ictoria Beckham Buys London Supermarket? Fashion Designer Expands "Working Space" as Business Grows

Looks like Victoria Beckham's business is getting a little bigger.

The talented fashion designer has reportedly purchased a London supermarket to expand her working space for her ever-growing fashion empire.

A rep for Victoria's XIX Entertainment tells E! News "there is no plan to open a VB shop in London," but confirmed the company is looking to expand their "working space" due to immense growth in the business.

Victoria Beckham: Officially a fashion authority as judge of international Woolmark Prize

The fierce fashionista—who has kids Brooklyn, 14, Romeo, 10, Cruz, 8, and 20-month-old Harper with her soccer stud husband David—recently debuted a strong fall 2013 collection at New York Fashion Week in February, where she earned rave reviews for her evolution as a designer.

The Beckham beauty's flourishing fashion empire currently includes a ready-to-wear collection, as well as denim, handbags and other accessories and boasts a bevy of celebrity fans.

The former Spice Girl is also launching an online shopping site for her brand in the spring.

DHL Brings Business Insights to World MasterCard(R) Fashion Week With 2nd Fashion Industry Panel

DHL, the global market leader in logistics, is set to shine a spotlight on the competitive and global nature of the Canadian fashion industry by kicking off its 2nd DHL Fashion Industry Panel on Tuesday, March 19 at 1 p.m. in "The Studio" at World MasterCard Fashion Week. As the official logistics partner for the event, DHL hopes to spur an insightful conversation with the local fashion community on the knowledge and resources critically needed by emerging and established designers to improve business and drive long-term success in the Canadian fashion business.

"This is the second year in a row we are offering young designers and entrepreneurs the opportunity to tap into some of the industry''s brightest minds, and to share DHL''s decades of fashion industry experience with Canadian retailers and designers," said Greg Hewitt, President of DHL Express Canada and panel participant. "We think it''s very important to address these topics in order to help young designers and entrepreneurs to succeed in a very competitive market. We want to make sure they understand the nuances that go into building a successful brand, and we, as a global company, can help them thrive through our expertise and connections."

Fashion is internationally recognized as a difficult industry to break into and achieve long-term success. Canadian market designers and fashion retailers face the additional challenges of selling to a small domestic market already saturated by large international brands. Along with real-life design experiences from Christopher Bates and Adam Taubenfligel of Triarchy, this year''s panel will include business and retail advice from Mark Zimmermann of MaRs and Roxanne Joyal of Me to We. Jarrad Clark, Director of Global Production for IMG Fashion will also be talking about the lessons he thinks are key for young entrepreneurs for their own businesses, and how these insights apply not only to their brand at Fashion Week, but also other venues that offer exposure locally and globally.

"Becoming an internationally known brand doesn''t happen by accident, and it isn''t all about the artistic vision and designs," says Jarrad Clark, Director of Global Production at IMG Fashion. "Knowing how to seek out growth opportunities, how to find key business allies and handle the business aspect of a fashion label or retailer are integral considerations for any successful brand."

DHL has developed specific logistics solutions to meet the demanding needs of the fashion sector. As specialists in international shipping and logistics, DHL masters the fashion supply chain - from procurement of material to sample production, quality control, warehousing and processing of garments to direct delivery to shops. DHL''s customers include both large retail groups with complex distribution requirements as well as small, independent fashion boutiques requiring a one-off service.
As a global company operating in 220 countries worldwide, DHL can deliver optimized supply chains, reduced lead times and easy access to new markets for up-and-comers and established fashion icons. DHL''s fashion industry solutions include distribution centre management, international supply chain management, analysis and design, e-commerce management a Global Fashion Network.

DHL - The Logistics company for the world
DHL is the global market leader in the logistics industry and "The Logistics company for the world". DHL commits its expertise in international express, air and ocean freight, road and rail transportation, contract logistics and international mail services to its customers. A global network composed of more than 220 countries and territories and about 285,000 employees worldwide offers customers superior service quality and local knowledge to satisfy their supply chain requirements. DHL accepts its social responsibility by supporting environmental protection, disaster management and education.

Fashion 2.0 Awards Honor Social Media Stars of the Industry

The most sartorially extravagant social media event of the year — the Fashion 2.0 Awards — took place at the SVA Theatre in New York last night, organized by Style Coalition, a fashion influencer marketing platform.

