LVMH SALES LEAP/2 GAMES BEGIN FOR ACTIVE BRANDS/8Women’s Wear Daily • The Retailers’ Daily Newspaper • April 16, 2008 • $2.00

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OI Vest in ShowThe modern-day dandy look shows up this fall as cool

girls turn to tailored, boyish styles. Vests are a staple,

often with details like pleating to keep things feminine.

Here, Tiki Lewis, lead singer of the band Piel, sports

Suh-Tahn’s silk bengaline version, worn with ParkVogel’s

organic cotton and Lycra spandex shirt and Yoko

Devereaux’s wool pants. Alpine Stars fedora; Sydney

Evans bracelets. For more, see pages 6 and 7.

WWDWEDNESDAYSportswear

See Granoff, Page 12

From Liz to Kenneth: Cole Names Jill Granoff As CEO to Drive GrowthBy Whitney Beckett

Aiming to get back on the growth track, Kenneth Cole Productions

Inc. has poached Liz Claiborne Inc.’s Jill Granoff as chief executive officer.

Granoff, Claiborne’s executive vice president, direct brands, will take over day-to-day responsibilities for the 25-year-old Cole brand from Kenneth Cole, who will relinquish his career-long ceo title but will continue as chairman and chief creative officer.

“My strength is that of the creative force, whose background is in product and wholesale, while Jill is an operator who understands brand building,

WWD.COMWWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 20082

WWDWEDNESDAYSportswear

FASHIONStylish girls have been borrowing from the boys for some time, and fall’s slouchy, men’s wear-inspired vests and jackets fi t the androgynous vibe.

GENERALKenneth Cole Productions has hired Liz Claiborne’s Jill Granoff as chief executive offi cer, with Cole relinquishing the title for the fi rst time.

LVMH kept up its double-digit momentum in the fi rst quarter, as group sales jumped 12 percent to $5.99 billion.

Ralph Esmerian put Fred Leighton Holdings into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to halt the auction of fi ne jewels and gems.

MAINSTREAM: Athletic brands are forging ahead with their Olympic plans despite potential for protests and boycotts over China’s policies.

Wholesale prices for U.S.-made women’s and girls’ apparel, bucking an infl ationary trend, fell 0.1 percent in March, the Labor Department said.

Diane von Furstenberg and Donna Karan shared insights at American Express Publishing’s Seventh Annual Luxury Summit at the Four Seasons Hotel.

WESTBuyers from major chains left the California Market Center mostly disappointed in their search for creative design in fall collections.

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● HUDSON’S BAY TRANSITION: Following the death on Saturday of Jerry Zucker, governor and chief executive offi ce of Hudson’s Bay Co., the company’s board named his wife, Anita, as its fi rst woman governor in its 338-year history. Robert Johnston, who was deputy governor and president, has been named ceo. Zucker, 58, acquired HBC in 2006. The group op-erates more than 600 stores across Canada under The Bay, Zellers, Home Outfi tters and Fields names. Zucker was also chairman and ceo of The InterTech Group, a Charleston, S.C.-based company that owns textile, chemical and manufacturing fi rms with estimated annual sales of $3 billion.

● OSCAR IN DALLAS: Oscar de la Renta will present his fall col-lection Sept. 11 at Neiman Marcus’ downtown flagship in Dallas during the 33rd annual luncheon and fashion show benefiting the Crystal Charity Ball. The event, which featured Giorgio Armani last year, represents a kickoff to the Dallas social sea-son and is a major fashion event. Ten women are introduced on the runway and named “Best Dressed” by the charity, which is an exclusive club of 100 women that raised more than $5 million last year for children’s charities.

● RICHTER PROMOTED: Apparel veteran Martin L. Richter has been promoted to president of the Kazu division of Lana Fashionwear Inc. He was senior vice president. Kazu, a private brand manufacturer with factories in Asia, credited Richter with contributing to the development of an updated business model that expanded the client base. Richter, formerly a senior vice president, joined Kazu in 2002 after serving in senior man-agement positions at Liz Claiborne and Cygne Design.

In Brief

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WWD IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF ADVANCE MAGAZINE PUBLISHERS INC. COPYRIGHT ©2008 FAIRCHILD FASHION GROUP. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. PRINTED IN THE U.S.A.

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LVMH Sales Rise 12%By Miles Socha

PARIS — Bucking strong curren-cy headwinds and dodging eco-nomic uncertainty, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton kept up its double-digit momentum in the first quarter as sales jumped 12 percent at constant exchange to 4 billion euros, or $5.99 billion at average exchange rates.

Still, refl ecting the negative impact of a strong euro versus the dollar and yen, the increase in re-ported sales at the French luxury giant stood at 5 percent from 3.8 billion euros, or $5.69 billion.

The wines and spirits busi-ness lacked fi zz, which LVMH blamed on the adverse timing of price increases. Sales in that di-vision fell 7 percent to 640 mil-lion euros, or $958.6 million, a 1 percent uptick in organic terms.

But the core fashion and leather goods group charged ahead, logging a 14 percent or-ganic gain to 1.45 billion euros, or $2.16 billion.

Louis Vuitton posted double-digit organic growth in the three months ended March 31, with “particularly significant” in-creases in the U.S., Europe and Asia, the company said. It also noted leather goods designed by Marc Jacobs in collabora-tion with artist Richard Prince sparked “remarkable enthusi-

asm” from its clients and that its other brands recorded an “ex-cellent” quarter.

A conference call is scheduled for today to discuss the fi gures.

While acknowledging a “chal-lenging monetary environment and an uncertain economic cli-mate,” LVMH confi rmed its ob-jective of “tangible” growth in results for 2008 and said boost-ing the market share and profi t-

ability of its star brands would be among its top priorities.

In perfumes and cosmetics, sales grew 13 percent in organ-ic terms to 717 million euros, or $1.07 billion, with Europe and Asia driving the growth. By brand, Dior showed “great mo-mentum” with its perennially popular J’Adore fragrance and the new Midnight Poison scent, along with Addict High Shine lip-stick and Capture skin creams.

While its smallest division in terms of sales, watches and jew-elry posted the biggest organic revenue gains, up 19 percent to 211 million euros, or $316 mil-lion. Key styles included Tag Heuer’s Grand Carrera range, Zenith’s Chronomaster Grande Date and Dior’s Christal range. Innovations at all three brands also led to “large increases” in orders at the recent Basel watch fair, LVMH noted.

Sales in selective retailing leaped 15 percent at constant exchange to 1.01 billion euros, or $1.51 billion, with DFS’ fortunes boosted by surging Asian tour-ism and an uptick in Japanese spending abroad supported by a stronger yen.

Meanwhile, Sephora record-ed strong growth on a comp-store basis in all markets and increased its market share, the company said.

Bäumer Said Headed to VuittonPARIS — It looks like Paris-based jewelry designer Lorenz Bäumer, long associated with Chanel, is switching luxury camps and join-ing Louis Vuitton.

According to industry sources, Bäumer, a Place Vendôme jewel-er with an eponymous collection, has already started sketching de-signs for Vuitton, which unveiled its fi rst complete collection of fi ne jewelry in July 2004.

Bäumer and Louis Vuitton de-clined all comment on Tuesday. It is understood Bäumer will no longer design for Chanel, and he will not be replaced.

Branded fi ne jewelry is a lu-crative and fast-growing category, and Vuitton has been carving out more space for it in mammoth

stores like the company’s new “Maison” on Canton Road in Hong Kong, which opened last month and boasts the largest watch and jewelry salon in its network.

Vuitton also recently tapped music impresario Pharrell Williams to codesign a collec-tion, which was unveiled during couture week in Paris with pric-es running up to 420,000 euros, or about $620,760, for a necklace in white gold and diamonds.

Bäumer, a dapper man-about-town sporting custom-made suits with deep purple linings, cre-ates about 200 signature jewelry creations a year with nature, ar-chitecture and poetry among his favorite themes.

— M.S.

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By Evan Clark

Ralph Esmerian put Fred Leighton Holdings into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection

Tuesday to halt the auction of fi ne jewels and gems he used as collateral on a loan that soured.

The 115-piece collection was set to be auc-tioned at Christie’s Tuesday night, but the bank-ruptcy fi ling prevents creditors from collecting on their debt, said Helen Davis Chaitman, a Phillips Nizer attorney who works for Esmerian.

“The company’s solvent and profi table,” said Chaitman. “We just did this in order to prevent the desecration of this collection.” In addition to the Fred Leighton stores and inventory, the other entities that technically owned pieces to be auc-tioned were also put into Chapter 11 protection in Manhattan bankruptcy court.

That’s not the end of it, though. “We have asked the bankruptcy court to allow

the auction to occur Wednesday evening,” said a spokesman for Merrill Lynch. A Christie’s spokeswoman said there would be a court hear-ing. According to court documents, Christie’s has spent more than $500,000 promoting the auction and Merrill Lynch is pushing for it to be held no

later than Thursday. The last-minute fi ling caps off a whirlwind of

legal activity for Esmerian, who borrowed money from Merrill Lynch to fi nance his 2006 acquisition of Fred Leighton, a fourth-generation fi ne jewelry dealer. Later that year, Esmerian tapped Martha Stewart’s former stockbroker, Peter Bacanovic, to be chief executive offi cer.

Esmerian missed part of a payment in the fall and still owes Merrill Lynch about $180 million.

An appellate court put the brakes on the auction on Monday, but on Tuesday, New York Supreme Court Justice Helen Freedman said the auction could go forward, according to Chaitman.

Fred Leighton will now be debtor-in-pos-session, said Chaitman, noting the company would be in a position then to sell all the jew-els. That would include a rare 14.23-carat fan-cy-cut pink diamond.

The goal, said Chaitman, is to fi le a plan of reorga-nization in four or fi ve months and work out a plan to pay back Merrill Lynch over fi ve years with interest.

“The Chapter 11 fi lings were necessary to pre-vent an out-of-control Wall Street investment bank from making a cash grab which will destroy a vi-able business,” said Chaitman.

Esmerian Files Chapter 11 for Fred Leighton

Handbags done in collaboration with artist Richard Prince spurred leather goods sales at Louis Vuitton.

Lorenz Bäumer

WWD.COMWWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 20084

PARIS — On the back of a difficult trading environment in North America and a strong euro, L’Oréal reported first-quarter 2008 sales of 4.36 billion euros, or $6.53 billion at average exchange, up 2.1 percent over the same period last year. On a like-for-like basis, rev-enues gained 5.1 percent.

The net impact of changes in consolidation — primarily the ac-quisitions in the U.S. of PureOlogy, Beauty Alliance, Maly’s West and Columbia Beauty Supply, and in Turkey, of Canan — was 2 percent.

“In the first quarter, we achieved globally satisfactory growth: excluding North America, where the environment was ex-ceptionally difficult, the group achieved growth of 7.5 percent, in line with our projections,” stated Jean-Paul Agon, chief executive offi cer of the company.

“In North America, after an exceptional fourth-quarter 2007, we had been anticipating a lack-luster fi rst quarter,” he continued. “In fact, it turned out to be more diffi cult because of lower footfall in department stores and larger-than-expected inventory reduc-tions by our distributors.”

First-quarter sales for L’Oréal in North America fell 7.2 percent to 893 million euros, or $1.34 billion. On a like-for-like basis, they dropped 3.9 percent.

“The rest-of-the-world zone continued to grow very strongly, particularly in Asia and Eastern Europe, and is fully playing its role as a powerful growth relay,” continued Agon. “In Western Europe, the start of the year is in line with our expectations in a market which remains solid.”

In the period, the rest-of-the-world zone’s business hit 1.29 bil-lion euros, or $1.93 billion, up 12.1 percent, or 16.7 percent on a comparable basis. Of that, L’Oréal’s Asian business reached 464 mil-lion euros, or $695 million, up 13.7 percent, or 21.9 percent on a like-for-like basis. In Eastern Europe, the company registered revenues of 359 million euros, or $537.7 million, a 24.1 percent gain, or 25.9 percent growth on a comparable basis.

In Western Europe, L’Oréal posted sales of 1.94 billion euros, or $2.9 billion, up 1 percent, or 2.3 percent on a like-for-like basis.

Currency fl uctuations negatively impacted L’Oréal’s sales by 5 percent.

By operational division, the company’s professional products’ busi-ness came in at 620 million euros, or $928.6 million, rising 14.5 percent from the prior-year period. Consumer products’ revenues were fl at at 2.15 billion euros, or $3.22 billion; luxury products’ sales inched up 0.2 percent to 930 million euros, or $1.39 billion, and active cosmetics’ revenues gained 3.8 percent to 408 million euros, or $611.1 million.

L’Oréal remains bullish about the future.“We are confi dent in our ability to accelerate our growth over the

coming quarters, thanks to favorable launch phasing, better pros-pects in North America and continuing dynamism in other zones. We are therefore able to confi rm our annual like-for-like growth tar-get range of 6 percent to 8 percent,” Argon said.

— Jennifer Weil

Makeup, Men’s Perform Well in GermanyBERLIN — Luxury cosmetics lines underperformed in Germany in 2007, though makeup and men’s products bucked the trend.

Last year was anything but strong for Germany’s luxury cos-metics market, according to the VKE, or the German Association of Cosmetic Producers — whose 200 member brands represent 35 percent of Germany’s cosmetics products market. In, 2007 industry sales totaled 1.57 billion euros, or $2.15 billion at average exchange, an increase of just 0.9 percent.

However, manufacturers have hopes for modest growth in 2008, according to a recent VKE report.

The largest reported drop was a 3.8 percent decline in sales of women’s facial care products and sun care, a performance that was considerably below industry expectations. Women’s fragrance also performed below projections, showing a 3.6 percent drop.

Going opposite the downward trend were men’s products, includ-ing fragrances, shaving items and skin care products. Men’s showed above average growth, with a 10.1 percent increase. New choices in facial care products on the shelves, and a growing interest in and acceptance of personal care lines targeting men helped this cat-egory to grow.

Decorative cosmetics also marked a notable bright spot, with a 5.8 percent increase, tied to the launch of new and high-end prod-ucts. Consumer interest in antiaging and wellness products helped give the body care segment a modest boost of 1.4 percent.

VKE managing director Martin Ruppmann said his group’s mem-ber companies were somewhat positive about increased sales in 2008, and said the association anticipates up to 2 percent growth this year.

That small number may be a big deal for some. A December 2007 VKE survey found 24 percent of members reporting said earnings decreased.

— Susan Stone

L’Oréal First-Qtr. Sales Inch Ahead 2.1 Percent

BEAUTY BEAT

Jean-Paul Agon

Texas Motif for Bush’s BridesmaidsBy Rosemary Feitelberg

First Daughter Jenna Bush’s fashion choices will reflect her Texas roots when she gets married

May 10 at the family’s ranch in Crawford, Tex. At the bride-to-be’s suggestion, Lela Rose has

designed seven different knee-length dresses in seven colors inspired by the state’s wildfl owers for the 14 members of Bush’s “house party,” a Southern term for attendants.

Each ethereal dress has handmade rosettes and is made of crinkle silk chiffon backed with cotton voile. Rose, whose of-the-moment wedding dresses have been embraced by more directional stores, has created dresses with modern touches such as boatnecks and pocket details — without a strapless style in sight.

