While many fashion companies around the globe have had hard times during the recession, the industry has proved to be a strong one, with more successes than failures.
Luxury brands Tommy Hilfiger, Tory Burch, Marni, and Dolce & Gabbana prepared themselves before the recession by expanding, reorganising, repositioning collections, and introducing new lines; and they are now growing.
Sales for the Tommy Hilfiger group rose 21 percent to 1.6 billion for the financial year ended March 31 2009, and consequently opened a 22,000 square-foot store on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.
Mega retailers like Target and H&M have teamed up with high-fashion designers to promote their brands and stay afloat during the recession. It is a move which has been labelled “the new frontier of affordable fashion”.
The latest alliance of this sort is ‘The Fashion House of Rodarte’ and ‘Target’. The fashion houses, who have also previously collaborated with Gap, teamed up with Target stores to premiere their latest collection in December.
Lingerie brand Victoria’s Secret showed no sign of being affected by the recession, after their new $3million bra hit the catwalk.
Designed by Damiani, the bra features a 16-carat heart-shaped cognac diamond as well as an additional 134 carats of white, champagne, and cognac diamonds in a “harlequin” pattern across the cups.
Other fashion companies were not so prepared, and, as a result, many companies in the industry have seen a decline in sales, with some having to close their doors.
A prime example of this was American fashion retailer Abercrombie and Fitch, who specialise in teen fashion. They refused to compete with other retailers in the industry by cutting their prices, and also missed some important trends throughout the year, causing them to have a major decline in sales during the year.
Luxury Italian label Versace was forced to downsize their staff by 350 people in October, as part of a “comprehensive corporate reorganisation”, which means they are cutting costs due to less demand for their upmarket clothes, handbags and sunglasses.
German luxury fashion group Escada declared bankruptcy in September, despite reports that Germany had come out of the recession.
The company intends to continue, as a new administrator has been appointed to examine the bankruptcy filing.
Despite winning Designer of the year at the British fashion awards in 2008, British fashion designer Luella Bartley has had to close down her label Luella after nearly 10 years when one of her major suppliers closed down.
Luella was notorious in Brittan for her punk-inspired party dresses, and was often worn by celebrities Alexa Chung, Lily Allen, and the Geldof sisters.
It’s not over yet, however, as she says the label is “on hiatus”, as she revamps her designs and choice of fabrics.
Celebrities in the fashion industry have also had their share of ups and downs during the recession.
Jennifer Lopez has been forced to shut down her fashion line ‘Sweetface’ after six years in business. Her contemporary sportswear line was pulled after failing to make an impact on the US market.
And she’s not the only one. Mandy Moore shut down her label Mblem, and Lauren Conrad decided to put her label Lauren Conrad on hold.
It’s not all bad news, however.
Nicole Richie has released a new jewellery line as part of her label House of Harlow 1960. The new collection includes hippy-inspired jewellery, with prices starting from a modest $38. Richie has also teamed up with fashion website www.bebe.com to create a $25 bracelet, with a percentage of the proceeds going to the Richie-Madden Children’s Foundation.
Transformers star Megan Fox signed onto a seven-figure deal with Armani to model their jeans and underwear.
DIY fashion, art, diamonds and teamwork all did their part in making sure the industry survives.
Diamonds proved they are still a girl’s best friend in Scotland, after a survey was conducted at a Girls Day Out event in October. When asked to choose between diamonds or the latest designer handbag, 85% of women said diamonds.
Do-it-yourself fashion has also been popular this year, with Tesco reporting a huge increase of 198% in sewing machine sales this year. The London College of Fashion also reported a rise in bookings for classes in home sewing and garment design.
Artists have proved to be unlikely saviours for fashion retailers, with “Pop-up galleries” becoming common in Brittan, their popularity spilling over to the United States, particularly in the streets of New York City.
With landlords struggling to find tenants for their empty shops, artists and designers have come to the rescue by setting up the empty shops as temporary studio spaces, lending the buildings a new lease of life and colour.
One interesting, unexpected trend that surfaced in Riches to Rags was the growing issue around the size and race of fashion models.
Naomi Campbell spoke out against the fashion industry in September, highlighting the lack of non-white models in big fashion advertising campaigns recently. She said this is due to people panicking about the recession and companies not wanting to take a risk on using minority models.
The campaign to bring “real” bodies with hips and breasts onto the catwalk was highlighted by British Vogue editor Alexandra Shulman, who demanded bigger sample sizes in a bid to bring back curvier models, to make ordinary women more interested in fashion as opposed to being intimidated by it.
