushelberg was a natural decisionto assist us in expressing the SeanJohn way of life to consumers.”

Sean John, which plans amajor roll-out of retail stores,earlier this year signed leases for3,500-square-foot stores atBeverly Center in Los Angelesand the Garden State Plaza inParamus, N.J. A Sean Johnspokesman said an agreementwith Yabu Pushelberg to designfuture Sean John stores has notbeen signed at this point.

Sean John Taps Store Designer

NEW YORK — Several peoplewho know a few things about theimportance of keeping up appear-ances will be on hand for Mondaynight’s American Apparel & Foot-wear Association’s AmericanImage Awards at the Grand Hyatthere.

The ever-critical fivesomefrom “Queer Eye for the StraightGuy”; Katrina Campins, KwameJackson and Nick Warnock from“The Apprentice,” and PatriciaField are expected at the bash,

which will honor Oscar de laRenta with the Designer of theYear award, Kenneth Cole withthe Man of the Year award andBurt Tansky, chairman and chiefexecutive officer of the NeimanMarcus Group, with the Retailerof the Year award.

De la Renta will outfit SharonStone, this year’s Spirit of aWoman award winner, in a reddress from his spring collection.The designer also will suit upKelly Ripa, the event’s emcee, in

a flared lime green dress. The cast from “Queer Eye” will

pick up this year’s Fashion Mav-erick Award from Paul Charron,ceo of Liz Claiborne. GeorgeMalkemus, president of ManoloBlahnik USA, will present theaward to Tansky, and André LeonTalley will do the honors for de laRenta.

The event will benefit theAmerican Foundation for AIDSResearch and the AAFA’s educa-tional programs.

AAFA to Laud Industry Notables

By Nola Sarkisian-Miller

LOS ANGELES — California in-surance officials on Thursday willtake a first step toward imple-menting an overhaul of the $22billion-a-year workers’ compensa-tion system, which retailers andapparel manufacturers say mayhelp boost the state’s 10th-biggestindustry after the loss of 56,000jobs in the last seven years.

The landmark measure, passedby state lawmakers on April 16and signed by Gov. ArnoldSchwarzenegger, is intended tospur job creation and stem risingcosts that have caused manufac-turers such as Teddi of Californiaand Syrup Clothing to close inthe last year.

Schwarzenegger, a Republi-can, made revamping workers’compensation a priority duringhis successful campaign againstGov. Gray Davis, a Democrat, inlast November’s recall election.He sought to cut costs from thesystem after premiums surged byas much as 300 percent in thelast four years.

The new law is intended tolower expenditures for employ-ers with tighter guidelines forevaluating injuries and provi-sions to return injured employ-ees to work faster. It doesn’t man-date rate regulation, which wassought by Democrats and op-posed by Schwarzenegger.

The governor has “gottenthings in there that the businesscommunity has wanted for 10years, from objective standardsfor evaluation to medical con-trols,” said Bill Dombrowski,president of the Sacramento-based California RetailersAssociation, which has 55 mem-bers representing 9,000 storesand $100 billion in annual sales.

The law, written by state Sen.Charles Poochigian (R., Fresno),allows employers to create HMO-

type networks of doctors to pro-vide medical care for on-the-jobinjuries and help limit fraud. Thesystem had permitted workers tofind another physician after 30days of treatment with a doctorpicked by the employer or insurer.

Another provision that propo-nents said will save money pro-motes return-to-work opportuni-ties. Employers are permitted tocut payments to injured workersby 15 percent if they convincethem to go back to their jobs. Theplan also allows employers — inmost cases — to eliminate pay-ments after two years if cases dragon because of insurer delays.

Standardizing impairmentratings for injured workers byusing American Medical Associa-tion guidelines may also trim dis-ability payments and make itmore difficult for workers to winclaims for conditions such as mi-graine headaches and backstrains, opponents said.