Barbara Bush, the maid of honor, who will be standing with her sister during the ceremony, plans to wear a long Lela Rose moonstone-col-ored shimmery gown with a pretty antique sil-ver belt and a low back. The designer created a similar belt for the attendants.

Barbara Bush’s dress was dyed to match her blue eyes. “It’s really stunning on her,” Rose said.

In the spring, bluebonnets, the state fl ower of Texas, Indian paintbrushes and other wildfl owers grow along the state’s highways, thanks largely to Lady Bird Johnson, who championed a nation-wide beautifi cation program when Lyndon B. Johnson was president. Her fellow Texan, First Lady Laura Bush, has followed in a similar vein. During a speech last week in Dallas, she said the First Bloom program, a National Park Foundation initiative that she launched in the fall, carries on Lady Bird Johnson’s legacy.

“It will be glorious in Texas at this time of year. It could not be prettier,” said Rose, who grew up in the Lone Star State and has known Jenna and her twin sister, Barbara, since they were young. “Crawford has meant so much to them. Having their wedding in a natural space and mimicking nature seemed very natural.”

Jenna Bush will wear an Oscar de la Renta

gown when she weds Henry Hager in an outdoor evening ceremony in front of 200 friends and fam-ily members.

The First Family will put the celebration in motion on May 9 with a pre-wedding party.

Rose said Jenna Bush is taking everything in stride. “She’s very relaxed, easygoing and just so happy,” the designer said. “She has a great group of girls around her and she’s known many of them for years. I think she’s enjoyed every single moment of it.”

Jenna Bush and her attendants have visited Rose’s atelier for fi ttings and a few even caught the designer’s bridal fashion show on Sunday. The behind-the-scenes meetings with the designer were an extra kick for the women, but Barbara Bush already knew the ins and outs, having

worked for Rose as an intern during her under-graduate days at Yale.

The Bush and Rose families have been friendly for years. Jenna Bush and her parents attended Rose’s wedding in Dallas in 1999. Rose’s mother, Deedie, a pillar in the Dallas art and design scene, recommended architect David Heymann to work on the Crawford ranch.

Now that Lela Rose has the attendants squared away for dresses, she needs to fi gure out what she will wear. “I have no idea. It’s terrible. Whenever I have some sort of black-tie event, I usually decide what to wear right before I leave,” she said.

Solange Azagury-Partridge Sells Controlling StakeBy Samantha Conti

LONDON — Solange Azagury-Partridge has sold a controlling stake in her London-based jewelry business and has big plans for expansion.

The jeweler, who has a stand-alone store on London’s Westbourne Grove and is famous for her colored stones and dark, dramatic designs, has sold the stake to Peter Harf, the chairman of Coty Inc. and a longtime cli-ent of hers.

Harf, who is also chief executive of Coty’s German par-ent, Joh. A. Benckiser GmbH, plans to use Azagury-Partridge’s company as the seed to build a portfolio of small and medium-size luxury brands called Label Lux, according to the designer.

“I know him, trust him, and he values my creativity,” said Azagury-Partridge of Harf. “The conditions for this deal were 100 percent right for me,” she told WWD exclusively.

Azagury-Partridge will remain creative director and managing director of her company. Under the

deal, the London-born jeweler, whose Sephardic Jewish family is originally from Casablanca, Morocco, plans to open a Manhattan store within the year. There are also plans afoot to open an ad-ditional fi ve to 10 shops worldwide.

“I had come to the point of semi-frustration, where I was going to have to carry on being self-funded or get some fi nancial and business input,” she said. “This business is expensive, and without

outside help I would have been able to open just one more shop.”

Azagury-Partridge’s business, which she founded in 1990, con-sists of ready-to-wear collections, bespoke commissions and fra-grance. She said she and her partners were already putting sys-tems in place to make production and distri-bution easier.

Azagury-Partridge said she was hoping to

have secured a Manhattan store location later this year. In October, she will be in New York for an exhibition at the Sebastian + Barquet gallery in Chelsea. The show will feature artwork inspired by her jewelry.

By Robert Murphy

PARIS — François Steiner’s romance with Sonia Rykiel has proved short-lived, WWD has learned.

Steiner, who was hired in December as man-aging director of the family-owned house here, has parted ways with Rykiel after he clashed over strategy with Nathalie Rykiel, the house’s creative director and president.

“It just didn’t work,” said a spokesman for Rykiel, who added that it has yet to be determined how Steiner will be replaced.

Steiner, a former president of Kenzo who

also held management jobs at Louis Vuitton and Thomas Pink, joined Rykiel to craft a coherent strategy for the house as it moves to expand be-yond France.

Steiner was hired after Nathalie Rykiel last year divorced her husband, Simon Burstein, who had doubled as house president. (Burstein’s fam-ily runs the Browns fashion stores in London.)

This year, Rykiel, with annual sales of some 100 million euros, or about $158 million at current ex-change, is celebrating its 40 year of existence. A retrospective exhibit of Rykiel’s styles is planned for October in Paris.

François Steiner’s Short Stint Ends at Sonia Rykiel

A piece by Solange Azagury-Partridge.

The colors of Jenna Bush’s attendants’ dresses, designed by Lela Rose, were inspired by Texas’ wildfl owers.

WWD.COMWWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008 5

Gala Fetes Gap, CFDA CollaborationNEW YORK — “He’s my date,” joked Amy Sedaris, flashing her white Philip Crangi cuff bracelet. The comedienne was, of course, referring to Crangi himself, whom she accompa-nied to Monday night’s launch party for Gap’s newest Design Editions collections in partnership with the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund.

Sedaris wasn’t alone in making the date the must-have accessory for the night. Thakoon Panichgul arrived on the arm of stylist Tina Chai, Phillip Lim came with Elettra Wiedemann, and Patrick Robinson was giving Tory Burch a tour of the special white shirt collection, as well as his fi rst designs for Gap, where he is an executive vice presi-dent of design.

“You can sort of tell the designers by the pieces,” Robinson said of the white shirt interpretations by Band of Outsiders, Michael Bastian, 3.1 Phillip Lim and Threeasfour, as well as Crangi’s jewelry.

“I want a lot of it,” Burch admitted.

So, it seemed, did Virginia Madsen, Lake Bell, Keisha Whitaker, Aerin Lauder, Jennifer Creel and Arden Wohl, as well as many of the young designers who fi lled the raw space at 620 Fifth Avenue. They included Marchesa’s Georgina Chapman and Keren Craig, Richard Chai, José Ramón Reyes, Sari Gueron, Ashleigh Verrier, Jason Wu, Marcia Patmos and Tina Lutz of Lutz & Patmos, and Costello Tagliapietra’s Robert

Tagliapietra and Jeffrey Costello.“I am a pencil skirt wearer, so I always need a white

crisp clean top,” Bell said, checking out the white shirts on display.

Council of Fashion Designers of America executive director Steven Kolb, meanwhile, was eyeing Crangi’s pieces. “I don’t really wear jewelry, but I would wear one of these necklaces with a button down shirt,” he said. “But I would have to get up early,” he added of the Tuesday morning launch at Gap stores nationwide.

Gabi of Threeasfour admitted he was less likely to don any of the special Gap designs. “The girls may,” he said, referring to his design partners Adi and Ange. “I am very much into wearing Threeasfour, which means I get to wear a lot of women’s wear because we don’t make men’s wear. I would love to start men’s wear soon, though.”

— Marc Karimzadeh

A NEW NUMBER: Chanel is said to be in talks with petite French actress Audrey Tautou to feature in a new commercial for its mythic No.5 fragrance. And rumor has it Tautou will reunite with “Amélie” director Jean-Pierre Jeunet for the spots. Chanel offi cials could not be reached for comment Tuesday. VOTE FOR VERSACE: On the heels of Silvio Berlusconi’s victory as Italy’s prime minister, Santo Versace has secured a seat in the country’s Parliament, becoming a member of the State Chamber. “I am taking this very seriously,” Versace told WWD. “I decided to run because I want to do something concrete for the future.” The buzz in Milan is that Versace could even be headed for a cabinet post, but it may take Berlusconi a couple of weeks to fi nalize his list and present it to Italy’s head of state, Giorgio Napolitano. Berlusconi won the elections, held Sunday and Monday, with his center-right Freedom Party and will rule the country for the third time. Meanwhile, the political leader has promised four of his 12 ministers will be women and a likely candidate is the blonde, slim Sicilian Stefania Prestigiacomo. Her appointment no doubt would give the Italian press plenty of fodder given Berlusconi’s renowned eye for the opposite sex.

UOMO GUCCI: After David Lynch directed a trio of dancing models for fragrance Gucci by Gucci’s advertising campaign, the fashion house is said to have signed actor James Franco for its new men’s scent, slated to launch in fall. Franco, 29, who starred in the “Spider-Man” fi lms, is expected to front the campaign for the men’s fragrance version of Gucci by Gucci, the fi rst men’s scent under the creative direction of Gucci designer Frida Giannini. BALL GAME: Tilda Swinton will go to the Met Costume Institute Ball as a guest of Miuccia Prada, according to a source. The American actress Elizabeth Banks also is said to have been invited by the house. A surprise installation is in store for the centerpiece of the Prada table at the event, meanwhile, in the form of a living art installation

HELPING OUT: Chopard co-president Caroline Gruosi-Scheufele and designer Alberta Ferretti are combining their talents for a good cause. The two have designed a jewel-laden dress for the amfAR gala in Cannes, France, on May 22. Ferretti and Gruosi-Scheufele met at last year’s Venice Film Festival, but both have long admired one another’s work. “I often choose Ferretti gowns for prestigious evenings,” said Scheufele-Gruosi. The dress will be unveiled at Chopard’s annual gala dinner on May 14 and will be worn by a yet-to-be named star.

AMAZING GRACE: Hermès fans may never be able to get their mitts on the original Kelly bag once belonging to the late Princess Grace of Monaco, but a unique version of the iconic bag, screen-printed with an image of her, will be up for grabs on June 2 as part of a vintage Hermès sale organized by auction house Artcurial in Paris. The bag, donated by HRH Princess Stephanie, was produced for the “Grace Kelly Years” exhibition last year. Proceeds will go to the Fight Aids Monaco charity.

Fashion Scoops

Keisha Whitaker, Patrick Robinson

and Lake Bell.

Amy Sedaris

Richard Chai and Phillip Lim

A display of Gap’s new Design Editions shirts.

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SEN

By Nina Jones

LONDON — Revenues at Burberry rose 19.2 percent to 546 million pounds, or $1.09 billion, in the six months to March 31, from 458 million pounds, or $885.8 million, in the same period last year.

In the full fi scal year, sales rose 17.1 percent to 996 million pounds, or $2 billion, from 850.3 million pounds, or $1.61 billion. All fi gures have been converted from the pound at average exchange rates for the re-spective periods.

The company said in a statement Tuesday that the brand’s growing non-apparel categories, including hand-bags, shoes and soft accessories — which now account for 33 percent of Burberry’s retail and wholesale rev-enues — along with a “consistent mar-keting message,” had helped the group weather the recent turbulence in con-sumer spending.

The company issued a trading state-ment Tuesday, and will release full results for the fi nancial year ended March 31 on May 28.

“Burberry had a good fi nish to the year, against the background of an in-creasingly challenging external envi-ronment,” said Angela Ahrendts, chief executive of Burberry. “Looking for-ward, we [are very pleased] with the momentum of our brand as our core luxury, retail and nonapparel strate-gies continue to gain traction, while our seasoned management team fo-cuses on improving the operational aspects of our business.”

Retail sales in the second half rose 17 percent to 282 million pounds, or $567.4 million, from 241 million pounds, or $466.1 million, in the same period last year. The company said retail revenues made up more than 50 percent of its total sales in

the half, and were driven by sales of handbags and shoes, alongside outer-wear and dresses.

In the U.S., the company said it saw “double-digit” comparable-store sales growth, with strong performance in tourist and oil-producing cities.

Overall, sales in the U.S. rose 19 percent to 137 million pounds, or $275.6 million, from 115 million pounds, or $222.4 million, while sales in the Asia-Pacifi c region rose 16 per-cent and in the rest of the world — ex-cluding Europe and North America — sales rose 87 percent to 18 million pounds, or $36.2 million. Average re-tail selling space increased 12 percent in the second half, during which the

company opened nine stores, 40 con-cessions, fi ve outlets and its fi rst stand-alone children’s store in Hong Kong.

And, while economic conditions may be pointing toward a slowdown in the U.S. economy, the company said it views the region as an “underpenetrated mar-ket,” along with emerging markets such as China, and predicts a 20 percent growth in wholesale sales in the U.S. in the year to next March.

“We have in our favor a very strong tailwind behind us in terms of the momentum of the brand,” Stacey Cartwright, chief fi nancial offi cer, told analysts on a conference call Tuesday. “Everything we’ve been doing has been standing us in good stead, while we’re cognizant of the headwinds in the eco-nomic environment.”

Spain, however, continued to be a weak spot for the company, both in terms of retail and wholesale sales, with a modest 4 percent growth in overall revenues to 91 million pounds, or $183.1 million, during the period.

“Spain does not have a huge lux-ury market, and our brand position-ing in Spain is more of a better brand than a luxury brand….We don’t have that protection we seem to have se-cured for ourselves [elsewhere] from that luxury positioning,” Cartwright said, adding that the region also was experiencing a slowdown in the hous-ing market more sharply than the rest of Europe.

Meanwhile, wholesale sales rose

28 percent to 219 million pounds, or $440.6 million, from 172 million pounds, or $332.6 million. The compa-ny said its nonapparel and outerwear had performed best at wholesale, and that the category had benefi ted from a more balanced product offer, a more frequent fl ow of goods to customers and an improved stock replenishment program.

The company said revenues from licensing were fl at compared with the same period last year, at 45 million pounds, or $90.5 million. The effect on revenues of the company’s decision not to renew certain licenses, particularly in men’s wear, was offset by the volume growth in its global product licenses, including the successful launch of the fragrance Burberry the Beat.

Burberry Revenue Climbs 19.2%

“We have in our favor a very strong tailwind behind us in terms of the momentum of the brand.” — Stacey Cartwright, Burberry

A sketch of the dress Caroline Gruosi-Scheufele and Alberta Ferretti are collaborating on.

6 WWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008

man upStylish girls have been borrowing from the boys since time immemorial, and fall’s slouchy, men’s wear-inspired vests and jackets fi t perfectly into the androgynous vibe. Here, singer-songwriter Tiki Lewis of Piel wears the look, a departure from her skin-baring onstage style. — Leila Baboi

Marlova’s cashmere vest, cotton jersey shirt from Le Sang des Betes and Suh-Tahn’s silk pants. Modern Vintage boots; Posso the Spat spats.

WWD.COM7WWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008

Endovanera’s cotton and

polyester hoodie and cotton shirt and pants, and

Alpha Industries’ cotton vest. Alex +

Chloe necklaces; Sydney Evans ring.

Bishop of Seventh’s polyester, viscose and

Lycra vest, cotton shirt from Skin and Threads

and The Battalion’s bamboo, cotton

and spandex pants. Cavern scarf; Azature

bangles; Frye boots.