Categories for the four-year-old event included Best Twitter, Best Facebook, Best Pinterest, Best Blog by a Fashion Brand, Best Website, Best Mobile App, Best Online Video, Best Fashion Startup (a new category this year), and Top Innovator. Voting was open to the public on the Fashion 2.0 site.

The tech industry is sometimes criticized for the lack of women in entrepreneurial and leadership roles, but the ladies cleaned up at this event. Most of the nominees in all categories — including three of the five Best Fashion Startups — were founded or co-founded by women. "DVF [through Glass]," starring designer Diane von Furstenberg and Google Glass and featuring a cameo appearance by Google co-founder Sergey Brin, won Best Online Video. Style Coalition itself was founded by a woman, Yuli Ziv, who developed interactive online strategies at ad agencies before starting her own business blending fashion and technology.

"It always amazes me how this online fashion community is so tight," Ziv said in her opening remarks.

The evening was hosted for the second year in a row by stylist, interior decorator, and TV personality Robert Verdi, who offered free startup ideas for the audience: RentTheLouboutin.com (no doubt inspired by his earlier frantic search of the lobby for a lost spike from his $2,000 Louboutin loafers), Assbook ("How come nobody's done Assbook? Like you could tell people where you're sitting."), I'mWearingThisToYourFuneral.com, and FatOrPregnant.com.

Sporting a blue-spangled Burberry trench, Barneys Creative Ambassador-at-Large Simon Doonan delivered a gleefully wicked keynote on the "social media miracle." He praised social media for increasing pedestrian distraction and, thus, the stepping in of dog poo, resulting in his own amusement and an uptick in shoe sales at Barneys. ("Hashtag retailgratitude.") He spoke of the benefits of giving trolls or, as he refers to them, "Satan's disciples," a platform that makes them happy. "When Satan's disciples are happy, they're more likely to stay at home and less inclined to come knocking on my door asking to use the bathroom and insisting that I prepare them a tuna melt."

W Hotels Worldwide Sends CFDADesigners on Fashion-Focused Inspiration Trips Around the World

W Hotels Worldwide and the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) today announced the second phase of their multi-layered partnership as they unveiled the weeklong trips on which the CFDA {FASHION INCUBATOR} designers will embark in order to seek inspiration for their upcoming collections. The dynamic group, which includes designers from fashion and accessories brands Ari Dein, Burkman Bros., Daniel Vosovic, Emanuela Duca, Isaora, Jonathan Simkai, Reece Hudson, NUMBER:Lab, Timo Weiland and WHIT, will draw creativity for their Spring 2014 collections from the vibrant destinations and cutting-edge W Hotels they visit around the world.

“W Hotels is proud to be a partner of the CFDA {FASHION INCUBATOR} program, and together, we have created a unique global platform to elevate exposure and drive business for these rising fashion stars,” said Carlos Becil, Vice President of Brand Management, Starwood’s Luxury and Design Brands, North America. “In addition to the designer showcases at W Hotels around the country, these ten inspiration trips allow each designer to leave home and soak in the energy, creativity, and spirit of dynamic destinations around the world to inspire their next collection.”

Passports and Sketchbooks in Hand, Designers Jet Off in Search of Fashion Inspiration
American menswear design brand Burkman Bros. and womenswear designer Jonathan Simkhai will separately travel to the newly opened W Bangkok, set in the pulsating heart of the city near glittering temples and spicy street markets. Founded by brothers Ben and Doug Burkman, the contemporary menswear collection Burkman Bros. is heavily influenced by travel and incorporates prints and fabric treatments from countries around the world. Jonathan Simkhai offers sophisticated dressing for the modern, cosmopolitan woman, bringing forth classic predominantly menswear codes translated into sexy and feminine silhouettes.

Emanuela Duca, an award-winning jewelry designer, will travel to W Doha Hotel & Residences where sand dunes soar next to towering skyscrapers. A rapidly evolving destination, Doha offers juxtaposition of old and new with its historic forts and camel racing, ancient souks and luxury shopping, and old Shisha cafes and modern cuisines. Originally from Rome, Duca, whose designs are inspired by the marriage of movement and sculpture, creates earth-bound, highly textured surfaces, evocative of volcanic ash and ancient ruins of her native city.