“What kind of recourse areworkers going to have for backstrain or eye strain?” asked Jes-sica Goodheart, a research direc-tor at the Los Angeles Alliance fora New Economy, a nonprofit or-ganization that focuses on laborpolicies and wages.

David Schwartz, president-elect of California Applicants’Attorneys Association, which rep-resents 1,000 lawyers for injuredworkers, said: “This bill discrimi-nates against those in the appar-el industry, such as seamstresses,who do repetitive jobs, especiallywomen. They’re insisting on ob-jective factors and there are a lotof things that happen in a diseasethat aren’t easy to measure.”

California Insurance Com-missioner John Garamendi willpreside at a public hearing on thenew law in San Francisco onThursday before setting an advi-sory premium rate that insurersoften use as a benchmark. The in-

surance department hasn’t pro-vided an estimate of potential sav-ings in workers’ compensation.

The latest information on in-surance costs won’t be known“until the hearing,” Garamendisaid. “Right now, the marketleader is the State Fund.’’ Headded, “If they lower rates, oth-ers are forced to follow.”

Garamendi has sued the StateFund, which writes policies for60 percent of the workers’ com-pensation market, seeking accessto financial data in an effort toguarantee that savings arepassed on to employers in theform of lower premiums.

About 25 insurance carriersin California have gone out ofbusiness in the last four yearsand opponents of the law hadurged the state to regulate rates.

“We don’t need rate regulation,we need competition to bring inmore insurance carriers to reducepremiums,” said Lonnie Kane,president of better sportswearfirm Karen Kane, which has an-nual insurance costs of $450,000,compared with $135,000 fouryears ago.

The commissioner said he alsowants to cut fraud. More than 70percent of all workers’ compensa-tion cases probed for fraud in-volve claimants, rather than doc-tors or employers, according tothe California Department of In-surance. The department report-ed that statewide from 2002 to2003, district attorneys prosecutedcases representing more than $54million in fraud, about a 9 percentincrease from the previous year.

“We’ll continue to push for ad-ditional legislation, such as adata collection mechanism, sowe immediately know who is fil-ing and what people are involvedso we can monitor the data — asystem similar to that of Oregonwhich can provide real-time in-formation,” Garamendi said.

California to Revamp Workers’ Comp

BEAUTY BEAT

14 WWD, TUESDAY, APRIL 27, 2004

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We are a leading, prominent, European high-end luxury retailer and whole-saler currently operating stores in the USA with corporate offices in NewYork City. Due to the on-going growth of our business, we are seeking atalented candidate for a position in the Women’s Wholesale division. Idealcandidates should have 6-8+ years experience and possess strong inter-personal and analytic skills. Experience in the luxury market is stronglypreferred. Salary commensurate with experience. EOERequirements:1) Wholesale sales and/or diversified retail Sales Management background2) Experience working with luxury client base3) Strong interpersonal, leadership and management skills4) Analytical skills a must

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fax 212-736-1753.

Accounting/ITManhattan-based watch co. seeks can-didate for in-house acctg. position.Maintain g/l, a/r, a/p, underoutside CPA supervision. Exp. w/ fac-tors preferred. MAS90. Exc. benefits.Fax resume to: 646-349-3729 or email:

[email protected]

SENIOR DESIGNERLeading consumer ProductsCompany has an excellentopportunity for an experi-enced Designer. Ideal candi-date must possess 3-5 yearsexperience in print design.Candidate must have asuperb color sense and theability to take ideas fromconcept to finished product.Individual must be self-motivated and able to workon various projects simulta-neously. 4-year collegedegree in related fieldrequired CAD skills essen-tial, CDI/U4RIA. We offer asalary commensurate withexperience and an excellentbenefits package.eoe,m/f,h/v

Please fax resume:212-930-2201

ADMIN ASSIST $8 HOURFiling, Answer Phones, E-mails

Personals. 34th St & 7th Ave MidtownCall Susie 212-947-3400

Admin. AssistantReceptionist / Order Entry / BillingSeeking upbeat individual for generaloffice duties in a fast paced Leg Wear& Underwear Co. Pleasant environmentin small, growing business. Must haveWord & Excel exp. Growth opportunity.Please Fax resume to: 212-244-5535