Endovanera’s merino and bamboo vest, Richard Ruiz’s silk bra top and Converse by John Varvatos’ viscose vest and sequined jersey pants.

A Modal, silk and cashmere vest from

Twenty8Twelve by s. miller worn over

William Rast’s cotton vest, and rayon jumpsuit

and belt from Society for Rational Dress.

Army Surplus boots; Posso the Spat spats.

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8 WWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008

In the Mainstream

By Whitney Beckett

The Beijing Olympics have the potential to be among the most controversial in re-cent memory — but activewear companies are nonetheless diving in as sponsors.

They can’t afford not to — even though linking up with the Games this time around could have its downsides because of human rights issues in the Asian country. More than the typical surge in sales that active companies enjoy from the Games, the 2008 Olympics are key for brands in establishing a foothold in the huge consumer market that China represents.

Although almost every major sports brand dips its foot into the Olympic pool by dressing athletes and advertising, the most visible are Adidas (the offi cial sportswear sponsor of the 2008 Olympic Games) and Nike (which sources estimate is spending about $150 million for marketing associated with the Games).

Almost across the board, active fi rms are avoiding demonizing the policies of the Chinese government and dodge questions about whether they worry the protests could hurt their sales — universally saying their focus is on the athletes. But consul-tants speculate all these companies have put someone in charge of handling any po-tential crisis, and conversations about a possible backlash are certainly occurring.

Will advertisers get less bang for their buck if consumers boycott watching the Games or turn off their TVs during the commercials, as protesters have been urging? Will customers interpret sponsorship, advertising and ties with the Beijing Olympics as tacit endorsements of the Chinese government’s policies on Tibet, Darfur, the environ-ment and freedom of the press? Will shoppers go so far as to boy-cott the sponsors, the advertisers or even those with ties as simple as dressing the athletes?

“The labels sponsoring indi-vidual athletes probably won’t see any backlash, because no one blames the athletes for par-ticipating,” said Suzanne Hader, principal at 400twin Luxury Brand Consulting. “But more general advertising sponsors may very well see some backlash. Part will come down to what the messaging behind the creative is about. If they tailor their creative so it’s more about specifi c ath-letes and less about bigger trends and themes in Olympic history, that’s probably a safer bet.”

Of course, almost any com-pany dressing athletes is also advertising. But that doesn’t mean this has to be devastat-ing for the active companies, according to Matt Powell, an analyst for the consulting fi rm SportsONESource Inc.

“I’m not sure the protesters are the primary sneaker custom-ers,” he said. “But I really don’t believe the Olympics itself drives business. People don’t see pole vaulting and decide to be a pole vaulter. But the brands do a lot more marketing during the event and introduce a lot more product — that combination of fresh new product and increased ad dollars drives sales, though it’s very dif-fi cult to quantify the impact.”

Catherine Sadler, president of the New York marketing fi rm Catherine Sadler Group, agrees the potential upside outweighs the chances of a downside.

“Corporations want to play nice with the Chinese government, which controls their access to 1.3 billion new consumers with an appetite for commercial goods, and they want to raise their profi le in China,” Sadler said. “Their investment in this Olympics has more to do with lifetime value and less with immediate sales, but they are also walking a tightrope because they need to be wary that consumers may equate spon-sorship with an endorsement of Chinese policies. But consumers are extremely for-giving, and once in the throes of watching the Olympics, which transcend politics and are a part of the human spirit, which is what Nike and Adidas are about, I don’t know it will really harm them.”

Sadler recommended these companies fi nd a way to “be both pro-Olympics and pro-change in China in a way that’s nonpolitical,” like Volkswagen planting thousands of trees in Mongolia.

Marc Gobé, president of Emotional Branding, a New York-based think tank, recommended that companies start a dialogue with their consumers online to ask them what they think of the issues in China and the Games in order to diffuse nega-tive sentiments.

“If you are there with your billboards and commercials, consumers will see you as giving full support to China, and you might be a target for some negative sentiments,” Gobé said. “If you don’t have an active engagement of dialogue for the consumers, you may create customer resentment.”

As the offi cial sportswear partner of the Games, Adidas’ ties to the Beijing Olympics are highly visible. The German brand is sponsoring 16 national Olympic committees, including China; 214 Olympic Federation sports, and more than 3,000 individual athletes — supplying more than 500,000 pieces of apparel and footwear. Plus the activewear giant is investing its biggest marketing spend in China ever in the Games. Its campaign, “Together in 2008, Impossible Is Nothing,” is “designed to bring

the Chinese people together and inspire them to rally around the Olympic Games,” according to a spokeswoman for Adidas.

“Adidas is conscious of the exceptional importance of the protection of human rights,” the spokeswoman said. “Sponsors, however, should not be expected to solve political issues. We clearly see the limits of our infl uence. In China, we focus on the protection of human rights, fair labor and environmentally sustainable conditions in the factories manufacturing our products. We believe that boycotting the Olympics is counterproductive and will therefore uphold our commitment to the Olympic Games.”

For the fi rst time, the entire line of Adidas Olympics TECHFIT POWERWEB apparel and “Made for Beijing” footwear will be available at retail, in Adidas Sport Performance Stores and on eastbay.com. The footwear collection will consist of the shoes the athletes are wearing in 26 different sports. The shoes have functional technology as well as sou-venir value, as select styles take inspiration from the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the Bird’s Nest (for example, the outer layer of mesh on the Boxing shoe).

No small part of Adidas’ focus is wrangling for a top position in the giant Chinese market. The company is using the Games as an accelerant to invest in China, where it is building two stores a day, including its largest Adidas Sport Performance store (at about 10,000 square feet), in Beijing this spring. By 2010, China will be the company’s second largest market after the U.S., with a targeted 1 billion euros, or $1.58 billion, in sales. Adidas also rallied the Chinese public by soliciting submissions for a podium suit for the Chinese Olympic medal winners, and the winning design was selected

from 2,400 public submissions. As the fi rst active fi rm to hit

$1 billion in sales in China this year, Nike holds the top spot there now. The Beaverton, Ore.-

based fi rm has been in China for 30 years, and the country is its sec-

ond largest market globally. Nike is aggressively rolling out stores in China, where it boasts 3,500 doors. Last summer, the fi rm opened a Beijing fl agship that is proving to be one of its best performing units worldwide, ac-cording to a spokesman.

For this Olympics, Nike is launching its biggest campaign ever, tailoring its iconic “Just Do It” ads to China’s youth. The campaign already rolled out in China, with a 60-second commercial featuring hurdler

Liu Xiang, and will follow in the rest of the world closer to the Games. Olympic fans will be able to buy the new technology, in-cluding the lightweight Flywire shoe construction, that athletes will wear during the Games. For example, the 92-gram track shoe Zoom Victory Spike and 13-oz.

basketball shoe Hyperdunk are expected to hit stores a few weeks before the Olympics this summer.

Regarding whether some of the impact of the campaign could be lost by people either

not watching the Games or active-ly avoiding advertisers, the Nike spokesman stated: “Like anyone we are concerned about reports of civil unrest in the world, but our focus is on the athletes.”

Nike recently extended its relation-ship with the U.S. Olympic Committee

as an offi cial outfi tter of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Teams, providing U.S. Olympic and Paralympic athletes with the Medal Stand uniform worn on the awards podium and during medals ceremonies, through the London 2012 Olympic Games. At Beijing, Nike said it will outfi t U.S. athletes competing in nearly every sport, including the offi cial uniforms for U.S. National Governing Bodies. Additionally, Nike is sponsoring 22 of the 28 Olympic Federation sports in China.

According to Powell, the “most bang for your buck is promoting a national team who will get play in its home market on the nightly news.” The two highest -profi le active markets in these Games — the U.S. and China — are divided between Adidas and Nike, with Adidas sponsoring the Chinese National Olympic Committee and Nike sponsoring the U.S. National Olympic Committee, but Adidas will sponsor several U.S. Olympic Federation sports and Nike will sponsor 22 of the 28 Chinese federation sports.

Although most active brands dress athletes and advertise during the Games — in-cluding Puma, TYR and New Balance — Powell identifi ed Adidas, Nike and Speedo as the three active companies most associated with the Olympics.

Speedo sponsors more than 75 athletes in swimming, diving, water polo, volley-ball and triathlon. Its newly launched record-setting LZR Racer suit will be worn by high-profi le swimmers including Michael Phelps. The LZR Racer will be available to consumers in July for $550.

“Speedo has not received any backlash or protest against the brand thus far,” a spokesman said. “As a brand and company, our primary focus is on the positive mes-saging of the Olympic Games and the amazing level of hard work and dedication that the athletes have put into each of their sports. We recognize that for many of these athletes, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and we want to support them how-ever we can in helping them achieve their goal. While we fi rmly believe in freedom of speech and opinion, we hope that the world can come together and stand united in the positive spirit, sportsmanship and camaraderie of the Games.”

The Games Prevail for Active Firms

“If you are there with your billboards and commercials,

consumers will see you as giving full support to China, and

you might be a target for some negative sentiments. ” — Marc Gobé, Emotional Branding

Adidas’ China Olympic campaign.

Nike’s Olympic track uniforms.

Protesters in Chicago.

Michael Phelps in Speedo’s LZR Racer.

▲

DKNY PROMOTION: Andrew Comley was promoted to senior vice president of women’s at DKNY. He had been vice president of design at DKNY since 2005. Comley also is the designer for the Pure DKNY brand. A graduate of London’s Royal College of Art, Comley held senior posts at Gucci and Trussardi and consulted at MaxMara before joining Calvin Klein Inc. in 1995 to become design director for the women’s collection. He then worked at Emanuel/Emanuel Ungaro and Adrienne Vittadini, before joining Donna Karan International as a consultant. In his new role, Comley continues to report to Jane Chung, executive vice president of DKNY Design.

ALVIN VALLEY ONLINE: Deciding to put brick-and-mortar retail plans on hold, Alvin Valley is introducing e-commerce this week to alvinvalley.com. For each item, the site offers descriptions of its inspiration, where to wear it, which body type it fl atters and a sense of whether it’s running big or small. “I wanted to create an atmosphere of coming into my studio — extending that experience to women outside of New York,” Valley said, adding that his work on the Web site is “almost like editing my own magazine.” The site, for which Fabiola Beracasa and Olivia Chantecaille are modeling looks, also features “Valley Vibes,” a section in which the designer recommends “places I think are hot” such as restaurants and resorts.

NBA STORE SCORES: The NBA Store on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan reported its best March ever with a 46 percent increase in sales, as the store began a celebration of its 10th anniversary. Thanks partly to increased interest in teams like the Boston Celtics, sales at the NBA Store are up more than 17 percent since the season began. Traffi c rose 32 percent, and international visitors represent almost half that fi gure. For six months, begun in March, the store is marking its 10th year with promotions, including in-store appearances by players. The unit’s 10 millionth visitor will win an all-expense-paid trip to the 2009 NBA All-Star Game. PUMA ON THE PULSE: Puma isn’t just rocking new poster boy Paolo Nutini for its spring Puma Runway collection: It’s also tapping fresh design talent. This summer the label will unveil three bag designs by London-based Central Saint Martins College students at Puma Concept stores. The items are the result of a competition during London Fashion Week in February. The contest was held for second-year master’s degree fashion students, and eight short-listed designs were shown as part of the institute’s master’s degree graduate runway show. Puma set the challenge of designing a bag for its iconic Usan shoe, inspired by this summer’s Beijing Olympics, and picked George Omerod for the prize. The bags will be sold in Puma Concept stores worldwide beginning in August, with proceeds going to the school. This is the second year of Puma’s involvement with Central Saint Martins, which last year hosted a competition for men’s wear students to design footwear. Puma also has sponsored the master’s degree graduate fashion show both years.

— Whitney Beckett and Marc Karimzadeh

WWD.COM9WWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008

NEWSREELThe winning

Puma design.

Alvin Valley’s relaunched Web site.

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THE FASHION DESTINATION

WINTER ‘08

TRANSITION ‘08

FALL ‘08

Junior & Young Contemporary Resources

WWD.COM10 WWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008

Marketing

By Michael Kepp

RIO DE JANEIRO — Don’t expect to see huge Calvin Klein Jeans billboards in São Paulo — or those from any other brand for that matter.

Latin America’s largest city last year banned out-door advertising in a bid to clean up the visual land-scape, a move that’s caused fashion and other brands to signifi cantly shift marketing strategies.

While many of the metropolitan area’s 18 million residents have applauded the cleanup, fi rms that sold outdoor space in São Paulo, including ad agen-cies and the owners of various outdoor locations, have lost about 300 million reals ($175 million) in annual revenue, according to Central de Outdoors, a nationwide group of companies selling ad space outdoors.

Before the law took effect 16 months ago, São Paulo, which accounts for 20 percent of Brazil’s gross national product, accounted for nearly half of the 650 million reals, or $380 million, spent in the country each year on outdoor ads.

“The law was good for the city, but it was bad for us,” admitted Gabriela Barcellos, marketing director at Calvin Klein Jeans in Brazil. “We lost a key component to our ad venue variety — the Calvin Klein Jeans bill-board — which really helped spread our brand name.”

The so-called clean city law, which is the fi rst of its kind in Brazil, was the initiative of maverick Mayor Gilberto Kassab, who wasted little time in proposing it after he took offi ce in March 2006. The measure was passed by the state legislature in September 2006 and took effect Jan. 1, 2007. “São Paulo was among the most visually polluted cities in the world, and 70 percent of the outdoor media in the city was illegal,” Kassab said, referring to displays that exceeded size limits or evad-ed city permits and taxes.

“Ninety-nine percent of the outdoor advertising in the city has been taken down,” said Sérgio Rondino, head of the mayor’s press offi ce. “Most of it was taken down voluntarily. In some cases [outdoor media own-ers] fought the law in court, some of them arguing it was unconstitutional,” Rondino noted. “The city won nearly all of those lawsuits and lost none. Some of those lawsuits are still in the courts, and while they are, the owners of the outdoor billboards and panels can still keep them up.”

Companies that once bought ad space in places like shopping malls, bus shelters, building panels and news-stands have been shifting about 10 percent of their for-mer expenditures indoors, to wall-mounted plasma screens beside shopping mall elevators, signs in mall corridors and signs on escalator walls, among other places, according to Central de Outdoors president Raul Nogueira.

Responses to the city’s visual pollution law include:

● Calvin Klein Jeans moving 10 percent of the bud-get once earmarked for outdoor ads to additional news-paper and magazine ads.

● Levi’s hiking its spending on ads in magazines and on commercials in movie theaters.

● Unilever’s Seda shampoo advertising in upscale fashion stores.

● The Coca-Cola Co. hawking its brand name on bar-room pool tables in place of traditional green felt.

Estimates of how much former outdoor ad spend-ing has been reallocated to print, broadcast and online media vary, with Nogueira characterizing it as “little,” and Michael Eberhardt, president of indoor media as-sociation Abramid, suggesting as much as “10 to 20 per-cent” of money formerly spent to buy ad space outdoors has shifted to newspapers and magazines, as well as indoor venues.