Womenswear designer Daniel Vosovic and Reece Solomon, of the designer handbag collection Reece Hudson, will each travel to W Istanbul, located in the center of the historic Akaretler Row Houses. Vosovic’s collections embody a modern signature style, which caters to those who appreciate an easy sophistication. The Reece Hudson collection, made in Italy, aims to bridge the gap between luxury products and street style through strong design sensibilities mixed with the highest quality materials and craftsmanship.

Timo Weiland and Alan Eckstein, the designers behind Timo Weiland, and Whitney Pozgay, the designer of contemporary women’s collection WHIT, will separately travel to W Retreat & Spa Bali – Seminyak, set on one of Bali’s most famous beaches. Timo Weiland reflects the designers’ personal aesthetic, sensibilities and broader desire to spur a return to the art of dressing. WHIT specializes in beautiful modern clothing with a fun whimsical twist. Her silhouettes celebrate color and are made to mix and match to incorporate your personal style.

Lingerie designer Arielle Shapiro, whose Ari Dein brand is largely inspired by boutique hotel living and art deco style, will travel to W St. Petersburg, where Russian tradition is fused with Antonio Citterio’s avant-garde décor. Architectural details and exceptional tailoring contribute to Ari Dein, a line that is unique, nostalgic and versatile.

Ricky Hendry and Marc Daniels of ISAORA will take to the road in search of adventure on America’s West Coast, visiting three of the W brand’s newly renovated hotels: W Seattle, W San Francisco and W San Diego. Covering almost 3,000 miles, they will take in everything the left coast has to offer— from the surf, to the cities, to the snow, to the desert— meeting with like-minded innovators and inspiring creatives along the way who share their passion for design driven excellence.

Finally, sportswear label NUMBER:Lab, founded by established architect Luis Fernandez and serial entrepreneur Greg Lawrance, will travel to W Barcelona, a skyline icon designed by renowned architect Ricardo Bofill. Anchored by a defined aesthetic and vision, NUMBER:Lab offers a collection of essentials for the athletic side of the discerning man.

“One of the interesting aspects of our partnership with W Hotels is how the brand can help to create global exposure for our {FASHION INCUBATOR} designers,” said Steven Kolb, Chief Executive Officer of the CFDA. “We thank W Hotels for sending our designers on these incredible inspiration trips and adding this unique layer to the {FASHION INCUBATOR} program.”

This past September, W Hotels and the CFDA announced a partnership that will bring {FASHION INCUBATOR} designers out of New York City and into markets that are important to growing their businesses, a first such opportunity for the {FASHION INCUBATOR} program. In addition to the Inspiration Trips, the partnership will travel {FASHION INCUBATOR} designers to W Hotels around the country for fashion showcases and special events, the first of which took place this past December at W Atlanta – Buckhead with designers Burkman Bros., Daniel Vosovic, Emanuela Duca and WHIT. W Dallas will host the second {FASHION INCUBATOR} showcase later this spring.
Since its inception in New York City in 1998, W Hotels has identified fashion, a direct extension of design, as one of its key passions to appeal to its jet set guests, who are always looking for what’s new and next. As the reach of W Hotels has expanded globally, it has become a more active participant in its passions of design, fashion and music, which has enabled the W brand to champion emerging talent around the world.

Infor Implementation Accelerator Now Available for the Fashion Industry

Infor, a leading provider of business application software serving more than 70,000 customers, today announced the general availability of the Infor Implementation Accelerator for Fashion. This application is ideal for organizations that want to implement an integrated solution quickly and without major modifications, yet reap long-term benefits from its flexibility and ability to execute continuous improvement in the future. Implementation Accelerators are a set of preconfigured industry solutions based on the latest version of the Infor application suites that will deliver core industry application processes, reduced implementation times, costs, and risks, and are available as a cloud or on-premise technology platform.

The Infor Implementation Accelerator for Fashion delivers the same scalability and ease of integration Infor applications are known for, while pre-built industry leading processes provide an immediate opportunity for business improvement -- to help provide a faster return on investment. Additionally, this solution delivers predefined but easily configurable menus, processes, templates and training, using examples specific to the needs of mid-sized fashion companies.

