WORLD / Wall Street Journal Exclusive
Outrageous fashion, and why it matters
By RACHEL DODES and TERI AGINS (WSJ)
Updated: 2006-10-06 15:13
http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB116009918429884535-rWN6qZzDe_br_GjV7
kgWrrACq5Y_20061012.html?mod=regionallinks
PARIS -- With the white-fringed dresses and star-strewn bodysuits they
sent down the runway to the strains of "Somewhere over the Rainbow,"
designers Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren were the talk of the Paris
fashion scene this week.
But few of their runway clothes will be made in any sizable quantity, and
nobody expects Messrs. Horsting and Snoeren to make any actual money from
these outlandish looks. Instead, the Dutch design duo is counting on the
buzz from their show -- which featured tuxedoed male ballroom dancers
waltzing through dry-ice smoke -- to ring up big sales in the
more-commercial realm of perfumes, cheap-chic clothes and accessories.
"The clothes are part of a bigger story," says Mr. Horsting, whose
closely held fashion label, Viktor & Rolf, has licensing deals with
cosmetics giant L'Or��al SA and fast-fashion emporium Hennes & Mauritz
AB's H&M.
Fashion week in the French capital, more so than in other cities, is a
showcase for the world's most creative fashion trends, especially those
that will never translate directly into clothing sales. During this
week's shows, which end Monday, the innovative looks have included Jean
Paul Gaultier's racer-striped fishnet leggings, Karl Lagerfeld's boxy
black dress with bubble sleeves, crystal-encrusted leggings at Balenciaga
and Comme des Gar?ons' patchwork-plaid pants and white tutus with a red
circle, reminiscent of the Japanese flag.
For fashion's big guns -- Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior -- the
Paris shows are an elaborate publicity vehicle for the pricey handbags
and shoes that make up the bulk of their sales. The Louis Vuitton label,
for example, gets only a tiny fraction of its annual sales of $5 billion
plus from the ready-to-wear clothing items that its creative director,
Marc Jacobs, sends down the runway Sunday. But making a big splash in
Paris is still a critical element of every elite designer's marketing
plan, keeping the brand visible and exciting in front of editors and
A-list fashionistas.
But for designers at smaller brands -- Viktor & Rolf; Olivier Theyskens,
formerly at Rochas; and Alber Elbaz at Lanvin -- Paris is an incubator
for innovation that may not yield commercial successes for several years.
"They all came to Paris because that's where the creative tradition was
consecrated," says Pamela Golbin, curator of the Mus��e de la Mode, which
currently is showing a retrospective called "Balenciaga Paris." "In
America," she adds, "it is about the 'it' designer. But in Paris there is
a long-term commitment...that allows a designer to develop."
The emphasis on high-concept artistry sets Paris-based labels apart from
their generally more commercial Italian and American counterparts. "The
people here, they see with fashion eyes," says Chanel designer Karl
Lagerfeld, after presenting his collection, which included neatly
tailored blouses and trenchcoat-style dresses. People in Paris, he says,
innately appreciate fashion's artistic aspects.
Retailers, too, say it doesn't matter if the styles on the runway never
end up in stores. The point of coming to Paris is to look through the
window that Paris offers into new fashion ideas.
Sometimes, the emphasis on creativity over commercialism pays off. In
2001, when PPR SA's Gucci Group bought the storied but moribund
Balenciaga label, industry observers were skeptical that it would ever
resonate with modern shoppers. The Spanish-born Cristobal Balenciaga had
closed the haute couture house in 1968; it had never produced clothing
for retailers. But the French designer, Nicolas Ghesqui��re, revived it.
Balenciaga says the label has been profitable since the end of 2005,
declining to provide sales figures.
The label's show on Tuesday was one of the hottest tickets in Paris this
week, featuring a futuristic parade of skinny pantsuits, patent-leather
minidresses and sculpted alligator jackets that drew thunderous applause.
"It was very Balenciaga, very Nicholas Ghesqui��re, and very Barneys,"
says Julie Gilhart, women's fashion director at Barneys. She says she was
especially taken with the jackets and the shiny slim pants, which she
thought were both chic and sellable.
Stores such as Barneys New York, a unit of Jones Apparel Group, and
Neiman Marcus Group's Bergdorf Goodman don't buy nearly as much fashion
apparel and accessories in France as they do in New York and Italy. But
they depend on a smattering of Parisian labels to give their stores a
cutting-edge vibe. "It is important that we are so closely associated
with designers that push fashion," says Ms. Gilhart, of Barneys, which
last week opened a store in Dallas. "Our customers must understand that
they are getting something special."
Recently, some observers have worried Paris might lose some of its
creative flare. Last year, the Parisian fashion scene was rankled when
LVMH Mo?t Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA Chairman Bernard Arnault sold off
Christian Lacroix, the fabled French fashion label it had launched in
1987, to the Falic Group, a U.S. duty-free retailer. And in July, when
Procter & Gamble Co. decided to stick with its core consumer-goods
business and shutter the House of Rochas, some saw it as a bad omen for
fashion's small, high-creativity designers.
This week, though, it was clear that Parisian houses, as well as foreign
brands based here, are continuing to push the fashion envelope. "Paris in
the last couple of seasons has been the dominant force, in terms of
pushing relevant ideas and silhouettes," says Michael Fink, women's
fashion director at Saks Inc.'s Saks Fifth Avenue.
Jean Paul Gaultier's wild fashion show on Tuesday began with a runway
retrospective of his signature looks, including the famous cone-shaped
bustier Madonna popularized on her 1990 "Blond Ambition" tour. Mr.
Gaultier's collection for spring 2007 had a workout theme, complete with
sparkly exercise bikes and ellipitcal machines on the stage.
A number of retailers said they liked Mr. Gaultier's sexy fishnet
leggings and silk track suits. "He is totally transcending active and
turning it into lifestyle," says Nicole Fischelis, fashion director at
Federated Department Stores Inc.'s Macy's, using retailing shorthand for
department stores' mainstay apparel categories. Macy's is featuring the
lower-priced Gaultier Jeans label in the windows at its Herald Square
store in Manhattan this month.
Viktor & Rolf is one of the more successful fashion brand-building
endeavors of recent years. Messrs Horsting and Snoeren, who have been
designing for 13 years, are best known among fashion devot��es for their
white blouses with complicated tucks and ruffles and their boutiques
designed to look upside down, with chandeliers on the floor.
They are widening their brand's visibility and recognition with licensing
deals. Starting this November, the duo will design an exclusive
collection of women's and men's apparel, including a $400 bridal gown,
for 250 H&M stores around the world. L'Or��al two years ago launched
Flowerbomb, Viktor & Rolf's first women's fragrance, and last month it
came out with Antidote, a Viktor & Rolf fragrance for men. Antidote is
now the top-selling men's fragrance at Saks Fifth Avenue -- even though
the store has never carried any Viktor & Rolf apparel.
"Viktor & Rolf have credibility of creating a fantasy," says Patricia
Turck Paquelier, international brand president for L'Or��al fragrances.
At the Viktor & Rolf fashion show on Monday, onlookers sipped Champagne
while models walked down a central runway on crystal and satin platform
heels. A huge banner for Antidote perfume was unfurled during the show's
grand finale.
Fashion watchers guessed the show was at least a million-dollar
production. L'Or��al, which paid for the show, declined to comment,
allowing only that it cost "a significant amount." The company says the
brand's fragrances will be profitable in two years.
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