“Although indoor media can target a more specifi c public, its impact is much smaller” than the impact of outdoor media on the broader public, Nogueira con-tended. Central de Outdoors estimates companies lost annual sales of about 800 million reals to 1 billion reals ($470 million to $588 million) since the law forbade them from most outdoor advertising. The few excep-tions include hot air balloons and aprons worn by gas station attendants.

Since the clean city law took effect, Eberhardt’s own media sales fi rm, New Ad, has been selling more ads in nontraditional locations, like beauty salon mirrors, toilet stall doors and napkins and coasters in bars and restaurants.

Equus, a local women’s sportswear brand with 12 of its 40 stores in São Paulo, had been advertising on six São Paulo billboards before the clean city law. Since then, it has upped its advertising in Brazilian magazines, and, through New Ad, placed ads on the doors of women’s toilet stalls in city restaurants. The toilet stall ads lasted just three months. “We decided that advertising our product in women’s bathrooms did not add value to the brand,” said Edison de Annuncio, commercial

director at Equus.The outdoor ad ban has cleaned up the Jardins neighborhood, São

Paulo’s equivalent of Madison Avenue, as high-end local and foreign fashion boutiques had to remove their advertising on circular name-plates atop street signposts, media insiders observed. The shops also had to reduce the sizes of their nameplates — and the lettering on them — their new collection posters and sales signs in store windows, the latter based on the size of the window.

Since abandoning the three or so billboards and panels it mounted before the clean city law, Rosa Chá “is sending our prod-uct catalogues to our São Paulo mailing list customers every three months, as opposed to every six months,” said owner Amir Slama. One of Brazil’s best-known beachwear brands and a participant in New York Fashion Week, Rosa Chá still advertises on billboards in fi ve Brazilian cities.

Streetwear brand Cavalera relocated to bigger panels on the out-skirts of the metropolitan area and used about 6 percent of its ad budget to do so. The brand, which has nine of its 12 stores in São Paulo, is allocating the rest of its ad budget to newspapers and maga-zines, point-of-sale displays in its stores and fashion shows.

“Now we reach the part of our public as it is driving into or out of São Paulo as opposed to while it is driving or walking within the city,” said Renato De Cara, Cavalera’s marketing manager. “As a re-sult, fewer São Paulo residents now see our outdoor ads, which is, for us, the downside of the clean city law.”

When advertising outside was permitted, complicated regulations and diffi culties enforcing them enabled companies to erect bill-boards bigger than the legal limits and to place them closer together than allowed. Some companies advertised outdoors without permits and many didn’t pay city tax on those spaces, media insiders re-called. The annual city tax on billboards ranged between 1,500 reals ($882) and 4,000 reals ($2,335), depending on the size of the display. Inspection taxes each year ran from 500 reals ($294) for standard billboards up to 3,000 reals ($1,760) for electric panels.

“We had pushed indoor advertising to clients before the [clean city] law, but most wanted to keep their more traditional outdoor marketing strategies,” said Marcos Berger, media manager at J. Walter Thompson in Brazil. “It was only when the law forced them to go indoors that they did.”

As Cristiane Bretas, media director at Neo/BBH, recalled, indoor advertising had gained momentum in shopping malls, bus stations and subways by 2005 — and “increased even more after the clean city law” took effect.

Outdoor media association president Nogueira, for one, said he isn’t anticipating the spread of São Paulo’s clean city law to other state capitals and large municipalities in Brazil. “Other Brazilian cities don’t have the profusion of outdoor ads that São

Paulo did before the new law,” Nogueira said. “To prevent an excessive buildup of outdoor ads in the future, these cities are better enforcing existing laws or passing new ones that limit the size of billboards and front-lit panels and the distance between them.”

Green Marketing Hits the Bottom Line

“The law was good for the city, but it

was bad for us.” — Gabriela Barcellos, Calvin Klein Jeans

Rosa Chá has been sending out more catalogues and scaling back on billboards.

More ads have been cropping up in Brazil’s restrooms since the outdoor ad ban.

Equus sportswear pulled its restroom ads after just three months, deciding they didn’t help the brand.

Equus sportswear pulled its restroom ads after just three months, deciding they didn’t help the brand.

Cavalera streetwear has relocated outdoor advertising to the outskirts of São Paulo, placing it on bigger panels.

WWD.COMWWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008 11

NINA, CHAPTER THREE OF…?: The Nina Garcia story is turning into

the Energizer bunny of reality TV — it just won’t quit. On Tuesday, more details emerged of the behind-the-scenes wrangling between the former Elle fashion director, “Project Runway” and the magazine as Garcia continued to mull over whether to accept a contributing editor’s role at the title after being pushed out on Friday. But even if she does, it’s only a temporary gig — sources said her time at Elle would end by the sixth season of “Project Runway,” whether or not the magazine remains a partner. That means she’d no longer be involved with Elle as of mid-October.

Sources said Garcia was offered the option to stay on in an at-large capacity on Friday, when word initially broke of her dismissal. Management supposedly offered Garcia the role for a period of around six months, long enough for her to appear on season fi ve of “Project Runway” (she would also continue writing her column for the magazine). Elle is contracted as a partner on the show through that season, the last before it moves from Bravo to the Lifetime Network. The season fi nale is due to air around the fi rst or second week of October.

Meanwhile, The Weinstein Co., the show’s producer, is hedging its bets, as sources say it remains in talks to bring back Garcia; the fourth judge, Michael Kors; Elle, and other partners and sponsors for the sixth season. Whether the show would rehire Garcia if Elle remains involved and she isn’t associated with the publication still isn’t clear (as if so much else is?).

Sources close to Elle also said Garcia never had a contract at the magazine, as previously reported in some media outlets on Friday. And still, as of Tuesday, there was no offi cial comment on Garcia’s departure by either Elle, parent company Hachette Filipacchi Media or Garcia. A new day brings new hope. — Stephanie D. Smith

VOLUNTARY, OR NOT: The New York Times management has informed the newsroom that it will probably resort to layoffs to reduce head count by about 100 positions, as the deadline for voluntary buyouts looms. Executive editor Bill Keller had announced in mid-February that the grim economic picture for the paper — and newspapers in general — would necessitate the newsroom cuts across the board, and news of buyouts accepted by name-brand writers such as Amanda Hesser and Linda Greenhouse has been trickling out since. But

the deadline to accept the buyout expires early next week, and a memo from assistant managing editor Bill Schmidt made it clear that, so far, volunteers won’t be enough to meet the numbers. “While we will not know the hard count until [next week], every effort to handicap the outcome suggests that we are almost certain to fall short of the number of volunteers we will need,” he wrote in the memo, fi rst posted online by the New York Observer late Tuesday. “If that is indeed the case, as we expect it will be, we will — regrettably — be forced to resort to some limited number of layoffs within the core newsroom….I wish I could offer some clearer sense of scale.” Schmidt urged employees who might be mulling the buyout to give it “serious consideration, if you believe there is some fi nancial advantage in it for you and your family. Each buyout we record before next Tuesday reduces the number of layoffs we will have to seek.”

By contrast, when Newsweek offered its staff buyouts in recent weeks, it was met with even more takers than anticipated. In all, 111 staffers accepted that buyout, though that number included both business and editorial staffers. — Irin Carmon

WHO’S A DESIGNER, AND WHO’S A CELEBRITY?: Designers and their celebrity muses are nothing new to the fashion world, but they are for Us Weekly, which is honoring the year’s hottest pairings, in addition to Heidi Klum as style icon of the year and Lauren Conrad as celebrity designer of the year. The celebrity weekly, on newsstands in New York and Los Angeles today, has Leighton Meester of “Gossip Girl” pictured with Jill Stuart (Meester has been a fan of the designer since attending her runway show last year), and Lindsay Price of “Lipstick Jungle” posing with Monique Lhuillier, who designed her wedding dress. Stacy Bendet of Alice + Olivia dresses the girls of Danity Kane, and Jason Lewis, who will reprise the role of Smith Jerrod in the upcoming “Sex and the City” movie, is pictured with Michael Ball of Rock & Republic. Us will fete those featured at an event in Los Angeles on Thursday. — Amy Wicks

REMEMBER WHEN: An anniversary doesn’t just provide excuses for adulatory nostalgia and advertising — it can also stir up dormant controversies. Last week, New York magazine marked its 40th year with a retrospective culture issue that included an interview with Spike Lee, pegged to his seminal 1989 fi lm “Do the Right Thing.” Asked by Logan Hill about two articles New York ran that year criticizing the

fi lm — a review by David Denby, now at the New Yorker, and a political column by Joe Klein, now at Time — Lee proved the maxim that one’s own bad press is rarely forgotten. “People like Joe Klein and David Denby felt that this fi lm was going to cause riots,” he told New York. “Young black males were going to emulate Mookie and throw garbage cans through windows. Like, ‘How dare you release this fi lm in summertime: You know how they get in the summertime. This is like playing with fi re.’ I hold no grudges against them. But that was 20 years ago and it speaks for itself.”

In the anniversary spirit, let’s go to the archive. Denby critiqued what he saw as the fi lm’s “mixed-up” message about racism and violence, and wrote that Lee was “playing with dynamite in an urban playground. The response to the movie could get away from him….If some audiences go wild, he’s partly responsible.” Klein’s column focused on how “Do the Right Thing” could affect the upcoming mayoral election, in which David Dinkins was challenging incumbent Ed Koch: “If Lee does hook large black audiences, there’s a good chance the message they take from the fi lm will increase racial tensions in the city. If they react violently — which can’t be ruled out — the candidate with the most to lose will be David Dinkins.” (Dinkins won fi ve months later.) Klein speculated that white liberals would be “debating the meaning of Spike Lee’s message. Black teenagers won’t fi nd it so hard, though….If black kids act on what they see, Lee may have destroyed his career.”

Reached last Wednesday, Klein remembered the affair well. “I said that within minutes after the words hit the page that it was a stupid thing to write,” he said, adding that he believed New York had run an item to that effect. He even appeared on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” with Lee in a segment Klein described as “pretty confrontational.” The transcript of that appearance shows Winfrey repeatedly asking both the audience and guests to let others fi nish and to stay respectful. Lee and Klein, formerly neighbors in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn, sparred several times.

Notwithstanding the retraction, Klein argues that the controversy actually did Lee some good: “I made him a lot of money….It was kind of his breakout fi lm and my mistake was an easy mark for people who wanted to celebrate him.”

Overall, he was philosophical. “When you write a weekly column, you are guaranteed to say stupid things once in awhile. I’ve had others since. Who knows, maybe what I’m closing today is going to be seen as stupid,” Klein said.

Denby had no comment. — I.C.

MEMO PAD

Hugo Boss Exec Tapped for Calvin Klein PostNEW YORK — Joy Corson will join Calvin Klein Collection as vice president of women’s and men’s sales, North America. She succeeds Christine Talevski, who left the company.

For the past four years, Corson was director of women’s sales at Hugo Boss, responsible for Boss Black, Boss Orange and Hugo. Before that she was senior sales executive at Escada for

two years, and earlier worked at Armani Collezioni for fi ve years, handling women’s sales.

Corson, who begins May 5, will be based at Calvin Klein Inc. headquarters at 205 West 39th Street here and report to Robert Vignola, president of Calvin Klein Collection.

Her replacement at Hugo Boss hasn’t been named.

— Lisa Lockwood

Isotope Design Group can help. We provide sketching services, silhouette designing, CAD artworks and CAD colors, as well as pattern making, grading solutions, embroidery design and digitizing. We do it all online with 24/7 availability and work-in-progress visibility.

Visit our website or call Isotope Design Group today to learn more.

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WWD.COMWWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 200812

By Beth Wilson

CHICAGO — If only the weather would cooperate.

Teams of Chicago women, seemingly eager to buy colorful maxidresses adorn-ing the windows of Bebe Stores Inc.’s new trilevel fl agship on Oak Street, fi lled dressing rooms for the store’s opening party earlier this month. The only road-block remained the city’s chilly, drizzly 40-degree early April weather.

It’s those troubling temps that have hurt business more than the economy here, said Greg Scott, Bebe’s chief execu-tive offi cer.

“Chicago seems not to have had the same issues as the rest of the country,” he said. “It’s just the weather. The good thing is, our client, as soon as she sees the sun, she’s out in the store shopping.”

Bebe’s counting on that trend as the Brisbane, Calif.-based retailer extends its presence in the Windy City, unveiling its new 7,500-square-foot fl agship on Oak Street and launching a new 3,300-square-foot store set to open this summer along Damen Avenue in the city’s trendy Bucktown neighborhood.

Business in Chicago is on the rise fol-lowing a lull dating to early 2000, Scott said.

“This market has grown tremendously for us here,” he said. “Chicago in the last two years has come back into its own.”

And Scott said both new Chicago stores will feature merchandise suited to their locations. For the larger Oak Street

store, which draws locals and tourists alike, the bright white-walled and white tiled-fl oor decor refl ects that of Bebe’s Rodeo Drive fl agship and features a fi rst fl oor full of dresses, handbags, shoes and sunglasses, Scott said, noting accessories have been the company’s fastest grow-ing category. Specifi c items include $138 gladiator sandals, $149 straw totes with leather trim and $149 maxidresses.

The second floor, meanwhile, will house outerwear, suiting pieces and sportswear, including a $119 organza trench and $79 organza sheer ruffle blouse. The third fl oor contains its fi rst-ever “Club Bebe” level where the retail-er highlights its rhinestone T-shirts and tanks, including a $39 logo crown and hearts tank, as well as its denim, accent-ed by marquee lighting, dancing poles, and gold fi xtures.

“It feels like a club,” Scott said of the store’s top level. “It’s celebrating brand-ed Bebe.”

The retailer’s new Damen Avenue space, which Scott describes as more boutiquelike in nature, will feature more one-of-a-kind pieces.

When that store opens, Bebe will have eight locations in Chicago and its suburbs.

To illustrate his commitment to the city, Scott, while in town, judged the School of the Art Institute’s “Behind the Seams” event in which three senior fash-ion students were awarded $1,500 cash prizes on behalf of Bebe.

Beyond the Windy City, Bebe plans to open roughly 35 stores in the next year,

including a 6,500-square-foot fl agship at the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center in Honolulu. The company also will remodel or expand some 10 other loca-tions, such as stores at Topanga Plaza Shopping Center in Canoga Park, Calif.; Garden State Plaza in Paramus, N.J., and Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City, N.Y.

It operates 288 stores, including Bebe Sport and Bebe outlets in the U.S., U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and Canada. Internationally, Bebe licenses some 19 stores in Dubai, Singapore, Mexico City and other locations, with some of its strongest comps coming in at the interna-tional level, Scott said.

On April 10, Bebe Stores reported that

retail sales for the 13-week period ended April 5 were $147.5 million, down 2.5 per-cent from $151.3 million for the 14-week period ended April 7, 2007, which includ-ed about $10 million in additional sales due to the extra week in fi scal 2007.

This month, the retailer will feature one or two capsule collections from new indie designers through the Bebe “design lab” overseen by Manny Mashouf, Bebe’s founder and chairman. The company also plans to continue its collaboration with Tara Subkoff, founding designer of Imitation of Christ, including a capsule collection in May and one for fall.

Bebe Expands Presence in Chicago

A display at the new Bebe store on Oak Street in Chicago.

