1 June, 2019

Buy it now: Demellier SS19

Demellier bags have had a major boost since I first discovered them in 2012. Quick back story: I discovered them in the best way, when I was at an event talking to someone and my eyes kept resting on somebody elses’s bag across the room. When I found the owner and quizzed her about her bag, she revealed it was her own design. That was Mireia Llusia-Lindh, then a corporate consultant whose frustration at not being able to find a practical and sensibly-priced bag for work led her to design her own. Classic founder story! We made friends and I’ve followed her success – and the evolution of the brand name – since.

The Duchess of Sussex (aka Meghan Markle) is another fan, whose high profile patronage has shot Demellier bags into the mainstream. Actually, Demellier bags have developed from the original laptop-friendly totes into smaller fashion bags, offering more choice, colours and price points. (more…)

Disneyrollergirl 3 Comments Brands, Design, News, Photography, Shopping, Trends Business of Fashion, Demellier, design, handbags, Nikki McClarron, photography, shopping, ss19, trends

26 May, 2019

Will Rihanna’s Fenty LVMH RTW collection sell?

Rihanna debuts Fenty RTW line for LVMH

First look at Rihanna’s Fenty RTW collection for LVMH. She’s the first black woman to get her own dedicated high end line at LVMH. It’s pretty amazing considering Hedi, Phoebe and Nicolas haven’t managed to achieve that.

The collection is created with creative director Jahleel Weaver. “Angles, textures, colors – I screen-shoot them constantly, bookmark them, folder them, then text them all to Jahleel,” Rihanna told the New York Times. “Later, we have a conversation. And hopefully, then, the magic happens.” Although I love the imagery, at first look it’s not saying much that we haven’t seen already. It’s in the Loewe, J W Anderson, ‘old Celine‘ mould of exaggerates silhouettes with off-kilter details. (more…)

Disneyrollergirl 2 Comments Brands, Business of fashion, Design, Designers, Music, News, Retail concepts, Trends accessories, Business of Fashion, Fenty, luxury, LVMH, Rihanna

25 May, 2019

LVMH is backing cool jewels

Repossi Robert Mapplethorpe New York Times

An update from the world of fine jewellery. LVMH has quietly taken a majority stake in my favourite cult fine jewellery brand Repossi. According to Business of Fashion (paywall), LVMH (which owns Louis Vuitton, Dior, Chaumet and Bulgari) has upped its stake from 42 percent in 2015, to 69 percent in 2018. I’ve not heard much on the Repossi front lately, but BOF reports that it has been expanding its retail network, with shop-in-shops in Dubai, London and Doha, with New York and Tokyo to come. (more…)

Disneyrollergirl 0 Comments Art, Brands, Business of fashion, Design, Designers, News, Trends Business of Fashion, fine jewellery, Francesca Amfitheatrof, jewellery, Louis Vuitton, luxury, LVMH, Repossi, Robert Mapplethorpe, Tiffany, trends

24 May, 2019

Airports want your beauty dollars

Susana Chaves

A few years ago I was obsessed with the concept of ‘airport fashion’. A craze originating in Korea, it was about dressing up for the airport, shopping up a storm in duty free and documenting it all on social media. Back then we were witnessing the rise of K Fashion, street style and the experiential economy, all merging in a retail sweet spot for airports to reposition themselves as luxury shopping malls. In fact, so great was this opportunity that travel retail came to be known as ‘the sixth continent’, with a billion consumers passing through it.

Fast-forward five years and it’s beauty’s turn to grab the spotlight and the um, travellers cheques. (more…)