"Just like large, global companies, mid-sized fashion organizations face the same challenges of high order volumes, increasingly complex supply chains and managing multiple product lines efficiently, but have to normally do so with fewer resources readily available to them," said Bob McKee, industry strategy director, Fashion, Infor. "Recognizing this problem, Infor developed a tailored, streamlined implementation process designed to deliver benefits in weeks, not months or years, and provide them with a foundation for the expanded features they'll need down the road as their business evolves. With more than 1,100 fashion customers worldwide, we're able to listen to our customers' key industry needs and translate them directly into our applications."

An Implementation Accelerator can be the final step -- or just the first step -- in an ongoing process of added functionality and continuous improvement. As an organization changes and grows, it is easy to expand the scale and scope of an Infor application and integrate it more fully with other solutions. Through the Infor Implementation Accelerator for Fashion, implementations can be less costly, less risky, provide reduced stress for employees, and deliver a faster time to benefit.

Fashion Statement: Designer Creates Line of Drone-Proof Garments to Protect Privacy

As the U.S. government draws up plans to use surveillance drones in domestic airspace, opposition to what many consider an unwarranted and significant invasion of privacy is mounting across the country, from rural Virginia to techopolis Seattle. Although officials debate anti-drone legislation at federal, state and local levels, one man is fighting back with high-tech apparel.

A New York City privacy advocate-turned-urban-guerilla fashion designer is selling garments designed to make their wearers invisible to infrared surveillance cameras, particularly those on drones. And although Adam Harvey admits that his three-item Stealth Wear line of scarves and capes is more of a political statement than a money-making venture, the science behind the fashion is quite sound.

“Fighting drones is not my full-time job, but it could be,” says Harvey, an instructor of physical computing at Manhattan’s School of Visual Arts and the creator of the CV Dazzle project, which seeks to develop makeup and hairstyles that camouflage people from face-recognition cameras and software.

Harvey’s newest medium, metalized fabric, has been around for more than 20 years. It holds in body heat that would burn bright for infrared cameras—a characteristic that could prove attractive to those who do not want unmanned aerial vehicles spying on them.

Metalized fabric
Metal is very good at absorbing and scattering infrared light, says Cheng Sun, a Northwestern University assistant professor of mechanical engineering. In that sense there is nothing exotic in how metalized fabric works—it “would strongly attenuate the [infrared] light,” he says. The metal would dissipate heat to surroundings as well, making the wearer harder to pinpoint.

To date, the fabric has primarily been used in tape and gaskets to protect electronics and communications equipment from static electricity and electromagnetic interference, according to Larry Creasy, director of technology for metalized fabric-maker Laird Technologies, based in Saint Louis.

Here’s how metalizing works, at least at Laird: Woven fabric, commonly nylon or polyester, is coated with a special catalyst—a precious metal Creasy declined to specify—that helps copper bind to the fiber. Once dry, the fabric is submerged in a copper sulfate–plating bath and dried. A nickel sulfamate bath follows to help the finished fabric withstand the elements and abrasions. The result is a flexible, breathable fabric that can be cut with ordinary tools but that protects against electromagnetic interference and masks infrared radiation, Creasy says. The process adds weight to the original fabric. An untreated square yard of nylon weighs about 42.5 grams. Treated, the same patch weighs more than 70 grams.

The fashion
Harvey’s fabric is coated with copper, nickel and silver, a combination that gives his scarves, head-and-shoulders cloak and thigh-length “burqa” a silvery and “luxurious” feel. The material blocks cell signals, as well, adding an element of risk to tweeting, texting and other mobile activities, as the wearer must break cover to communicate.

Stealth Wear is sold only via a U.K. Web site. The burqa goes for about $2,300, the “hoodie” is $481 and the scarf is $565—luxury items, but so, too, is privacy today, Harvey says.