Granoff Joins Kenneth Cole as CEOContinued from page oneprocesses and retail,” Cole told WWD. “We will work well together.”

Before joining Claiborne as group president of e-commerce in 2006, Granoff served as presi-dent and chief operating offi -cer of Victoria’s Secret Beauty. During her tenure, sales dou-bled from $500 million to near-ly $1 billion. Prior to that, she worked at the Estée Lauder Cos. Inc. and served as a manage-ment consultant specializing in strategic planning and organiza-tion development.

Granoff will work closely with Cole, leveraging her ex-perience with the founders of Juicy, Lucky, Victoria’s Secret and Estée Lauder.

As she did at Victoria’s Secret, Granoff arrives at Kenneth Cole when the compa-ny is an estimated $500 million business that she thinks has the potential to double in size. “The

brand is bigger than the busi-ness,” said Granoff. “There’s a huge opportunity to recognize, particularly with retail and e-commerce.”

But Granoff has her work cut out for her at Cole, which has been trying to elevate itself

the last few years. The design-er took his women’s and men’s wear lines off the runway after February 2006, and though there were plans to return the last two seasons to fete its 25th an-niversary, the fi rm decided the collection was not yet “runway-ready,” a spokeswoman said at the time.

Last year the company’s prof-its fell 73.5 percent to $7.1 mil-lion, on revenues that dropped 4.8 percent to $510.7 million. The fi rm closed several stores last year, leaving it with 44 full-priced doors and 42 com-pany outlets. The company has also lost a few key executives: Kenneth Cole New York brand president Joshua Schulman quit in April for the top job at Jimmy Choo, and chief operating offi -cer Joel Newman stepped down last summer after a year and a half at the fi rm.

“On the heels of our 25th an-niversary, a new era begins,”

Cole said. “We’ve come a long way, and it’s been painful at times. We’ve had to take a step back, sometimes more than one, along the way, but we think it will yield us more steps forward. The brand needed to be height-ened, though in some regards

we transitioned too quickly and elevated certain prices higher than they should have been. Jill needs to understand where we are and where we want to go, and create the process to get us there — keep us more focused.”

Effective May 5, Granoff will

report to Cole and join the com-pany’s board.

Granoff ’s departure is a blow to Claiborne. Under ceo William L. McComb, she was the lone group president promoted last year to executive vice president. Granoff was given responsibil-

ity for direct brands, including Juicy Couture and Lucky Brand Jeans, in which the struggling company had banked its future. She earned $1.4 million in 2007 at Claiborne, but said the lure of being the ceo of a public compa-ny was too good to pass up.

“While it would be prema-ture to say Jill’s work is done, in the nine months as executive vice president of direct brands, she did a great job establishing highly focused monobrand com-panies,” McComb said. “Beyond bringing in great people, which was a shared agenda, Jill has been known for bringing a rigor and operational effectiveness that doesn’t walk out the door when she leaves for Kenneth Cole. A year ago I really need-ed someone in that job to cre-ate what we created, but now it’s all on the presidents. If anything, increasingly Jill saw the job as less encompassing as these brands became stronger. I wish she could have stayed longer, but you can’t hold back a great talent.”

McComb said he will not re-place Granoff as executive vice president of direct brands, but instead next week will carve up her responsibilities among other executives at the fi rm.

Granoff pointed out that she left the brands “in an excellent place,” with in-depth three-year strategic plans, contracts renewed with the founders of Juicy and Lucky, a new presi-dent at Lucky, and being close to naming a president at Juicy. “I feel very good about the state those brands are in, and I very much believe in Bill,” she said. “It’s not about what I’m leaving as much as where I’m going.”

“My strength is that of the creative force, whose background is in product and wholesale, while Jill is an operator who understands brand building, processes and retail.”

— Kenneth Cole, Kenneth Cole Productions Inc.

“This market has grown tremendously for us here. Chicago in the last two years has come back into its own.” — Greg Scott, Bebe Stores Inc.

Jill Granoff and Kenneth Cole

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For more information on advertising in WWD, contact Christine Guilfoyle, publisher, at 212-630-4737, or your WWD representative.WWD Style Starts Here™

BASK IN THE GLOWBE PART OF FASHION’S BIGGEST NIGHT

WWDCFDAAWARDSProfi les of the Winners CFDA’s Big Initiatives What’s Next

Issue date: May 27 Close: April 28 Bonus distribution: CFDA Fashion Awards

WWD.COMWWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 200814

Before she was president of Vera Wang, before she worked at firms like Michael Kors and Donna Karan, and before her 22

years at Calvin Klein, Susan Sokol was a model — a showroom model, to be exact, at a Seventh Avenue concern called Cuddlecoat. You’ve got to start somewhere, right?

The rest, of course, is history. At a Fashion Institute of Technology panel on Thursday, called “Women Rule Fashion,” au-dience members learned what it takes to enter the fashion game. Sokol traced her career, beginning with that fi rst job — one she ac-quired by brashly walking into the coat company offi ces and asking for an opening — right up to her current gig at Vera Wang, helping “to really move the needle beyond bridal and to build the brand into a whole empire.”

But Sokol wasn’t the only panelist who had taken an unusual route into the industry. Photographer and MCV Photo agency founder Maria Chandoha Valentino had studied linguistics. Vogue’s fashion news and features director Sally Singer was on track to be-come an academic historian “dealing with issues of race and class” before she became a book editor, working for Farrar, Straus, and Giroux. Of this group, it was only Catherine Malandrino who took a conventional route: She went to fashion school in France, the Ecole Supérieure des Arts et Techniques de la Mode.

One thing that all the panel members had in common, however, was an early childhood affi nity for matters of the cloth. Singer, for instance, said that she grew up sewing her own clothes: “I would buy the Vogue patterns and do my versions. I would go into seventh grade wearing my Calvin Klein or Karl Lagerfeld for Chloé adapta-tions. I knew so much about how clothes were made.” So later, when she was a writer at the London Review of Books and British Vogue asked her to become its culture editor, Singer noted, “This whole weird drive of information that I’d never been asked to use came into play.”

Another common denominator here: These four are high-profi le, respected female fi gures in an industry in which, despite its target consumer, most of the top players are male. The notion that women rule was the basis of the discussion, which was also an introduc-tion to an upcoming show at The Museum at FIT called “Arbiters of Style: Women at the Forefront of Fashion.” The exhibition, which is to feature about 70 looks, will focus on clients, designers, execu-tives and editors who have shaped the course of fashion history, from Empress Josephine and Jeanne Lanvin to Claire McCardell and Rose Marie Bravo.

But the event turned out to be more than a talk about the subject at hand. The second half consisted of the panel’s responses to audi-ence questions, one of which concerned licensing and how much is too much. “We stop at toasters,” joked Sokol when asked about Vera Wang’s collaboration with Serta.

“Many questions were raised,” Sokol continued. “But we are in the bridal business, and one of the fi rst things a couple buys is a mattress. There was some logical brand extension there.” She also noted that the partnership generates “close to $100 million at whole-sale.” Moreover, Sokol added, these licensing deals — including the Simply Vera Vera Wang venture with Kohl’s — don’t just give the brand greater visibility and accessibility, they provide the company with increased resources to invest at the upper end.

The ladies also touched upon the effects of the Internet and blogs on fashion. “The work of my predecessor,” Singer said, “was often just to say what had happened on the runway. Almost overnight, that changed entirely. We have to make fashion that much more inter-esting when we present it.” The “Arbiters of Style: Women at the Forefront of Fashion” exhibition opens on May 21 and runs through Nov. 8 at The Museum at FIT.

— Venessa Lau

Clothes Call

Robert E. Kerson, chair-man of executive search

firm Kerson Partners, has been named to the board of the Laboratory Institute of Merchandising in New York, and will be a special adviser to LIM president Elizabeth S. Marcuse.

Kerson’s appointment fills an opening on the 11-member board. The post of special ad-viser is a new one. In that role, Kerson will work with LIM stu-dents to further prepare them for careers in fashion and retailing and will expand the college’s re-lationships in those industries.

Kerson is also a member of the executive committee of the Advisory Group of the Jay H. Baker Retailing Initiative of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and a guest lecturer at the Columbia University Business School Retail Leadership Program.

“There is a dearth of train-ing and development pro-grams in the retailing indus-try today,” Kerson said, adding that he is looking forward to “working with Liz Marcuse and her team at LIM on devel-oping the next generation of retail business leaders.”

Kerson’s depth of experi-ence “in identifying, develop-ing and recruiting retailing talent will be an enormous asset to our students,” Marcuse said. “As he works with our students to further their capabilities, we look for-ward to him introducing them to his unparalleled network of industry leaders. And as we continue our strategic growth plan, we want to be sure that our curriculum and students meet the current and future needs of the industry.”

— Vicki M. Young

Kerson Joins LIM Board

By Evan Clark

Jerald Politzer is moving into Loehmann’s cor-ner offi ce, taking over as chief executive offi cer,

according to sources.Politzer, whose résumé includes stints as execu-

tive vice president of merchandising at Filene’s Basement and ceo of Salant Corp., is to succeed Robert Friedman, who last year said he would retire after 16 years of running the off-price retailer.

Friedman, who led Loehmann’s through myriad transitions, including expansions, bankruptcy and ownership changes, declined to comment on his successor Tuesday.

“At some point, everyone has a defi ning mo-ment when they say it’s time for a change,” Friedman told WWD last year. “This was mine.”

He is expected to stay on as a consultant for Istithmar, the Dubai investment fi rm that owns Loehmann’s and Barneys New York.

Beginning in 1921 with a store on Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn, Loehmann’s carved out a fashion niche for itself, offering high-end goods at discounted prices.

The chain now has 67 doors and sales of $550 mil-lion. Most of its sales volume comes from stores in California, New York, Florida and the Chicago area.

Loehmann’s has been tweaking its mix, add-ing more handbags, jewelry, intimate apparel and children’s wear, as women’s sales slow down across the industry.

Istithmar World Capital, a sovereign wealth fund owned by Dubai, initially bought into Loehmann’s with Arcapita Bank, according to the fund’s Web site. After repositioning Loehmann’s and “realizing the immense growth potential in the U.S. retail sector,” Istithmar bought out Arcapita’s stake in 2006 for $300 million. It pur-chased Barneys last year.

The impact of sovereign wealth funds on fashion and the global economy has just begun to be felt.

The vast pools of wealth, often derived from oil production or government caches of foreign cur-rency, could inject more than $1 trillion into the global equity markets over the next fi ve years, ac-cording to Deutsche Bank Research.

By Liza Casabona

WASHINGTON — Wholesale prices for domesti-cally produced women’s and girls’ apparel, buck-ing an overall trend, slid 0.1 percent last month compared with February and fell 0.2 percent from a year ago, the Labor Department said Tuesday in its Producer Price Index.

Wholesale prices for all apparel, including men’s and boys’, rose 0.2 percent from February and 0.6 percent from March of last year. Prices for all U.S.-made goods climbed a seasonally adjusted 1.1 percent in March. The core PPI, ex-cluding the volatile food and energy sectors, in-creased 0.2 percent in March after an uptick of 0.5 percent in February.

“The deceleration in core producer infl ation is a positive development,” Kenneth Beauchemin, U.S. economist for Global Insight, wrote in an analysis. “The core rate, however, masks the current environment’s signifi cant infl ation risk, plainly evident in today’s report: sharply rising commodity prices.”

The PPI is not a broad indicator of apparel price trends, since more than 90 percent of cloth-ing sold in the U.S. is imported, but notable price

fl uctuations in the category were evident.Wholesale prices for women’s and girls’ knit

shirts and blouses, suits and pantsuits, tailored jackets and vests and jeans and slacks were all fl at for the month. But in year-over-year comparisons, prices for women’s and girls’ suits and pantsuits rose 1.5 percent, dresses increased 0.7 percent, woven shirts and blouses were up 0.5 percent and knit shirts and blouses climbed 0.3 percent. Jeans and slacks prices dropped 0.1 percent.

Prices for textile mill products, primarily ap-parel fabrics, decreased 0.5 percent in March versus the previous month, but rose 2.4 percent compared with the same period last year. Textile product mills, mainly industrial and home furnish-ings fabrics, saw monthly and year-over-year price increases of 0.6 and 2.1 percent, respectively.

Yarn prices increased 0.1 percent for the month and jumped 5.5 percent versus a year ago. Wholesale prices for synthetic fi bers dropped 0.3 percent, but rose 0.4 percent from March 2007. Greige fabric prices declined 0.5 percent, and rose 2.2 percent compared with a year ago. Wholesale prices for fi nished fabrics dropped 0.7 percent, but increased 1.3 percent from a year earlier.

Politzer Said New CEO at Loehmann’s

Women’s Wholesale Apparel Prices Dip

Miu Miu continues the restyling of its stores with the opening of the newly refurbished outpost in Taipei City, Taiwan.

Roberto Baciocchi, the architect who developed Miu Miu’s latest blueprint, which was fi rst applied to the Milan store in fall 2006, handled the project for the 1,080-square-foot space, which relaunched last week.

The mood behind the concept is one of intimacy, with small rooms dedicated to women’s ready-to-wear, bags and footwear, while brocade and damask walls and shiny gold metal fi xtures add a warm touch. First-year sales projections were unavailable.

Miu Miu has 27 freestanding stores worldwide and plans to open a unit in Los Angeles this year. The brand, founded by Miuccia Prada in 1993, registered 2007 sales of 223 million euros, or $326 million at current exchange rates, a 50 percent increase over the previous year.

— Alessandra Ilari

Miu Miu’s Sense of Style

Footwear and ready-to-wear on display at the Miu Miu store in Taipei City.

Footwear and ready-to-wear on display at the Miu Miu store in Taipei City.

WWD.COM15WWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008

For her new namesake contemporary line, Holly Morgan is adopting fresh strategies to appeal to a different customer from the one she

designed for at junior sportswear brand XOXO.Morgan is specializing in better fabrics such as silk charmeuse and

chiffon, keeping her production local and focusing on the needs of busy career women instead of fast-turning trends.

Seven years after leaving XOXO, which she coowned with her then-hus-band Gregg Fiene, Morgan professes to design for women like her, a work-ing mother of three preteen boys, who is also a contemporary customer.

Her looks include fl irty minidresses with tiered hems, double-breast-ed vests, cuffed trousers and sleek blouses that are stylish options to wear to the offi ce because of their vibrant jewel tones and details such as tab buttons and neck bows.

“My last question before I fi nish anything is: ‘Would I buy this?’” said Morgan, 37, who reclaimed her maiden name after divorcing Fiene. “I don’t want to have my hair pulled back in a ponytail and wear a sweatsuit every-day. I work and I travel. I need things that I can dress up and dress down.”

Morgan, chief executive offi cer and head designer at Torrance, Calif.-based Holly Morgan Designs, oversees seven employees. Her new ven-ture, started 11 months ago, is a culmination of her experience. At XOXO, she also designed an offshoot contemporary brand called Lola. She later worked at junior brand Rampage and owned a contemporary boutique called Chantal in Manhattan Beach, Calif.