Admin. Assistants - 2Textile Agcy. has 2 positions available;Seeking Admin Assts. to Salesperson &Bookkeeper. Must be highly organized,detail oriented, and computer literate.Communicate w/overseas offices. Multi-lingual a plus. Salary based on experi-ence. Please Fax or E-mail resume to:212-764-2963 / [email protected]

ADMIN. ASSISTANTTo manage bookkeeping & generaloffice management for NYC luxury

apparel showroom. Good appearance,knowledge of Qbook, MSOffice &

Outlook. Pls. email resume & salaryreq’s to: [email protected]

Admin Since 1967

W-I-N-S-T-O-NAPPAREL STAFFING

DESIGN*SALES*MERCHADMIN*TECH*PRODUCTION

(212)557-5000 F: (212)986-8437

Adminstrative AssistantMajor apparel company seeks experi-enced admin. assistant to handlediversified office work. Must haveexcellent organizational and peopleskills. Great phone manners and deskappearance a must.

Fax resume 212-239-2766

APPAREL JOBS1)Artists: Girls-Boys-Juniors 2)CAD Artists3)Assist or Assoc Designers Boy or Girl or Yg MenCall (212) 643-8090 or fax: 643-8127 (agcy)

APPAREL STAFFING, LTD.Cust. Service/Sls Supp-Req. Bttr/Bridge MktDsgnr-Jr cut n sew knit market-bkgrd reqDsgnr Asstnt-c.w.r. exp mac Photo+Illus-B+GDsgnr Asstnt-c.w.r 1-2yrs+infant+toddler expGraphic Dsgnr-Jr mkt bkgrd reqImportCoord-3yrs+exp apparel import bkgrd PieceGoodsCoord-Mjr Sptswr Mfr Immed HireSrTechn Dsgnr-Outerwear/Gerber PDMTechn Dsgnr- better missy woven bridge line Techn Dsgnr-c.w.r. cut n sew knit expWhse Mgr Apparel Bkgrd-Nassau/Suffolk LocOther [email protected]

or Fax Resume to (212) 302-1161

Assistant DesignerLay out, mark & cut patterns. Super-vise sample makers. Req’d: 4 yrs. exp& exp. supervising sample makers. Re-sume to: Alvin Valley, 632 Broadway,6th Fl., Suite 602, NY, NY 10012

Assistant DesignerPrivate label seeks AssistantDesigner candidate. Must be creative,self motivated with strongorganizational & follow-up skills. GoodFlat sketching by Illustrator.Photoshop & Excel a must.

Please fax resume to: 201-867-4042

ASSOCIATE DESIGNERMajor apparel company has 3 openings/opportunities for an Associate Designerw/ either boys/girls experience or Men’sand Ladies Activewear. Individual willbe involved in all design aspects. Mustbe creative, organized, and haveexcellent communication skills.

Fax resume 212-239-2766.

ASSOCIATE DESIGNERMajor apparel company has 3 openings/opportunities for an Associate Designerw/ either boys/girls experience or Men’sand Ladies Activewear. Individual willbe involved in all design aspects. Mustbe creative, organized, and haveexcellent communication skills.

Fax resume 212-239-2766.

ASSOCIATE DESIGNERMissy sportswear import co. seeks indw/ min. 4 yrs exp in cut/sew knits w/swtr bkgd. Detail & team oriented, ex-cellent comm & follow up skills. Prodappvl exp. neccessary. Work closelyw/merchandiser. Adobe PhotoShop7/Illustrator 10/Word/Excel bkgd a must.

Fax to Ivonne (212)391-8027.

ASST DESIGNER $45-$55kPvt Label. Ilustrate, Flats, Fabric, Mills.