The impetus
The high cost and limited availability are significant drawbacks—Harvey says he’s only sold one Stealth Wear item online, a scarf. But the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) predicts 10,000 commercial drones will ply domestic airspace by 2017—almost twice the that of the U.S. Air Force’s current fleet of unmanned aircraft. The number of drones flying in the U.S. today is hard to pin down because not every company and agency that gets FAA approval to fly a drone actually puts one in the air. In fact, 1,428 private-sector and government requests have been approved since 2007, according to the FAA. A Los Angeles Times report states that 327 of those permits are still active. Meanwhile, President Obama signed a law in February 2012 that gives the FAA until September 2015 to draw up rules that dictate how law enforcement, the military and other entities may use drones in U.S. airspace.

Witches Lose the Warts

Lena Duchannes is new in town, exotic and seductive to a handful of bored locals in the Southern community where she lives. But if that weren’t enough to turn her into man bait, her pallid good looks would do the trick.

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Lena, the sweet-and-sulky heroine of “Beautiful Creatures,” the film adapted from the young-adult novel of the same title, is a witch — a caster, in the parlance of her kind — who can, by a glance, shatter glass or summon a tempest or, when the spirit moves her, capture the heart of a hunky young man.

She is one in a coven of weird sisters who in recent months have darkened the plots of adolescent fiction and films, and cast an enchantment on the concert stage and the fashion runways, where witchy apparitions have come to represent a kind of wish fulfillment.

“The witch is the ultimate bad girl,” said Carly Cushnie of the design team Cushnie et Ochs, who riffed on the Salem witch trials in the fall collection she unveiled last month. “You want to be her.”

It’s a concept, all right. Witchcraft and its moody expressions — long weedy hair, peaked hats and pointy boots — have attained a strange cachet of late. No longer the hideous wart-covered crone of folklore and fairy tale, the witch of current films, like “Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters” and “Oz: The Great and Powerful,” and recent youth-oriented novels like “Released Souls” and “A Discovery of Witches,” has swept aside the vampire as a symbol of power, glamour and style.

The Saint Laurent collection Hedi Slimane showed in Paris last fall, with its wide-brimmed hats, flowing capes and ethereal drifts of chiffon, had a whiff of sulfur about it. The line, as Mr. Slimane revealed, owed a debt to the kinds of self-anointed Gypsy sorceresses who thrived during the 1970s in subterranean Los Angeles, equal parts Stevie Nicks and Marjorie Cameron, the latter an urban legend in her day who painted pagan goddesses and dabbled in the occult arts.

Diaphanous frocks and mantles favored by Ms. Cameron, who died in 1995, and her spiritual kin have wafted into collections as diverse as those of Pamela Skaist-Levy and Gela Nash-Taylor, whose label, Skaist-Levy, was obliquely inspired by Ms. Cameron, and Thom Browne. With its chalk-faced models clad in white tights and sharp-shouldered goth-tinged frocks, Mr. Browne’s fall show in New York last month might have been an outtake from a Tim Burton film.

Fashion’s black-magic women are trading on something subtler than raw sex appeal.

“Maxidresses and capes are not really revealing a lot of skin,” said Hayley Phelan, the senior editor of the style blog Fashionista.com. Vaguely feminist in spirit, according to Ms. Phelan, “they’re celebrating a kind of beauty,” she said, “that maybe appeals more to other women than to men.”

Wiccan spirits surfaced at Gareth Pugh in London last week, draped in hooded capes and sweeping gowns with a distinctly pagan cast, and at Ann Demeulemeester and Rick Owens in Paris, each designer offering gauzy gowns and wraps that flirted with the dark side.

Jessica Rayne, a South African designer with a predilection for filmy black frocks trailing fringe and lace, has explored pagan imagery and lore as a source of romance.

“The witch is a strong character,” Ms. Rayne said, “encompassing what it is to be a woman: powerful and sometimes terrifying.

“She’s crazy but engaging,” Ms. Rayne went on, “the kind of woman you fall in love with, though it scares you to death.”

Tapping that sort of spooky drawing power, updated variations on ’90s hits like “Charmed” began appearing on small screens more than a year ago. “The Secret Circle,” though canceled after a season, has developed a cult nonetheless, as has the new Web series “13 Witches,” about a family of pagans with a thirst for revenge. 

Hollywood stepped in with “Hansel & Gretel,” in which the comely Famke Janssen portrays the witch as raven-haired temptress, and “Oz: The Great and Powerful,” with Rachel Weisz as Evanora, the Wicked Witch of the East. Scheduled for release early next year is “Maleficent,” its title character, Sleeping Beauty’s nemesis, fetchingly conjured by Angelina Jolie, whose crimson pout and leather-wrapped horns are lacquered to a sheen.