Because of Holly Morgan Designs’ small size, Morgan is involved in every aspect of the business, and doesn’t hesitate to take on tasks such as packing and shipping boxes. Her business partner is Timothy Barone, an entrepreneur who built his fortune in fi nance, technology and real estate. Barone and Morgan hold equal stakes in the company. Morgan is making key decisions because Barone has no experience in the apparel industry, and the start-up is trying to establish itself in a weak economy.

“To my benefi t, I produce everything in L.A.,” Morgan said. “I don’t have high minimums. I work closer to delivery than other vendors.”

Morgan noted that she can produce as few as 20 pieces and deliver them within four weeks of taking an order. She also concentrated on catering to specialty stores by fi lling the void on their sales fl oor. Though Morgan of-fered only dresses in her fi rst collection, she later added tops, responding to the requests of buyers, and for the fall season included pants such as skinny styles, cigarette pants and wide-leg versions, all accentuated with vintage men’s wear fabric in the pocket linings and waistband binding.

Retailers who placed orders included Lisa Kline in Los Angeles, Fred Segal Fun in Santa Monica, Calif., and Dari in Studio City, Calif.

Wholesale prices start at $68 for tops, $98 for pants and $120 for dress-es. Morgan’s goal is to reach $2 million in wholesale sales in the fi rst year.

“That’s the key — not to have a one-hit wonder [and] just be aware of the cycle and what the consumer is buying and what’s in her closet already,” Morgan said.

— K.T.L.T.

COUNTERFEITING SUMMIT: A group of experts in Los Angeles will discuss counterfeiting at a seminar May 1 entitled “Hot Off the Runway! Emerging Intellectual Property Issues in the Fashion Industry.” The event will be at the Luxe Hotel Sunset Boulevard in Bel-Air, from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Among those expected to participate are “Project Runway” fi nalist Rami Kashou, California Fashion Association president Ilse Metchek and lawyers Anne-Marie Pecoraro, Robert Helfi ng and David Erickson, whose fi rms have represented the likes of Delia’s, Target Corp., Frédéric Malle, Libertine, Magda Berliner and Thierry Mugler. Topics of particular interest include brands’ rights, online sales of counterfeit products and the tension between protecting creativity and allowing copies.

— R.B.

WEST WATCH

LOS ANGELES — Retailers at the Los Angeles Majors Market wanted vendors to be daring.

But buyers from major chains, including Macy’s and Dillard’s, said they left the California Market Center last week largely disappointed in their search for cre-ative design and innovation in back-to-school and fall collections from junior and women’s brands. The color palette was familiar — dominated by purple and gray — and so were the skinny jeans, sweater dresses and Eighties-influenced styles that were prevalent.

“I just haven’t seen any-thing too different” at the three-day show that ended last Wednesday, said Kathy Nguyen, a buyer for Macy’s East.

A period of economic tur-bulence is “not the time to be safe,” said Mark Galvan, an active sportswear buyer for Dillard’s, based in Little Rock, Ark. “It’s the time to be special. Everybody seems to be playing it safe, and safe doesn’t sell.”

Peter Vahjen, merchandise manager for Dillard’s better sportswear and contemporary division, said when the econ-omy is weak, vendors should aggressively pursue fashion to position themselves to grab larger market share when re-tail makes a comeback.

“Things that stand out will sell,” he said.

In the current climate, every effort to differentiate a brand counts, even if it’s an affi lia-tion with celebrities who aren’t known for their fashion fi nesse. As Bongo Jeans’ new spokes-model, reality TV personality Kim Kardashian signed autographs for buyers, while YMI introduced actress Aimee Teegarden from NBC’s “Friday Night Lights” as the face of its fall ad campaign.

In a fashion show on opening day, Directives West, the Los Angeles-based buying offi ce owned by The Doneger Group, featured animal-print designs from Melanie “Scary Spice” Brown’s sportswear label, Catty Couture, as well as an activewear line from Jillian Michaels, a physical train-

er on NBC’s weight-loss program, “The Biggest Loser.”Celebrities factored into the junior category beyond

marketing. Brands noted that clothes worn by the likes of Kardashian and Miley Cyrus, the Disney Channel’s “Hannah Montana,” strongly infl uence teens’ choices. For instance, the emergence of rocker and biker motifs such as skulls and guitars are “based on the success of Hannah Montana,” said Richard Clareman, president

of Montebello, Calif.-based All Access Apparel, which produces brands that include Self Esteem, Belle du Jour and L.A. Kitty.

Among the few new looks at the trade event were dolman and kimono sleeves, as well as fl ares and wider legs on jeans and pants. Eco-friendly fash-ion — particularly Ts and tops made of organic cotton — con-tinued to gain traction with some retailers.

Nonetheless, some styles have become staples in teenage girls’ closets. Take the skinny jean. New York-based Ethanol Jeans, which is making its debut in the denim category with a line wholesaling from $15 to $21, said a popular look was a $16.50 skinny silhouette marked by yellow contrast stitching, bold whiskers and a dirty tint. At Bongo, which is owned by Iconix Brand Group, leg open-ings measuring 12 inches or smaller were hot.

Clean looks lost out to dis-tressed denim, and gray wash-es grew in popularity, although there appeared to be a push for acid wash, as well.

“We’re picking up acid and gray wash for b-t-s,” said Emma Dixon, a buyer for Portland,

Ore.-based Fred Meyer Stores, a 120-store chain owned by Kroger. “We expect miniskirts will do well for b-t-s.”

Denim brands also experimented with vests, which wholesale for around $14 at YMI, between $12 and $15 at Bongo and $16 at Paris Blues. “Everyone bought into the vest,” said Kimberly Lee Minor, Bongo’s vice president of brand management. “With white shirts and ties being so important, vests are perfect to complete the look.”

Barbara Fields, who heads her namesake buying offi ce, predicted that structured jackets — from dou-ble-breasted peacoats and military-style cover-ups to trenches, anoraks and biker styles — would be a major trend for fall.

Z. Cavaricci design director Nancy Tarankow said the City of Commerce, Calif.-based brand was betting on jackets wholesaling from $18 to $30, particularly its novelty blazers. “They merchandise well with fl oral tops and dresses,” she said.

Junior brand Miss Chievous capitalized on the interest in leather jackets by interpreting a moto-style silhouette in a houndstooth-print French terry with a funnel neck, detach-able hood and $30 retail tag.

For vendors hoping to dress the mothers of junior shoppers, novelty was key. Mac & Jac presented its holi-day lineup, including an $89.50 double-breasted ivory coat displaying a honeycomb-like weave and a $59.50 raglan-sleeve dress that was dip-dyed to fade from black to blue to ivory. Mac & Jac’s sales director Michele Sachs said discerning retailers sought special pieces. “That’s why we put novelty in our line. Every piece can sell on its own,” Sachs said.

Hong Kong-based Silk Culture tried to stand out with textured textiles. It cut a silk-cotton blend fi nished to evoke a wood-grain texture into a cuffed wide-leg gau-cho, duster coat and wide-leg pant, all wholesaling be-tween $78 and $118.

Creative interpretations of classics helped Gardy, a specialist in sweaters for older women who like what manager David Lam described as “generous” sizing. Lam said buyers were “very cautious” in a slow economy, but liked a $68 black-and-white rayon-nylon cardigan adorned with sequins and beads forming an intricate ar-gyle pattern.

Hamid Derak, who represents Lily and Luii at his namesake showroom, said to hedge their bets, buyers focused on one trend in which they are confi dent. For example, photos of maxidresses worn by celebrities like Angelina Jolie helped boost interest in Lily’s fl oor-graz-ing frocks wholesaling from $39 to $49. Meanwhile, the texture and price of Lily and Luii’s $45 poncho in boiled wool dyed plum appealed to buyers.

Even moms want to look hip in jeans. Karen George said Seattle-based Worn offers a misses’ fi t with modern styling and retail prices less than $110. Popular looks included a fi ve-pocket jean with a 22-inch leg opening and a clean, dark wash as well as a trouser with two buttons topping a 9.5-inch rise. “People are more price-conscious,” she said.

— Khanh T.L. Tran,Anne Riley-Katz and Rachel Brown

Buyers Seeking Edgy Styles See Mostly Staples

Ethanol Jeans’ skinny leg offers distressed styling.

WWD West

Holly Morgan’s tiered dress and tab shirt, both in silk charmeuse.

Holly Morgan Tackles Contemporary

“That’s the key — not to have a one-hit wonder.” — Holly Morgan

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By Marcy Medina

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif. — Diane von Furstenberg and Donna Karan shared insights at American Express Publishing’s Seventh Annual Luxury Summit at the Four Seasons Hotel here. The three-day conference, which ended Tuesday, explored the high-end market in the con-

text of economic uncertainty and the political climate. Luxury is still growing among the most affl uent U.S.

consumers, but the weakened economy has dampened the eagerness to spend and has shifted shopping patterns, putting consumers in the driver’s seat, aided by Internet research and better deals online, according to the second annual survey of Affl uence & Wealth in America, pro-duced by American Express and Harrison Group.

A total of 12 million households were surveyed, with an average discretionary annual income of $352,000. The top 10 brands were: Ritz-Carlton, Louis Vuitton, Coach, Ralph Lauren, Target, Four Seasons, Prada, Rolex, Costco and Nordstrom, according to the survey.

“The ratings of about 200 brands were based not only [on] familiarity and regard, but also a lack of active dislike, that is, lack of bad experiences, with customer service or some other interaction with a brand,” said Jim Taylor, vice chairman of market research fi rm Harrison Group.

About 300 top executives from fashion, retail, travel and hospitality companies attended the conversations with von Furstenberg and Karan, which were moderated by Travel + Leisure editor in chief Nancy Novogrod.

Von Furstenberg has found more success on the second incarnation of her company, now 10 years old, by offering contemporary apparel to a wide range of demographics.

“It would be pretty depressing to dress only rich peo-ple, because they don’t always look so good,” she said. “It was the young, hip girls who I saw buying my vintage wrap dresses who inspired me to get back into the business.”

Von Furstenberg also diversifi ed into the luxury sec-tor by partnering with H.Stern, starting in 2004. “Jewelry is expensive, but the value is there, and we really launched a trend with bold, strong jewelry.”

She described her most challenging moment — be-fore making up her mind to get back into the business. “People thought I was a has-been,” von Furstenberg said. “When you doubt yourself, nothing will happen. But once I decided, it wasn’t hard.”

For Karan, the defi nition of luxury has changed with her new focus on mind, body and spirit.

“I think the luxury is not only what we give to ourselves, but what we can give to others,” she said. “Obviously, we can get more of this and this, but the true luxury is being able to give back. When one has been blessed with the ability to have made it…it’s our social responsibility.”

Karan described her Urban Zen initiative, both phil-anthropic and retail (the line centers on comfortable lifestyle apparel made from natural fi bers), as “a new child that needs an enormous amount of energy. My

other ‘children’ are grown and…they are pretty good at doing what they do. Now, every single consumer I’ve dressed, I can now address.”

Karan will launch three new Urban Zen stores, each with a greater focus on apparel than the Manhattan fl ag-ship, this summer in Sag Harbor, N.Y.; Sun Valley, Utah, and Los Angeles. Regarding specifi cs on the L.A. loca-tion, she said, “Why don’t we wait until we sign the lease to discuss that? But we have found a great location.” She plans “absolutely” on international expansion.

Regarding the economy, Karan said, “One of the beau-ties of what has happened in the confl icted world we live in is that we’ve learned that we can’t just service ourselves. It is a call to action. I don’t think you can sit there and adorn yourself without realizing there are so many people starving and not being cared for. Have the consumer be in-volved. I don’t think there’s a difference right now between the commercial and philanthropic world. I see it as one.”

WWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 200816

“It was the young, hip girls who I saw buying my vintage wrap dresses who inspired me to get back into the business. ”

— Diane von Furstenberg

“I think the luxury is not only what we give to ourselves, but what we can give to others. ”

— Donna Karan

Von Furstenberg, Karan Address Luxe

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For more career opportunities log on to fashioncareers.com. Call 1.800.423.3314 or e-mail fpclassified@fairchildpub.com to advertise.

100%fashioncareers

Merchandise CoordinatorLoro Piana has an outstanding opportunity available in thewholesale division. Candidates must have a minimum of 5yrs exp in luxury/designer clothing either as a merchandisecoordinator or dept mgr. Responsibilities will include visuallypresenting Loro Piana product; developing, building & manag-ing relationships with accounts; & conducting in store semi-nars. Travel required. Must have excellent interpersonal andcommunication skills. Only LA based will be considered.

Send resume to:Hr@loropianany.com

Divisional MerchandisingManager

Headquartered in OrangeCounty, CA, The Wet Seal,Inc. provides a culture likeno other where employeesenjoy a dynamic, energetic

& creative environmentwith great benefits!Open to relocation.

APPLY NOW!recruiters@wetseal.com

www.wetsealinc.com

GRAYDNPatternmaker

First-ProductionAdvanced Women’s Contemporary.Must be technical, able to interpretnew styles, and have Gerber exp.Individual needs to be flexible anddependable, and a team player.Excellent work environment.

Please e-mail resumes to:HR@ddaholdings.com

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE: WESTERN REGION

Prestigious French Intimate Apparel Company seeksexperienced Account Executive based in the WesternRegion to play a key role in the continued growth oftheir Brand. Must have min 2 - 3 years experience in theLuxury / Fashion / Accessories industry servicing upscaleindependent accounts. Please send your résumé to:lschultz@transmarkpartners.com

STORE MANAGER Ron Herman Inc is currentlyseeking a Store Manager forour Brentwood store. Excellentcustomer service and salesskills required. Must have aflexible retail schedule andbe able to work, evenings,weekends, and holidays.Two or more years priorretail management experiencenecessary. Please email resumesto: mara@ronherman.com

INDEPENDENT SALES REPSuccessful, long time denim juniorcompany is looking for aggressiveindependents to build upon thesuccess of our MISSY line. We arewest-coast based, however, willconsider other territories.

Please fax resume to:(310) 605-1751 or

E-mail bquant@parisblues.com

17WWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008

COMMERCIALREAL ESTATE

WWD.COM/CLASSIFIEDS

For more career opportunities log on to fashioncareers.com. Call 1.800.423.3314 or e-mail fpclassified@fairchildpub.com to advertise.

DANSKINDesigner-Dancewear NYCAPPLY NOW ON FASHIONCAREERS.COM

TOP JOB OF THEWEEK

JOBBER/EXPORTERWe buy better goods. All categories,

including fabrics. Immediate $$.Please call 212-279-1902

1407 BROADWAYSHOWROOMS/OFFICES

TREBOR MGMTBob Forman 212-944-6094 x 314

SHOWROOM AVAILABLEBeautiful Contemp Showroom to share.

214 West 39 St. 1,600.00 p/mth.Please call to see: 956-791-5566

Broadway Garment CenterNICE OFFICE + SHOWROOM

AVAILABLE TO SHAREPlease Call Joan @ 917-907-1667

West 39th St Office SpaceApprox 350 sq ft/immed use.