Work w/Vendors & Print [email protected] Call 212-947-3400

ASST TECH DESIGNERNeeded to join fast paced import team.We are looking for recent graduatewith sweater knowledge or person 1-2yrs sweater exp. Candidate must haveexcellent Excel skills and handle multitasking to the fullest. Exp. in ProductPacks/Initial Specs and communica-tion with overseas factories. Faxresume attn: Roger 212-768-7856

Asst Technical Designer.....$45-50kOne of the top childrenswear compa-nies is looking for an Asst TechnicalDesigner. Evaluate first samplesthrough production. Spec, gradingand fitting knowledge. Sewing knowl-edge required. Experience withWal-Mart and Target as well aschildrenswear background necessary.2-5+ years exp. Very nice company towork for and great benefits as well.Please call Ms. Samms at 212-878-2000

fax: 212-949-3928 or email: [email protected]

BUYER - Deal.comDeal.com is seeking an aggressive,forward thinking, Internet savvy NYCbased Off-Price Buyer. Compensationbased on skill and experience. Stockoptions and Health insurance included.Experience in Home, Women’s, Men’sa plus. Please send an electronic copyof your resume to: [email protected]

Controller $100-120K. Current exp in100 mill vol min apparel co that hasdealt with Wal-Mart + other mass mar-ket stores req’d. Fax 973-379-1275 agcy.

CONTROLLERAccessory importer seeks strong indi-vidual to manage all facets of financeand operations. Responsibilities includeL/C’s, factoring & chargebacks, book-keeping, financial projections & state-ments, shipping & import traffic.Great opportunity for a strong leader.Position based in Westchester.

Fax resume in confidence to:Box#M 1051

c/o Fairchild Publications7 West 34th Street, 4th Fl

New York, NY 10001

Customer Service $35-40K. Currentexp. in apparel co. required. Excel.AS400. Growing large co. 1411 bway.Call 973-564-9236 Jaral Fashion Agcy


DATA ENTRYOrder Entry experience with majordistros necessary. Fast paced environ-ment. Company benefits.Fax resume 212-869-1938 Att: Estelle

Design $ 60-70KBoys I&T. Branded sportswear.

Janet Stevens *Just Mgmt* [email protected]

Design AssistantSWEATERS

#1 Contemporary Jr. Sweater Co. seeksan Assistant Designer with strong TechSpec & great organizational skills, andis a great team player, to join a hot team.

FABULOUS OPPORTUNITIES!Fax resume to Aggie at: 212-997-7997

Design Associates 50KYoung mens denim tops/bts

Jennifer *Just Mgmt* [email protected]

Design Associate to 50K2-4 years exp. Mens wovens dress shirts.

Jennifer*Just Mgmt* [email protected]

Design Director to 170KMissy swimwear/coverups.

Janet Stevens *Just Mgmt* [email protected]

Design Director to $175K. Current exp inbras required. Direct 9-12. Design &patternmaking & tech proficiency. LargeMidtown Co. Call 973-564-9236 Jaral Agcy

Designer Assoc $50-60K. Current exp.in JR sportswear req’d. Mostly Jr wo-ven bottoms. Division of midtown fastgrowing large co. Call 973-564-9236 Agcy

Designer

Associate DesignerMen’s intimate apparel company seeksAssociate designer. The Ideal candi-date should have a min of 2 years expe-rience in product development andmust be a team player. Must bedetail oriented & have strong commu-nication skills. Must be computer profi-cient as well as spec prototypes,samples with good understanding ofgarment construction. Job dutiesinclude creating pkg’s, factory corre-spondence of s/o’s and sampleapprovals. Please fax resumes to :212-842-4030 attn: B. Gray We are anequal opportunity employer.

SaraMaxDESIGNER ASST MEN’S

Leading manufacturer of men’s sports-wear seeks experienced individual tohelp build product lines. Strong back-ground in men’s knits & yarndye wovensa must. Great color, print and patternsense essential w/ understanding offabrics. Must be organized, detailoriented & a team player. Benefits.