Fashion Design Students Upcycle Thrift Store Looks to Create Hollywood-Inspired Prom Dresses

Prom is one of the most significant events in high school, and for over ten years the style experts at FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising’s FashionClub.com have been predicting prom fashion trends, reporting on celebrity-inspired prom hair and makeup, and creating original prom beauty tutorials. This year, Art Director Harriet Grant challenged FIDM Students to upcycle a thrift store gown into a prom dress for a celebrity, featuring this year’s hottest prom fashion trends.

In the spirit of the 1980s classic movie Pretty in Pink, where Molly Ringwald’s character refashions a plain dress into a prom gown, the Pretty in Pink Prom Challenge tasked five top fashion design students to design a dress for a young celebrity, while channeling a past Hollywood star as their muse. The themed looks included:

The Ingenue – A little black dress with a peplum, inspired by Audrey Hepburn, and designed by David Lee for Emma Watson.

The Class Act – A red illusion dress inspired by Grace Kelly, and designed by Danica Ybanez for Taylor Swift.

The Bad Girl - A short, lavender dress with spiked embellishments at the shoulders, inspired by Liz Taylor, and designed by Angie Martinez for Mila Kunis.

The Femme Fatale – A long grey and white dupioni silk dress with beaded bustier, inspired by Veronica Lake, and designed by Jarret Levin for Blake Lively.

The Boho Princess – A romantic gown with a sheer overlay and lace tiered bodice, inspired by Lisa Bonet, and designed by Lizbeth Robles for Zoe Kravitz.

FashionClub.com features these great looks as well as Prom DIY videos and a Polyvore styling tool where visitors to the site can design their own prom outfits. Prom-ready red carpet looks for hot Hollywood couples are waiting to be styled. There is also a fun quiz about celebrity style icons.

The annual Prom Advice Scholarship Competition kicks off on March 1, 2013. High school students can enter for a chance to win one of two full-year scholarships to attend FIDM. With a deadline of May 15, 2013, entrants are asked to sketch a prom fashion line of their own creation or design a prom boutique.

FashionClub.com is an online teen magazine sponsored by FIDM, and the only magazine of its kind to be sponsored by a college. FashionClub.com features the hottest teen fashion and jewelry trends, the latest looks from the runway, prom and homecoming style advice, DIYs, make-up tips, beauty how-to videos, creative career advice, fashion quotes, cute clothes, and the latest news about FIDM, its events, majors, and alumni.

Trunk Club helps the uncertain man fashion a wardrobe

Which doesn’t mean that Trunk Club is for everyone. It’s not.

Sure, Trunk Club team members tout their wide range of prices and client ages (early 20s to 80s, with 36 being the average). They also stress that it’s fine to look and not buy while picking the brain of your assigned style consultant (most are female) and enjoying an array of free booze offerings, from craft beer on-tap to wine and bourbon.

But how much can a person mooch and still be welcome? Likely answer: Not much.

And one more thing about the prices for threads that can either be purchased in-store or handpicked by a knowledgeable stylist and shipped (hence the “trunk”) free of charge to anywhere in the lower 48 states: They aren’t cheap. Think Nordstrom or Bloomingdale’s or Haberdash for Men on North State — sans blowout sales. Designer denim starts at around $160. Better shirts hover around $150. Shoes are up there, too, with a pair of top-end, Italian-made di Bianco kicks going for nearly $900.

“It’s not that [other] stores don’t have the right products, it’s that guys don’t know how to navigate them,” says Michael Barkin, Trunk Club’s director of sales. All around him, in various nooks decorated by different apparel designers in exchange for advertising signage, stylists tell clients what looks good and what doesn’t. Millions of dollars in inventory is stashed on stainless steel racks in back and elsewhere on the property.

The middle of a sprawling seventh-floor working/shopping space, made from repurposed vintage bowling alley planks, is abuzz with sales associates communicating with potential members who’ve submitted online profiles (who they are, what they do, where they go). When guys can’t navigate correctly, Barkin continues, “they touch, they feel, they pull four things off the rack, they go to the dressing room and try it on, nothing fits, they leave frustrated.”

