4 May, 2021

TRP Travel Retail Style Index: May 2021

Welcome to the latest travel retail column for DRG by Alison Farrington aka The Retail Planner (TRP).

This month’s highlights come from a purposeful social retail pop-up in Hainan, a luxury hometail makeover and the latest TikTok trend.

1/ SOCIAL RETAIL. Societal pressures are the focus for a new type of phygital pop-up courtesy of Japanese skincare brand SK-II that has debuted a retail-tainment destination in the Haitang Bay Duty Free Shopping Centre in Sanya, Hainan.

The pop-up is an immersive representation of the P&G-owned brand’s new SK-II Studio animated anthology series called VS. The film and retail campaign aims to highlight career pressures faced by women and viewed through the experiences of six athletes taking part in this year’s Tokyo Olympics. (more…)

Disneyrollergirl 0 Comments Beauty, Brands, Business of fashion, Retail concepts, Shopping, Technology, Trends Bicester Village, celebrity, DFS, Gucci, luxury, LVMH, shopping, SK-II, skincare, Tiffany, TikTok

6 February, 2021

Pieter Mulier to Maison Alaïa

Pieter Mulier creative director Alaïa ss22

Some exciting news on the designer front. Pieter Mulier, the one-time secret weapon of Raf Simons (who can forget his stand out supporting role in Dior & I?) has been appointed creative director at Alaïa.

This sounds like an excellent appointment, with Mulier promising to retain Azzedine Alaïa’s “legacy of celebrating femininity and placing women at the heart of creation”, hopefully with a modern hand. I imagine Richemont will expect a big ROI with fulsome collections of clothes, accessories (and maybe even beauty?) but hopefully they can also find a way to imbue some of the slower pace Alaïa was known for with his ‘it comes when it comes’ schedules. (more…)

Disneyrollergirl 2 Comments Brands, Business of fashion, Design, Designers, Films, News Azzedine Alaia, Business of Fashion, designers, Dior & I, films, luxury, Pieter Mulier, Raf Simons, Richemont

7 December, 2020

Positive fashion: Gabriela Hearst is the new cd at Chloe

Gabriela Hearst is the new creative director at Chloe

Great to hear that Gabriela Hearst is the new creative director at Chloe. She has proven sustainability credentials, a contemporary-classic point of view (which I prefer to her predecessor’s) and clearly knows how to design fantastic bags.

It will be interesting to see if she can retain her considered approach while working for a brand that thrives on constant consumption. Perhaps we’ll see her instil a slower pace of product release. (more…)

Disneyrollergirl 1 Comment Brands, Business of fashion, Designers, News Chloe, Gabriela Hearst, gentlewoman style, handbags, luxury, positive fashion, sustainability

7 December, 2020

Quote of the day: Fran Lebowitz on wants vs needs

Fran Lebowitz quote

“I’m very materialistic. Unfortunately, I am also very uninterested in money, so it’s a horrible combination. I have more Anderson & Sheppard suits and jackets than I should. More than I could really afford. Of course, you don’t actually need any of these things, and I have more than I need. That doesn’t mean that I have more than I want, since I seem to be the only American who knows the difference between desire and need. But I enjoy the whole process. There is nothing that I like more than to spend hours looking through swatches. I love deciding between 17 shades of grey.” (more…)