Fax resume: 212-686-4336 Attn: Lori

DESIGNERBONGO ACCESSORIES

Fast growing brand. Looking forexperenced designer w/ 3 yrs experi-ence in accessory design for ladies andkids. Midtown Location. Looking tohire ASAP. Please fax resume to: (212) 221-1278

DESIGNER

J. MendelCouture design house seeking eveningwear designer with 4-5 years exp.Must have sketching and technicalknowledge about couture garment con-struction. Fax resume to: 212-967-6268

DESIGNERS (2)$$$$$$$

Cold Weather division of Major Acces-sories co has 2 openings for Expd De-signers. Must have good Knowledge

of textiles. Great co offers Great oppty!Also need: Assist Designer $32K.

Fax Resume Attn Cindi 201-894-1186or e-mail [email protected]

212-947-3399 x16KARLYN FASHION RECRUITERS

DESIGNERSPORTSWEAR

Major apparel co. in BOSTON AREAseeks Senior Designer to create moder-ate contemporary missy, petite sepa-rates with 5+ years exp. Must havea strong background in woven bottoms,skirts, & jackets. The ability to identifyemerging trends & silhouettes. Mustpossess great color, print, & patternsense w/the understanding of fabrics.Must be organized, detail-oriented,able to meet deadlines, & be a teamplayer. Must have excellent computerskills. We are a major apparel co. witha great work environment, excellentbenefits & salary.

Fax resumes to HR: 617-332-3260

Designer to $100K. Current exp. in mis-sy or contemorary or junior cut &sewn tops, private label required. 7thAve at 40th St. Call 973-564-9236 Agcy

DIRECTOR OF TECHNICAL DESIGN

Great opportunity! Great company!Leading intimate apparel mfg. seeksexperienced & highly organized Directorof Technical Design for Ladies, Mens &Kids Daywear/Sleepwear. Resp incl.:daily communication with overseasoffice & factories, fittings, data entry,recordkeeping & follow up, strongtechnical knowledge & flat sketching.Must be computer literate & havepaternmaking knowledge. Knowledge ofAI helpful. Experience with Mid Tier &Mass Market a plus. Please fax resumesto 212-842-4040 attn: D. Anteby. We arean equal opportunity employer.

SaraMax

DRAPER/ASSISTANTHigh end Fashion Sportswear and Eve-ning Co. seeks Asst Draper. Must haveminimum 10 years experience and cancut first sample. Please email or faxresume: (212) 840-0205

email: [email protected]

FABRIC SOURCING & R&D* SOURCING MANAGER............$110KMens/Women 10 Full Collection.Vertical, Retail. Far East Exp.* SR. MANAGER R&D...................$80KWomens Better Bridge Vertical [email protected] Call 212-947-3400

Freelance DesignerFor better department stores women’scareer suits. Domestic & overseas trav-el required. Exp. in better fabrics andconstruction a must. Email resumes to:

[email protected]

Graphic Artist/FreelanceNewborn, Infant and Toddler graphic

designer wanted. Fax resume to:212-222-3493 between 9AM - 6PM.

GROMWELL GROUPImmediate opportunities available in:Design, Technical Design, Sales and

ProductionEmail: [email protected]

or Call 212-972-9300

HEAD MERCHANDISERSeeking strong leader with children’s sports-wear exp. Must have strong exp. in urban/ethnic segment. Email in confidence to:

[email protected]

HOT JOBS!$$$$$$$+

* Graphic Artists* Import Assistant* Production Coster* Sr. Account Executive* Patternmaker wovens

Call Laurie 212-947-3400or e-mail [email protected]

KARLYN FASHION RECRUITERS

Lectra ComputerPatternMaker $80KDresses Sportswear

[email protected] Call 212-947-3400

Merchandiser/DesignerMajor vertical retailer/wholesaler seeksMerchandiser/Designer for its Junior &Plus Woven Import Division. Must beable to forecast trends & is responsiblefrom start to finish. Candidate must beable to work in a fast paced environment& be motivated & enthusiastic. Salarybased upon experience. Fax resume inconfidence to: (212) 997-9284