Trunk Club — begun in 2010, with $11 million in venture capital cash — aims to eliminate that frustration. The company hasn’t turned a profit yet, Barkin says, but hopes to, soon, via a combination of sales earnings and location/rent savings. Being tucked away in a relatively low-traffic area and well away from high-rent districts such as Michigan Avenue is a big part of how Trunk Club remains retail-competitive.

“I’m not very casually well-dressed, and they hook me up,” says Chicago-based international banker Casey Ryan, who’s in his mid-30s. He’s in the process of trying on a charcoal-colored cashmere blazer with side vents and plaid lining. His style consultants, he says, even convinced him to buy red sneakers.

“I come in, they have five different brands [ready]. I don’t have to go to Nordstrom. The prices are competitive, and they have all my sizes. It’s easy. I get out in an hour with everything I need for the whole season.”

At the opposite end of the budget spectrum is Max Kaufman, a student at Northwestern.

“I’m on a college budget, so I’m going to make it work somehow,” he says, wearing a colorful Gant sweater like one might spy in a ski lodge.

“We try to mix if up a little bit,” says stylist Jan Seale, “so guys don’t walk around wearing the same thing as everyone else.”

Personal trainers Sarah Ashenden, 30, and Tom Feeney, 36, won’t be dropping a bundle, either, whether on the $500 deep-crimson cashmere sweater under glass up front or on a pricey custom suit like the one Barkin is wearing. A couple of outfits is all they’re after today.

“They dress me better than I would dress myself,” Feeney says. Ashenden sits on a nearby sofa sipping white wine.

“Tom just doesn’t like to shop,” she says. “He said, ‘I wish I could just overhaul my entire wardrobe.’ So this is perfect.”

French fashion lives on with unrivalled drama and creativity

Despite a sense of impending economic doom in France, Paris fashion still rules supreme.

It's not often that the financial future of a nation is topical at fashion weeks, but with France's future entwined with those of some of the biggest names in fashion, this is different.

Bernard Arnault, the fourth richest person in the world and CEO of LVMH, the parent company of Dior and Louis Vuitton, has applied for Belgium residency where taxes are lower.

You get the feeling that the new French socialist government, led by President Francois Hollande, and the luxury fashion industry are not natural bedfellows.

But all will be forgotten when the crowd take their seats in the extraordinary Grand Palais for the Chanel show.
French fashion lives on with unrivalled drama and creativity no matter what.
This is a country which emerged from a revolution with its fashionable feet firmly intact, after all.

The rule of Napoleon Bonaparte, with its enlightened fashions, Empire lines, and his decorative lover Josephine, started a mere five years after the society-altering revolution finished. Nothing stops fashion moving forward in France.

This season there has been a further instalment in the game of musical chairs that sees a new designer anointed at a luxury house almost every season.

This time it is Alexander Wang at Balenciaga.

Now, if I had been asked to predict who would replace the future-focused Nicolas Ghesquiere, possibly best known in Australia for designing Nicole Kidman's wedding dress, I would not have picked Alexander Wang.

I love what he does. His cool-edged, chic, urban collections have become staple pieces in my wardrobe and most of those in my office.

But I have to admit I didn't see him in the Paris line-up that traditionally features more flamboyant, or what I'll call intellectual fashion, the type of clothes which are usually dark and moody and worn by art curators.

One of the most extraordinary things about the week is watching next season's clothes or the most modern looks in fashion yet imagined, shown in some of the most glorious buildings on earth.

You feel like you are watching fashion history being made, while sitting in a piece of
history itself.

A good case in point this week was the amazing Dries Van Noten show in the Hotel de Ville with its serious archways, marble staircases and chandeliers.

It may just be the backdrop to the clothes but this is a serious backdrop.

Stella McCartney always shows in the Paris Opera.

Her show is this Monday at 10am and the light always makes the beautiful, gilded building shine even brighter. Sometimes it is hard to stay focused on the clothes.

And that's one of the reasons why buyers and media hold their breath for Paris fashion week.

New York has its business, Milan has its beautifully made clothes, London has its creative edge, but Paris, well, Paris has Paris and some of the biggest fashion names in the world.