Use of full kitchen. $1200/monthCall 212-997-1736 - Marie

REDUCE YOUR SHIPPING COSTS

We are a garment manufacturer seek-ing to share shipping costs. We havea state of the art facility in Secaucus,New Jersey. Clean, organized, compu-terized and, we are seeking other gar-ment companies to share shippingcosts. We ship and receive domesticand foreign product. To discuss thisopportunity, call Michael 201-558-9191 or

michaelg@quickturndistribution.com

CAD-GRAPHICS-FABRIC PRINTINGU4ia-Photoshp-Illustr: 212 679 6400

www.sanodesignservices.com

Patterns/Samples/ProductionAny Style. We do Bridal/Evening

Gowns custom made & wholesale.Call: 212-278-0608/646-441-0950

Patterns/Samples/ProductionFull Service, Fine, Fast Work.

Any StyleCall Casey: 212-560-8998 / 212-560-8999

PATTERNS, SAMPLES,PRODUCTIONS

All lines, Any styles. Fine Fast Service.Call Sherry 212-719-0622.

PATTERNS, SAMPLES,PRODUCTIONS

Full service shop to the trade.Fine fast work. 212-869-2699.

Sample / Pattern Service / CustomDesign and Small Couture Line PRODUCTION AVAILABLE.

Fast and reliable. DC metro area.(703)883-9110

Noble Footwear - Frank Jones or Deborah Nyetel: 01144 1706211181email: wd2@noblefootwear.com

Introduction to ShoemakingThree-day Course - 6th to 8th May

Need to know about shoemaking? In NewYork or LA?

A practical course aimed at giving non-shoemakers a real understanding of howshoes are made. Ideal for buyers, designers, range builders, brand managers,quality control, sales, etc. Clients include Gap, Nine West, North Face,Skechers, Rockport, Victoria's Secrets, Clarks, Macy's, and J.C. Penney.For detailed brochure or other dates for East and West Coast, contact :-

tel: 610-6682775

50% off yourfirst search with

Confident in what you do? SO ARE WE.

www.JBCStyle.com/wwd.htmlNew York/Los Angeles

(212) 355-3197 / (310) 402-5588

GANT Women’s Sr. Acct Exec

Authentic American lifestyle brand isseeking experienced candidates to joinour New York showroom team. Candi-dates should be enthusiastic, highlymotivated and have strong communi-cation skills. Must have a min of 5 yrsexperience in the better sportswear in-dustry and established contacts in thebetter specialty/department store arena.

Please send resume in confidence andsalary history to hr.us@gant.com

Accounting/ Inv.CostingMajor NY Apparel Importer lookingfor individual with Costing experience(minimum 2 yrs) in Inventory Costing& Control. Strong Excel requiredalong with Inventory Closings andJournal entries. We offer competitivesalary & benefits including 401K.Please e-mail resume & salary historyto: acctjacg@yahoo.com/Fax resumeto: 1-212-658-9148

ADMIN ASSISTANTSSALES, RECEPTION

Prestigious eveningwear designeris hiring a Sales Assistant and aReceptionist/Admin Asst. Both posi-tions require wholesale fashion exp wtop organizational & communicationskills. Both should be detailoriented and technologically savvy.The receptionist will assist theFinance Dep’t and others. Excellentbenefits. College degree and strongreferences required. Email resume to:eveningwearhr@gmail.com

Assistant DesignerDress co. Great oppty for a creative,

org’d person who can multi-task. Musthave 1-yr industry exp & ability to

work in a fast-paced team environment.Email resume: designjob08@yahoo.com

ASSISTANT RETAILPRODUCT MANAGERBased in South Plainfield, New Jersey.Responsibilities include supportingproduct managers in developingstrategies to grow product categories;steward new products & review salesto assess performance/market trends& opportunities. 3-5 years experiencewith exceptional quantitative analyticalskills. Outstanding communicationand computer skills are required; SAPpreferred. E-mail resumes to:Employment@tumi.com or Fax to:908-756-8590. We welcome diversity.

TUMI, INC.

ASSISTANT SWEATER DESIGNERJunior and Contemporary

Exciting opportunity for creative,hands on, experienced assistant towork on all aspects of sweater lines.Should be organized, detail orientedwith technical and omputer skills. Plsfax resume with handwritten cover let-ter and salary history to SweaterDesign at 212-475-2926

bernadette conteA sophisticated, modern and refresh-

ing sportswear collection is seeking anenthusiastic self-starter to rise to thechallenge and opportunities of this

start-up company. The individual is adynamic professional with bridgeexp. Candidate must be extremely

organized, effective and highlymotivated. Responsibilities

include running NY showroom,and interfacing with regional sales

reps. Communication and analyticalskills a must. Exp with merchandising

and sales projections a plus.

Please email resume with salaryhistory to:

sales@bernadetteconte.com

Bookkeeper/AccountantNYC garment manufacturer for Billing,A/R, A/P, inventory, bank & factor recs,G/L entries, monthly close, financialanalysis. Strong in computers, PeachTree, Excel, communicative in English.E-mail resume: j080951@hotmail.com

COSABELLA-Sales Exec.Global style brand is seeking anexperienced Sales Executive to developspecialty store business and launchnew collection in NY area. Min. 3 yearsexperience. Road travel req’d. Pleasee-mail resume & salary requirementsto: recruiter@cosabella.com

Daytime Dress DesignerLarge dress manufacturer seeks expe-rienced, well qualified daytime dressdesigner. Individual must be hard-working and able to multi-task. Expw/department stores, as well as catalogbusiness a MUST. Unique opportunityfor the right individual. For additionalinfo, please call Joann, at 212-704-2565.Resumes can be sent in confidence to:

daytimedesigner@gmail.com

DESIGN ASSISTANTNeed talented and dynamic recentgrad with proficient computer skills inPhotoshop & Illustrator for ladies bettersportswear co. Great work atmosphere& benefits. Please e-mail resumes to:

pattyt@dianegilman.com

Divisional MerchandisingManager

Headquartered in OrangeCounty, CA, The Wet Seal,Inc. provides a culture likeno other where employeesenjoy a dynamic, energetic

& creative environmentwith great benefits!Open to relocation.

APPLY NOW! recruiters@wetseal.com

www.wetsealinc.com

DESIGNERSSeeking accessories designers foradults and children’s headwear,bags, etc. Responsibilities incl:trend research. Licensed productdevel & design is a must. Knowl.of Illustrator & Photoshop.

Send resumes to:hblank@concept1.com

STORE MGR-RETAIL& WHOLESALESALES ASST, PROD MGR

& ACCT MGRGrowing Cashmere & Apprel Coseeks dedicated team player.

Salary commensurate with ability. PLEASE E-MAIL RESUME TO:

lawrence@sacointl.com

Design Asst-Cache National retailer is seeking a focusedindividual with minimum 5 yrs exp.Must possess extensive fabric & trimknowledge- Domestic, European, & Asiansuppliers. Prolific computer Knowledgeincl. PhotoShop and Excel. Excellentinterpersonal skills. Good benefits.Fax resume to Luise: 212-869-5356

DESIGNER $90-100K. Current exp inMissy dept. store casual woven sports-wear. Denims, twill, cotton sateens.Print driven. Fun, novelty prints.Chico’s younger fashion vision.JARALINC@comcast.net 973-564-9236

Designer AssociateGirls 2-16 import sptswr co seeks orgnz &dtl-ort’d team player w/min 5 yrs exp.Duties incl. sketch,construction detailsproduction pkgs for o/seas ftys, artwork& approval comments. Mac CS req’d.E-mail resume:jobs@apparelunltd.com

DESIGNERCharlotte Ronson seeks a Designerwith min 3-5 yrs design experience.Flat sketching, teck packs, trims, andpresentation boards. Must have extensivefamiliarity with contemporary market:trends, colors, fabrications, styles,strong Photoshop, Illustrator, & Excelskills and experience in developmentw/overseas factories. Salary & benefitsbased on exp. Please include digitalportfolio (pdf or jpg) with your resume.Resumes without a portfolio will notbe considered. E-mail to:

jobs@charlotteronson.com

Designer/DancewearDanskin®/Triumph Apparel Corp, worldrenowned dance resource, has excitingopportunity for a dynamic Dance WearDesigner to design comprehensivecollections from innovative fashion tocore basics. Ideal candidate is a proactiveself starter & detail oriented teamplayer w/at least 7 yrs of dance wear expdesigning Women’s, Teens & Girls,strong color sense; knowledge of knittedfabrics; in depth garment fit andconstruction expertise. Proficiency inIllustrator and Photoshop a must.Competitive comp & benefits package.Please, send resumes w/salary historyto: hr_new_york@danskin.com or Faxto: 212-930-9103. EOE/M/F/V

DesignerFashion forward women’s apparelimporter seeks creative, enthusiasticdesigner for junior & missy line. Musthave good communication and computerskills. Must have experience workingwith overseas factories. Please emailyour resume to: resume1202@gmail.com

RETAIL COORDINATORWe are currently seeking a talented and highly skilled Menswear specialistw/comprehensive knowledge in the areas of Tailored Clothing, Furnishingsand Sportswear. This is an exceptional opportunity to be part of a dynamic luxury fashion house poised for significant growth. Key responsibilities incl:• Ensure maximum regular price sellout at retail w/our wholesale partners• Educate dept. mgrs & sales team through product knowledge seminars• Visit stores and establish working relationships with store management and execute key VERSACE merchandising strategies & standards•Be the "eyes and ears" of brand within territory; extensive national travel req’d. Asst in the seasonal selling campaigns in the NY showroom

Candidate must have 3+ yrs exp as a Retail Coord. in Men’s designer.Please email resume including salary to: careers@versaceus.com

We are joining our Madison based retail divisionFamous Footwear with our corporate headquarters in St.Louis. This opens many professional opportunities at theClayton, St. Louis location including:

BuyingPlanning

Finance and AccountingMarketingOperations

Please check our website daily and apply on line atwww.BrownShoe.com

PRODUCT MANAGERWomen’s Apparel co. seeking exp. (min. 5 years) personto manage accts from development, costing, merchandisingto delivery of the finished product. Must have excellentcommunication & computer skills and be able to work withaccounts to grow the business & the relationship.

Please fax resume to: 212-382-2421

Designer/Merchandiser Branded imptr of designer apparelseeks seasoned designer w/5+ yrs exp insportswr, dresses, & knits. Must develop& design from inception to final product.Must be prof. in photoshop & illustr. &have knowl. of import fabrics, trims, etc.

Asst. Tech DesignerAlso seeking asst tech designer w/ min 3yrs exp in sportswear, dresses, &maternities to work w/patternmaker &design. put together tech pkgs, corresp.w/overseas factories on samples, fits, etc.

Send resume with salary history to:designerjob463@gmail.com

DESIGNERS............................$ OPENIntimates All Levels

Jennifer Glenn SRI Search 212-465-8300jennifer@srisearch.com

www.srisearch.com

Designer - Sweaters- NYLuxury knitwear manufacturer seeksfreelance designer with experience incashmere and blended yarns, suitable forDesigner & Bridge product. Candidatemust have 6+ years experience inknitwear and must have an extensivetechnical background. This personmust also have the ability to workclosely with our sales and sourcingteams. Candidate must also havestrong sketching / illustration skillsand be proficient with Excel and CADand have the ability to create detailedtech packs. Please e-mail resume to:

sweaters17@yahoo.com

DRAPERMajor eveningwear manufacturer sksdraper to work with designer to createmuslin / first pattern in domesticsampleroom. Capable of working withsamplehands to create finished gar-ments. Working knowledge of produc-tion techniques. Send resume in con-fidence to: dressdraper@gmail.com

FASHION CAREER OPPORTUNITIESIleen Raskin, Apparel 212-213-6381Nancy Bottali, Accessories 212-213-6386Ed Kret, Textiles/Apparel 212-213-6384

raskin718@msn.comwww.raskinexecsearch.com

FIT SUPERVISOR Experienced fit specialist to oversee allfittings, pattern work flow andcommunicate w/Production & DesignTeam. 10+ years of experience in betterwomen’s garments making & productdevelopment expertise, Proficient inPC applications and PDM. Good salaryand benefits, Negligible travel is req’d.E-mail resume to: fbibbo@cache.com

Freelance DesignerCASSIN

Womens Luxe house seeks creativeindiv to asst w/special projects. Strongsptw / rtw exp a must. Knowl of luxuryfabrics and fine contruction a must.Tech Pacs, Photo/Illust proficient.Deadline oriented with great follow up.

Send resume to Bony: Fax: 212-268-7425 or Email:

bwibowo@cassincollections.com

18 WWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008

100%fashioncareers

LETYOURTALENTS SPARKLEwith a career at our corporate office in Rhode Island.

WHOLESALEMARKETING MANAGERIn this highly visible position, we are seeking an experiencedmarketing professional to develop and implement marketingprograms to maximize business opportunity in the wholesalechannel and elevate our brand. Previous experience working fora luxury or fashion brand is preferred.

To apply, please log on to: www.swarovskicareers.com/us

Swarovski offers quality compensation, medical/dental/lifeinsurance, bonus program, tuition reimbursement, and a generouscompany discount.

EOE

FREELANCE SWEATER DESIGNERwe need help with some really excitingprojects! Experience in Contemporaryor Junior sweater design, with strongtechnical background a must. Need tostart immediately and work to comple-tion. Please fax resume to: Freelance -c/o Megan at 212-475-1982

INTERNATIONAL RETAILFORECASTER/PLANNER

Based in South Plainfield, New Jersey.Responsibilities includes trending &forecasting product lines, updatingforecasts by collection, reporting actualvs. forecast by units & dollars, analyzingassortments & inventory levels. 3-5 yearsexperience with exceptional quantitative,analytical skills. Merchandisingexperience is a plus. Excel and Wordrequired; SAP & Demand Solution aplus. Quarterly travel. E-mail resumesto: Employment@tumi.com or fax to:908-756-8590 . We welcome diversity.

TUMI, INC.* JOBS *JOBS *JOBS *

Artist Girls- Boys-Jrs. - Mens- $HIArtist Boy or Girl Disney or Generic $HIDesigner-Assist-Assoc Boy-Girl-Jr.Designer Assist or Assoc Girls 4/16 DenimMerchandiser Missy/Jr Woven/Knit Tops $ HI Product Manager or Coord - Lab Dips Production Mgr-Assist-Coordinators-$HITechnical Designer - Childrens Hi End $HITechnical Designer & Assistants $HICall B. Murphy(212)643-8090; fax 643-8127

Juniors Denim DesignMust have 2 years experience in JuniorsBottom Design, with strong Photoshopand Illustrator background. Sendresumes:JASON@FLYPUSA.COM orfax to: 212-971-9203

PATTERN MAKER $100-130K1st Prod’n. Cloth, outerwear & leathersToddWayne1@aol.com or 212-947-3400

PATTERNMAKERContemporary sportswear Co. lookingfor freelance patternmaker specializingin jackets and coats. Work in our designroom 6 month commitment.Contact:Nic@nco2inc.com fax 212 768 3680

PatternMaker-LectraQueens based Global Company seeks

experienced Lectra Pattern Maker.Responsibilities include:

•To create and complete accurate pat-terns and full garment specificationsthat meet specific design requirements.•To complete full patterns includinggrading for local and offshore production.•Ensuring that the final patterns aregraded/ and/ or digitised creating samplesfor marker making.•Provide support to productdevelopment/quality team when required. Email resume:JKEARNS@RUBIES.COM

PatternmakerSeeking couture/designer patternmakerwith 5+ years experience. Must havecomplete understanding of construction,fit & draping, and good communicationskills. Excellent opportunity for theright person. Please call: 212 938 1933,Fax resume to: 212-938-1936 or E-mailresume to: leslie@christiancota.com

Planner $50-70KASSOCIATE LEVEL

2-5yrs WALL-MART or K-MART expE-mail: Kerri@Karlyn.com

KARLYN FASHION RECRUITERS

PLANNING MANAGER........TO $150KReplenishment / Wal -Mart

Jennifer Glenn SRI Search 212-465-8300jennifer@srisearch.com

www.srisearch.com

“PLAN” YOUR CAREER“On the Marks” has many temporaryand direct-hire positions available.The following are just some of ouropportunities:MERCHANDISE PLANNER- Musthave 3 plus years exp as a mchdseplanner and M/H Wal-Mart exp. 60KCUSTOMER SERVICE- Fashion exp. amust. Enter orders. Deal w/buyers,acct. exec’s and production. 33KPRODUCTION COORDINATORS-Temp and temp to perm. AS400 amust. 17-20P/H.EXECUTIVE ASSISTANTS- Fashionand 4 plus years a must. 65-75K

For more information on these positionsas well as showroom assistants,receptionists, sales assistants andothers please email resume toJackie@otmaa.com or fax to 212-532-6892.