Fashion weeks around the world for 2009 were mostly successful. Although, no fashion week season would be complete without fashion faux pas and celebrities making fools of themselves.
Paris fashion week saw some major faux pas, with Lindsay Lohan making her fashion-designing debt, and was trashed by designers and critics from around the world. Hired by luxury label Ungaro to be an artistic designer to chief designer Estrella Archs, Lohan severely disappointed fashion-week-goers with her collection of bright colours and childish prints.
Yves Saint Laurent, who is known for their strong designs for the powerful woman, also disappointed in Paris, showing a collection full of stark white garments and childish prints.
Even New Zealand Fashion Week had a story to tell. One of the most popular pictures to be splashed over the internet over the week was Pamela Anderson’s strut down the catwalk.
Modelling the new swimwear collection for A*Muse, which she helped create with designer Richie Rich, Pam’s classy stroll down the catwalk was accompanied by a pink g-string revealed for the world to see.
Despite the disappointments and embarrassing sights of flesh, fashion weeks in New York, Milan, London and Auckland went off without a hitch.
Milan dazzled its audiences with its array of happy colours, easy styles, sensuality and floral prints.
Dolce and Gabbanna showcased a flirty collection with stonewashed denim and laser cut corsets, while Prada tapped into the youthful end of the market with its pigtailed models in cutaway dresses and satin sports shorts.
Well known labels Armani, Erdem, Marc Jacobs, Moschino, Nanette Lepore, Marchesa, Anna Sui, Luella, Betty Jackson, Vivienne Westwood Red Label and Ralph Lauren also dazzled audiences with their new collections.
London, who has been out of the fashion spotlight for a few years, made their comeback with world-famous designers such as Alexander McQueen, John Galliano (of the House of Christian Dior), Julien MacDonald (of the House of Givenchy), and Vivienne Westwood returned to London for the show.
New Zealand Fashion Week showed no sign of the recession as a number of fresh, fashion week first-timers’ collections graced the catwalk.
New curvaceous label The Carpenter’s Daughter made their catwalk debut at fashion week this year, with Wellington actress Geraldine Brophy on the catwalk promoting the label.
Creator of The Carpenter’s daughter Caroline Marr observed that fashion week only caters to 35 percent of women, so she strives to cater for the other 65 percent.
True to this statement, 65 percent of New Zealand women are believed to be a size 16 or bigger, with an average dress size of 14 to 16.
Southland designer Emily Kerse, with her vintage style, Kiwi made and designed label, and Sportswear designer Wiremu Barriball, with his range of footwear, pressure sportswear and sunglasses, were just some of the fresh faces at Fashion Week.
Following the success of New Zealand Fashion week, a New Fashion festival is planned for next year, aimed at getting ordinary Kiwi’s involved with fashion – not just the fashion industry.
The Auckland Fashion Festival is planned for early next year and will begin with one giant fashion show highlighting what was available in retail stores, plus a garage sale of designer clothes
Overall, the fashion industry has been like most other industries battling the recession in 2009. It’s had it’s fair share of ups and downs, with the fashion fighters continuing to fight, hopefully to come out the other end of the recession with smiles on their faces.
Posted by richrags 
Stolen Girlfriends Club was one of the standout shows at fashion week, with its mix of country bumpkin meets cowboy chic. Long johns and cable knits were paired with figure hugging jersey dresses and bodysuits in greys and pinks, and outfits featured fringe epaulettes and were accessorised by knitted bags.
Annah Stretton’s 2010 collection was an ode to erotica, particularly legendary Kiwi exotic dancer Freda Stark. Her collection featured gold-painted models, lingerie as outerwear, see-through tea dresses and figure-hugging pencil skirts.
Southland designer Emily Kerse stepped into Fashion Week for the first time with her Kiwi designed and made label. Her winter 2010 vintage-style collection Letters from Isla May features garments made from hand-picked, luxury fabrics, mixing vintage with a modern twist.
Sportswear designer Wiremu Barriball was also a fashion week first timer, with his Tu Ake range of footwear, preassure sprtswear and sunglasses. He won the chance to show his collection at NZ Fashion Week by winning the Miromoda Maori fashion awards.
More than 40 New Zealand designers set up shop in Auckland with a giant garage sale open to the public, offering their couture pieces at greatly reduced prices.
Riches to Rags 