OFFICE MANAGERNew premium jeans company, EarnestSewn, seeks extremely organized of-fice manager with advanced computerskills in Excel, Illustrator, Word,Photoshop, Internet and general tech-nical support. This is a part time posi-tion with flexible hours. Please E-mailresume to [email protected]

PATTERNMAKER1st thru production for missy sports-wear, min 5 yrs exp working w/ privatelabel. Strong knowledge of draping,garment construction, fittings. Goodcommunication skills a must. Faxresume w/ salary requirements to:

212-382-3554

PATTERNMAKERExperienced patternmaker wanted

for talented design team based in NYC.Denim & sewing knowledge preferred.RARE OPPORTUNITY! Fax: (212) 680-3085

PATTERNMAKERExtensive knowledge of ladies youngdesigners and contemporary pattern

making and fit. Have 5-7 yrs. of previousexperience in first pattern and production

patterns. Part-time 2-3 days a week.Need ASAP. Please fax resume to:Lily Dickerson @ (212) 570-1156

Patternmaker

Production PatternmakerDesigner/Couture Company. Minimum5 years experience in better/designer

market. Must be detail oriented.Fax: 212-398-7765

Patternmaker to $60-70K. Current expin jr knit tops or jr woven bottoms.1411 Bway. Call 973-564-9236

Jaral Fashion Agency

PROD’N DIRECTOR $150K+Brand New Division. Better BrandedDesigner Label. Costing, Sourcing,Time & Action. HK/Korea/Taiwan.

[email protected] Call 212-947-3400

Prod. Patternmaker/ Tech. Designer:Women’s high end apparel companyseeks tech. Patternmaker/tech. Design-er. Req’d: 4 yrs. exp. in custom tailor-ing as well as eveningwear. Faxresumes to Alvin Valley 212.253.1946.

Production AssistantAcc. co. seeks an organized, detailedperson to assist w/ licenses, factoriesproduction, and emailing. Fax sal./res to: 212-967-0126 or email [email protected]

Production Asst.Immediate opening for Prod’n Asst.for private label apparel co. Must beextremely computer literate, detailoriented, self starter and capable ofmulti tasking. Please fax resume to:

(212) 921-9523

PRODUCTIONCOORD - BILINGUALEst’d Missy sweater/knit importerseeks Chinese/English detail-orientedproduction person. 3 years experience& excellent follow-up skills required.Fax resume 212-302-5184 or call Lisa212-302-3744 email: [email protected]

PRODUCTION COORDCHINESE BILINGUAL

Well established privately owned appa-rel co. seeks a prod’n coord, w/min. 4yrs.work exp & good understanding inwoven or knitted sportswear. Candidatemust be detail oriented w/ excellentfollow-up in all phases of prod’n withoverseas. Must be hard working &computer lit. Competitive salary &benefit package.

Fax resume to 212-354-2661or email [email protected]

Production CoordinatorFast paced Cut & Sew Knit Apparel Co.seeks an individual to assist in all phasesof prod’n. Must be a detail oriented,multi-tasking team player w/excellentcommunication skills. Duties includecharge backs, heavy follow-up, and dataentry. Computer knowledge a must. Min.2 years exp. Great atmosphere & benefits!Fax resume & salary to: 212-221-1353

Production ManagerDesigner/Couture Company. Minimum5 years experience in better/designer

market. Must be detail oriented.Fax: 212-398-7765

Production ManagerFor a hi-volume domestic sportwearcompany. Must have contacts with do-mestic contractors. Must be aggressive& energetic with at least 3 to 5 yearsexperience. Excellent Salary! Pleasecall Albert 718-625-4000 and email yourresume to [email protected]

Production ManagerHighly organized and motivated teamplayer needed for young designereveningwear company. Must haveexcellent computer skills, strong tech-nical knowledge, able to handle allaspects of inhouse and domesticproduction.