CJ Apparel Group, LLC. the original barefoot brand is currently looking tofill a variety of positions. Pls e-mail resume to the designated email address’.

Accounting ManagerCandidate responsible for all phases of GL prep, incl. journal entries, cutoffs,

accruals etc w/minimal staff. Individual must be organized, possess goodcommunication skills & be team player. CPA a plus.

job201@cjapparelgroup.com

AP/LC ClerkSeeking AP clerk with L/C background. Candidate should possess goodworking knowledge of AP systems & be familiar w/electronically sending

LC openings to banks.job202@cjapparelgroup.com

Corporate Cash Flow Manager Seeking exp individual to manage all aspects of cash flow for consolidated

group. Position reports to the VP of Finance. Must possess good Excelskills, be organized, & work in fast paced environment.

job203@cjapparelgroup.com

Dir of Budget and Special Projects seeking individual resp. for prep. of company projections. Must be able tomonitor & analyze variances and communicate effectively w management.Also must be able to direct & coordinate activities related to special projects

as required. job204@cjapparelgroup.com

Retail Jr. Accountant / Bookkeeperseeking candidate must have retail accounting background to reconcile

and maintain retail activity for the company’s 15 stores. Candidate shouldpossess good Excel skills and communicate well.

job205@cjapparelgroup.com

Payroll and Benefits Administrator Seeking exp. individual to administer multi-company payroll with 200+employees & coordinate changes w OS payroll service. Responsible formaintenance of employee files, compliance w/labor law & tax jurisdictions ,preparation of journal entries for GL. Knowledge of multi-state payrolls

req’d. Candidate must be able to perform reconciliations of 401kwithholdings to remittances. job206@cjapparelgroup.com

P.R./Marketing $50K-$150KPlanning $45K-$120KAcct. Execs.(many areas) $50K-$200KTech Design $45K-$100KDesign $50K-$150K

Freelance and Fulltime positionsavailable!!!

Please email resumes to:ny@fourthfloorfashion.comfor freelance opportunities:

nyfreelance@fourthfloorfashion.comwww.fourthfloorfashion.com

Product DevelopmentSourcing Merchandiing

** Home/hard goods $$$$* *Kids home décor $$$$

Some Target/K-Mart retail exp

Kids Designers (2)Lic Home Décor. All Salaries BOE

Call Laurie 212-947-3399or e-mail laurie@karlyn.com

KARLYN FASHION RECRUITERS

Product Development Top Designer brand seeking candidatew/Woven Tech Design &/or FabricR&D Exp. 123jobs@earthlink.net

Production AssistantLuxe apparel company seeks exp’dorganized person to assist Prod. Mgr.Requirements incl in-depth knowl-edge of garment construction andmanufacturing, maintain time/actioncalendar, muti-tasker, strong verbal &written comm skills and excellentfollow-up. Domestic/Import exp. Bene-fits package. Email your resume to:

bwhite@cassincollections.com

Production AssistantWhite Plains Infant Wear Co. seeksambitious applicant to assist with orderplacement and follow-up with overseasfactories. Excellent benefits andopportunity. Fax or E-mail resume to:914-428-0610 / service@cuddletime.com

SALESPERSON WANTED Importer of Fashion Jewelry seeksexp’d salesperson w/major store & spe-cialty store following. Fax 212-685-4039or email josephanthonyfas@aol.com

The Hot Sox Company of NYC, a division of Renfro Corp. and theLicensee of Polo/Ralph Lauren and Levi’s hosiery, is seeking

qualified candidates for several opportunities:EXECUTIVE ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

This individual will assist the President and Chief Operating Officer of thecompany with the coordination of business plans from its midtown NewYork City location.This individual would be responsible for the daily opera-tions of a fifty person office environment which would include:•Assist the president and COO with various duties associated with growing and servicing the business.•Coordination of the ADP payroll process, which includes entering salary changes.•Key person responsible for the coordination of various duties relating to local benefit administration, including group insurance benefits, and administration of company vacation and sick pay policies.The successful candidate would possess an Associates degree and havea minimum of 7 years of related experience with a company of like size,have a high degree of integrity and honesty and confidentiality in workingwith all levels of people. Advanced computer skills, office skills and out-standing oral and written communication skills are all required. Previousexperience in payroll or human resources benefit administrationare a plus.

NATIONAL ACCOUNT MANAGERReporting directly to the VP Global Sales, this individual would be responsi-ble for the development of business accounts by planning all sales activityincluding product presentations, negotiating prices and delivery informa-tion in retail department store sector and coordination with design of lineand merchandising. Develops annual forecasts to maintain proper invento-ries and monitors the profitability of each account. Leadership and devel-opment of team including A/E’s and merchandise coordinators. Success-ful candidate would have 3-5 years wholesale sales or buying/planningbackground with socks or hosiery a plus, and a four year degree, strongcommunication skills and self motivated and analytical thinking all required.

Qualified candidates should send resume and salary history to:resumes@renfro.com or to Hot Sox Company,

661 Linville Road, Mount Airy, NC 27030 AA/EEO/M/F/D/V

Sample Room CoordinatorLarge swim company with busy sampleroom seeks organized, deadline oriented person with people skills and constructionknowledge. Fluent English /Spanish.Fax or Email resume to: 212-592-7234

sl62quinn@yahoo.com

SENIOR DESIGNER $100-150KMissy S/W. Pvt Label. Mass Mkt PDM.KwanJessilyn@aol.com 212-947-3400

SOURCING MANAGEREst. ladies sptswr. co. has great oppt’yfor sourcing mgr. w/ext.knowledge ofbtm. wt. wovens. Detail oriented w/technical skills & contacts w/ overseasmills. Resp. for lab dips & bulk appvl’s.Strong org. skills & followup a mustfor t&a calendar. Act as liason betweendesign/prod/factories. Email resumes: HLigouri@elosport.com

SOURCING MANAGERSweater co seeks expd Manager withextensive overseas factory contacts.

Email: patjudice5@aol.com

TECHINICAL DESIGNERSteven Alan seeks detail-oriented techdesigner for a full-time position. Techpacks, fittings, grading, and overseescommunication. Prior experience andstrong communication skills arerequired. Must be familiar with Illus-trator, Photoshop, and Microsoft Of-fice. Salary + benefits. Please emailresume: jobs@stevenalan.com

Vendor ComplianceGarment Manufacturer looking forindividual with EDI and vendor com-pliance background; HSN & SEARSknowledge preferred. Bilingual a plus.Microsoft Office and Internet knowl-edge a must. Position is located inSecaucus NJ. Morning shift 7:45am to3:45pm. Fax resumes to 201-558-9898Attention Michael.

19WWD, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008

Search hundreds of positions infashion, retail and beauty.

Search hundreds of

positions in fashion, retail

and beauty.

SALES MANAGER Washington DC Metro Area

Chesapeake Bay Candle® is one of the largest candle suppliersin the United States, and has brought the latest trends inhome fragrance and home decor to consumers worldwide.Named by Inc. magazine as one of America’s fastest growingprivate companies, Chesapeake Bay Candle® is serving globalFortune 1000 retailers in the United States and Europe.

We are currently seeking a seasoned Sales Manager. Candidatemust possess the proven ability to develop and growbusiness in new & existing accounts & possess knowledge ofthe dynamics of the retail & wholesale business. Candidatemust be self-motivated; sales oriented & possess an attitude &appearance that exudes success.

Send resumes to: hr@ptilink.com

New York Wholesale Sales ManagerSeeking motivated, energetic, enthusiastic Sales Manager

for Trina Turk’s New York Showroom. Candidate must have at least 5 plus years experience and establishedworking relationships with department stores and better specialty stores.Relationships with international accounts a plus. Responsibilities includeoverseeing territory, growing our business, developing sales staff and runningtrade shows. Must be a polished professional w/strong communication,managerial, organizational and motivational skills and the ability to drive abusiness.Pls e-mail resume to: claudine@trinaturk.com or fax to: 213-623-5318

DIRECTOR OF SALESEst’d Eveningwear label servingpremier Dept. & Specialtystores seeks take-charge,market savvy sales pro. Musthave proven track record &ability to increase our multi-million dollar sales volume.Frequent travel for trunkshows a must. Top dollarplus incentive package forthe right fit. Send resumew/salary history to :

hrsales2008@aol.com

seeksSALES ASSISTANT

Energetic & self-motivated individualwith proven sales exp & leadershipqualities. Must have strong organi-zational skills, great follow through& strong sense of urgency. Computerskills are required. Position is inthe New York Showroom.

Fax resume Attn: Shanah212-575-2645

We are an exciting, established, diverse and growing jewelrycompany looking to expand our team.

WHOLESALE SALES REPRESENTATIVEOpenings in SOHO, New York

Multi line high-end fashion and fine jewelry showroom is seeking anexperienced, motivated, energetic salesperson with 4-5 yrs experience.This individual must have established working relationships with betterspecialty and department stores. Must be a polished professional with:

• Strong communication skills & excellent organizational abilities.• Excellent follow through, self motivated, enthusiasm & creativity.• Able to drive a business & possess the skills to take existing businesses to the next level.• Position includes trade shows and road work

We offer excellent company benefitsPlease email resume to: sneuffer@fragments.com

SALESPEOPLELadies Contemporary and JuniorSportswear Co. seeks to build asales team of talented and wellexperienced individuals w/strongcontacts with major retailers, dept& specialty stores. Offering salary+ commission and bonus. PleaseFax resume to: 609-784-0575

Great OpportunityYoung, missy, growing company look-ing for energetic, motivated salesper-son to deal with specialty stores, small

chain stores and dept. stores. Min 2year experience. Salary + commission

offered. E-mail resume:avi@biacciny.com

INDEPENDENT SALES REPSChristina Swimwear, a nat’l SwimwearCo. is launching new, exciting lines for2009 and is seeking Independent SalesRepresentatives. We have multipleterritories in the U.S.A. that are available .

Please e-mail resumes to:Mhammer@christina.ca

SALES ASSOCIATE Trendy Handbag Co. is seeking a self-motivated indiv. with Junior/Specialty& Department Store knowledge. OfferingLicensed, Branded, Private Label andGeneric product. Also perform as salesassistant with administrative & customerservice skills. 3-5 years exp. req’d. Faxresume to 212-563-0598 OR E-mail:handbags.resume@gmail.com

SALES: In-HouseHot new Streetwear Backpack/MessengerBag Line seeking exp. person withconStreet/Urban retailer connections inall major cities. The product will sellitself- It’s HOT! Salary + comission.Please e-mail: eddie@homenyla.com

SALESPEOPLE WANTEDTextile & Apparel company hiring:

1.) Fabric Sales2.) Garment sales (for blouse)These positions require at least 8 yearsof experience, Job is full time only.Not looking for independent reps.Send resume to : mail@catalinany.com

SALESPERSONSocial Occasion Dress Company look-ing for a seasoned salesperson tomaintain existing accounts, as well asbring in new businesses. The rightperson should have a social occasiondress background plus 3-5 years expe-rience in sales and merchandising.Must be willing to travel and havecomputer skills. Person will start im-mediately. Email resumes along withsalary reqs to fashionjobs@gmail.com

SalespersonWomen’s Domestic/Import Mfr seeksexperienced salesperson for Juniors,Missy, and Plus Size tops and bottoms.Please fax resume to: 212-302-7836

SALES PROFESSIONALJr. - Missy - Plus

Established, moderate price, ladiesknit sportswear co. is seeking highly

motivated organized sales Pro.Must have strong existing relationship:

Dept. - Specialty - Mass.PLEASE FAX RESUME TO: 212-840-0500

SALES PROLooking for experienced sales in up-dated missy knits & sweaters. Usual re-quirements and able to make a good im-pression with buyers. Email Resume:

HRAmgr@verizon.net

SALES REPS NEEDEDEstablished Medical Uniform & Scrub Co.seeks experienced Sales Reps for nationalterritories. Attractive compensation package.High commission.

Please fax resume to: (718)- 378-2889

Sales

Sales AssistantFast paced Apparel Company has anopening for a Sales Assistant with amin. 3 years exp. Responsibilitiesinclude order placement, sales analysisand follow up, communication andinterfacing with retailers, and workingdirectly with production and designdepts. Computer literacy and familiaritywith Word and Excel a MUST. Shouldbe a multi-tasker,motivated and detail-oriented. Send resumes to e-mail:jdeluca@saramax.com or fax:212-842-4050 Attn: HR. EOE.

Smitten, a hot, new, contemporaryknitwear line, is looking an experiencedperson to build upon the success weare having! Must have 7+ yrs salesexp. in the contemporary market.Mgmt skills & a long list of contactsare also needed. Please e-mail resumeto: msmitten@live.com

Bulgari Contemporary Italian Designers of jewelry, watches andaccessories seeks personable and experienced Luxury RetailProfessionals to join our new Atlanta store at the Lenox SquareMall for the following opportunities:

Store ManagerSales Professionals

Store Support AdministratorSecurity Guard

Store Manager must have experience with managing a luxury retailstore. Sales professionals must have a proven track record with aminimum 3 years of luxury retailsales experience. “Entrepreneurialmindset” and superior communicationskills are essential. Store supportadministrator must be detail oriented andhave excellent organizational skills whileworking in a team retail environment.

Must be available to work weekends/ retailhours. We offer a competitive salary andgenerous benefits package. Please emailresumes to:

careers@bulgari.comwww.bulgari.com eoe

Global Production/GlobalQA/Corporate Social Responsibility-

ALL IN ONE PERSON. Twenty years+ on the ground, in factory, exp in

China, South East Asia, Mexico,Central America, Africa etc.

(201) 224-4147 pwood@nj.rr.com

Special occasions. Or just a night out. Everybody looks forward to wearing cotton. It’s stylish and comfortable too. www.cottoninc.com

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