Please fax resume to 212-564-6357or email [email protected]

PRODUCTIONPATTERNMAKERMajor apparel co. in BOSTON AREAseeks exp’d production patternmaker.Must have knowledge of gradingmissy patterns to petite & womenssizes. Must have 10 yrs exp. concentrat-ed in wovens & stretch fabrics forpants, skirts & jackets. We are a majorapparel co. with a great work environ-ment, excellent benefits and salary.Fax resumes to: H.R. 617-332-3260

RECEPTIONISTDistributor of footwear seeks dependa-ble, reliable person. Attend to busyphones, perform various clerical duties,showroom tasks and UPS shipments.Must be computer literate.

Please fax resume: 212-751-3336

Retail CoordinatorExperienced retail coordinator neededfor major bridge knitwear Co. North-eastern territory of national retaileravailable. Goal oriented candidatemust have branch store experienceand possess a complete understandingof monthly and seasonal sales plans.Travel required. Personal car important.Please fax resume to: (212) 944-0202

SALES ASSISTANTMaternity sportswear company seeks

experienced person with great commu-nication skills. Must have understandingor production, merchandising & productpackages. Knowledge of Word & Excel amust. Please fax resume: (718) 369-2689

SALES ASSISTANTMidtown silver jewelry companyseeks a detail oriented person to assistinternal sales team. Experience withdepartment stores is essential. Mustbe organized with excellentdetail/follow up skills and have strongknowledge of Excel. Mid $40’s with ex-cellent benefits. Email resume to:

[email protected]

Sales AssistantPrivate label children’s clothing co. seeksSales Assistant for Wal-Mart. Dutiesinclude use of Retail Link, reading colorson Specdata machine, being proficientin Microsoft Office and being a liaisonbetween production and brand teams.Must be highly organized and havegreat follow-up skills.

Please fax resume to: (212) 947-5486

Seamstress/TailorDesigner/Couture Company.

Minimum 10 years experience. Mustbe able to handle delicate fabrics.

Fax: 212-398-7765

Sock MerchandiserEst sock co seeks individual tomerchandise our licensed/private labellines. Exp in legwear & Photoshop aplus. Email res/sal to:[email protected] or fax to 212-967-0126

Sourcing Mgr $90-110KGlobal exp. Finished product. HF or Apparel Jennifer *Just Mgmt* 800-544-5878

[email protected]

SPEC TECHS-Q/CNew Jersey. 3 Great Openings

FASHION NETWORK 201-503-1060/Fax 1070

TECH DESIGNERS/SPECS* TD Pvt Label. Jacket Bottoms....$80K* TD Pvt Label Wovens Tops....$80-85K* TD Wovens Jr Sportswear.....$60-85K* Assoc TD Wovens Sportswear.....$55K* Spec Techs Womens [email protected] Call 212-947-3400

Technical DesignerFor moderate to better missy sportswearcompany. Thorough knowledge ofpatternmaking, garment construction,grading & specs essential. Attention todetail, excellent overseas communica-tion skills and multitasking a must.Must have excellent computer skills.

Fax Resume: Jasmine 212-840-8355

As one of the nation’s premiere designerjeans and trouser companies, we seekexceptional talent to join our team. Weare looking for a junior accountexecutive with a min. of 3 years experi-ence. Computer knowledge, strongfollow up and travel required. Contact:

Marybeth Martorana50 West 57th Street, 12th Floor

New York, NY 10019Fax: 212-957-6008

Director ofSales & Marketing

Exp’d Sales/Marketing Director for hot,edgy contemp. line, hangs w/ Ms Sixty,Marc, Juicy. Must have rel. w/ dept/specialty stores, ability to bring in newaccts, build business & think outsidethe box. Pls email res: [email protected]

HANDBAGSNYC Based

Well established handbag co is seekingsales reps for new mass marketdivision. Must have strong handbagbackground and relationships withmajor chains and discount stores.Email resumes to: [email protected]

or Fax 770-984-0018

Sales ExecutiveNY Sportswear Co. seeks energetic, self -motivated, Sales Executive for Men’scontemporary sportswear line + betterWomen’s shirt collection. Minimum 1-3yrs. exp. with Specialty stores & travelreq’d. Please fax resume: (212) 629-8635

Showroom SalesCome join us "BY THE SEA" for a

summer of fun and travel. Designerswimwear. Sales experience a must.

Outgoing personality.Fax resume to 212-563-7072

SR. SALES EXECUTIVEEst’d contemporary knitwear collectionseeks highly motivated indiv. w/ uppertier large & specialty store relationships.Polished presentation skills & extensiveexp. req’d. Attractive compensation pkg.

Please fax resume to: (212) 704-0232

Textile DesignSales ManagerNY based studio seeks experienced,entrepreneurial go-getter to help growcore business. Salary up to $70K withbenefits plus performance bonus. Fol-lowing in US apparel &/or home mkt.essential. International experience a plus.Email resume to: [email protected]

TIBISALES ACCOUNT

EXECUTIVEAccount Executive needed for youngdesigner company based in SOHO.The position is in the NY CorporateSales office and requires working withTibi’s extensive east coast accountbase. Ideal candidate should have 2-3years wholesale experience workingwith upscale boutiques and specialtystores. Must be computer literate,highly organized and have absolutelyfabulous people skills.

Please fax resume to 212-966-2961

Women’s JeansNew High-End Women’s Jeans line offersan EXCITING OPPORTUNITY for SalesReps w/proven track records & est’d.accounts w/major Dept./Specialty stores.Fax resumes/references to: 305-672-9271

V.P. Sales & Marketing ExecutiveNationally known manufacturer and importer of better hand-bags / accessories seeks a V.P. of Sales/Marketing. Locatedin SE MA, 30 minutes from Providence, 60 minutes from Boston.Candidates must have superior skills in communication, lead-ership and math. You must be perceptive and a creative problemsolver. You must be a "quick study" with a team work styleand be fast "on your feet". You must have a keen understandingof style and fashion. Five years experience with better Dept.stores. Must be willing to travel 10 days per month. Our companyis family owned and operated, small to midsize, stable, growing,21 years old and profitable with no debt. Major performancepackage offered.

Please fax resume to: (508) 994-4153Email: [email protected]

Mail: BRAHMIN LEATHER WORKS,77 Alden Road, Fairhaven, MA 02719

LEGWEARWe have just introduced the most exciting collection of casual

legwear. Market week was a huge success and majordepartment stores are placing their orders for Fall 2004.

We are now looking to expand our sales force with qualifiedand experienced Independent Sales Reps. Must have proven

relationships with Department and Specialty Stores.ALL TERRITORIES OPEN FOR CONSIDERATION.

Please fax resume to SOLO LICENSING CORP. at: (212) 244-5535

DESIGNER SHOES US AGENT

French Designer Shoes Companyseeks experienced Sales Rep with

established relationships with stores.Please fax resume to (212) 274-9383

Outstanding Opportunity!Well-established California Apparel Mfr.is offering an extraordinary opportunityfor proven Sales Pros. We are about tolaunch an exciting new division targetingyoung, fashionable men, women, andteens, and ALL territories are available!The ideal candidates must have strongsales ability, a proven track record, andestablished relationships with surf andbetter specialty stores. If you’re seekingan exciting new challenge in a rapidlygrowing marketplace with a great com-pany, we would like to hear from you.This is a commission-based position, andtravel is a must. Please E-mail resumes:

[email protected]

TOP NOTCH PATTERNMAKERMen and Boy’s outerwear

Seeking P/T positionCall: 732-499-0054

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kmart to revamp apparel/2 ghesquiere on n.y.’s …by david moin and vicki m. young new york...

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