Alexa Chung Turns Director For UGG

Alexa Chung has added yet another stylish string to her bow, by taking on the role of art director for UGG in the label's first ever creative brand partnership.

Whilst Chung has turned her hand to design collaborations before - her second archive collaboration with Marks & Spencer is due to hit stores next month and she revealed earlier this year that she is launching her own clothing line in March 2017 - her new role involved her overseeing the latest campaign for the brand, which focuses on its best-known classic boot, entirely behind the scenes from concept to casting.

"There is nothing I enjoy more than getting back to England and seeing all of my mates and that involves my uniform, which is UGG boots, jeans, and a navy blue jumper," the Vogue contributing editor disclosed about her new partnership with the famous footwear brand. "I have an association with them being home, friends, hanging out and having fun."

"With this in mind, I loved art directing for UGG," she added about her debut shoot for the brand, which took place in New York and stars women from the creative industry who Chung is close to. "It gave me the opportunity to work alongside and marry together some of the people in my life I find most inspiring with a team of talented pals to capture both their spirit and the easy going nature of the brand."

Hedi Slimane Hits Out On Twitter

Hedi Slimane has resurrected his Twitter account, following four years of social-media silence, to defend himself against recent "inaccurate statements" regarding his use of the YSL emblem while he was creative director of the storied fashion house.

The 22 tweets were reportedly the result of Slimane taking umbrage at the suggestion that during his tenure he had attempted to remove the "Y" from the brand's famous acronym. They begin: "Fact checking / There have been inaccurate statements on recent articles regarding Hedi and the usage of the YSL historical logo."

They go on to show, with accompanying pictures, occasions when the logo was used in photography, campaigns, designs and show sets, before concluding: "It is accurate to say that the YSL iconic initials were in fact celebrated and championed by Hedi." It is being reported that the tweets were prompted by some of the reviews of the debut collection that Anthony Vaccarello, his successor who took the helm of the brand earlier this year, showed in Paris last week.

One such review was written by Cathy Horyn, for The Cut, who said: "Apparently, Vaccarello has restored the Y, which had been excised by his predecessor, Hedi Slimane, as both a throwback to the brand’s original name and an attempt to modernise it. The truth is, despite Slimane’s efforts, most people still say YSL."

Horyn was previously involved in a Twitter storm with Slimane in 2012, when the designer referred to her as a "schoolyard bully" in an open letter posted on his account following her critique of his debut collection for Saint Laurent.

ASOS Hits Back At "Inaccurate" Accusations

Following a spate of allegations regarding the working conditions in its Barnsley warehouse, ASOS has issued a six-page statement refuting the recurring accusations in detail.

“I’m disappointed that inaccurate and misleading things have been said about how we manage our warehouse at Barnsley in Yorkshire," CEO Nick Beighton wrote in the document published on the brand's website. "I take huge exception to the idea that we are secretive and exploit our people. We have nothing to hide and much to be proud of."

"We don’t pretend to be perfect and we are learning all the time," he continued, highlighting some recent changes that have been made to the practices in the South Yorkshire warehouse following discussions with its staff-elected Employee Forum. These include reducing the probation period for employees and an upgraded time-tracking program to more accurately record lateness, ensuring that "employees are paid for every single minute they are working".

The statement - which comes a week after BuzzFeed News published an investigation into the brand, accusing it of forcing employees to work under "highly pressurised conditions", with "exploitative contracts" and "an overbearing security regime" - acknowledged that "No smoke without fire would be a reasonable reaction to the recent media coverage of the allegations against the brand." However, it said that this was "ultimately inaccurate".

"The picture of an uncaring, secretive and exploiting employer from Victorian times is false," Beighton added. "If we ran our warehouse that way, we wouldn’t have a productive environment. The opposite is true in fact - our people regularly outperform and deliver outstanding results."

Claiming that the South Yorkshire location was chosen for the warehouse when it was opened in 2011 "because of the unemployment created by the closing of the coal mine, and we believed we could make a difference in the area", it asserted that £81 million has been invested in improving the building and working conditions since opening - including the installation of a more automated system which reduces the physical distance that has to be travelled by employees within the building. Another £23 million is said to be earmarked for developments in the next 12 months.

Terry Green - the chairman of the worker’s committee who has been an employee at the warehouse for more than five years - also refuted the accusations.

“We are part of a team where proper training is given, new incentives are being brought in regularly, and the building we are working in has gone from strength to strength," he said. "It is insulting and annoying for all of us to continue reading things that are so untrue, and so different than what our day to day reality is. We are really proud of what we do together here and just want to get on with our jobs.”

In an attempt to dispel the allegations surrounding the contractual conditions employees work under, ASOS outlined in detail the "flex time" practice that it uses, where employees are put on "flex weeks" for 50 per cent of the year, during which they can be asked to alter their hours up or down depending on demand. Following meetings with the Employees Forum, the retailer said it has ended "same-day flexing" - in which staff members' hours can be altered on the day - meaning that they are now required to give employees at least 24 hours notice.

On the topic of security, which it admitted can be "invasive and offensive" if handled insensitively, ASOS wrote that it has to take precautions in a warehouse that holds more than £150 million worth of stock. Therefore, it said, approximately two per cent of the people on site are searched each day. However, it conceded that these searches "should not be conducted during employees’ lunch or break time", saying that in incidences where this has been the case, they apologised to the employees and emphasised to the security team that it should not happen at those times.

Another of the recurring allegations that the brand has found itself facing is of its staff being discouraged from taking toilet or water breaks due to high-performance targets. It once again denied this, claiming that such targets are "industry standard and constantly reviewed" and maintaining that "there are toilets and water fountains within a four-minute walk of any point in the warehouse".

"Break time is not counted as 'productive'," it added, "and therefore does not impact productivity targets or pay."

Charting The Future Of Chanel

Future thinking was the order of the day at Chanel yesterday. While the latest chapter of the label’s great set story took on the guise of a digital data centre and the spring/summer 2017 collection was opened by two robots (followed by futuristic models carrying digitalised clutches and laptop holders), backstage at the Grand Palais, the future of the fabled French fashion house itself was the subject of our conversation with its president of fashion Bruno Pavlovsky.

From e-commerce to the harmonisation of pricing, global growth to his relationship with creative director Karl Lagerfeld, Pavlovksy was transparent as to where the company stands on all fronts – especially on the fashion industry’s favourite discussion point of the season: the subject of see-now buy-now.

“Every brand has to decide what they want for their future. If a brand wants see-now, buy-now, then good for them, but I don’t think it’s the thing to do with Chanel because of our creative business model,” he told us, adding that it’s still very early days for the new format. “This collection, for example, was made from amazing, very light tweed fabrics – you have to see it to believe it – and that takes time. It’s months and months of work to be able to deliver that. At the moment we prefer to continue to focus on our product and give our customers not only the best design, but the best quality and the best finishes."

The creative business model of the brand is central to everything Pavlovksy, who has been at Chanel for 23 years, talks about. While he notes that it is imperative for the brand to continue improving its position in the luxury market, acknowledging that “it’s more and more demanding as the world is changing, customers are changing, competitors are strong”, it is the consistency of creative innovation that is key to the brand’s success.

“At the end of the day, when our customers leave with our products they need to feel the difference between a Chanel product and a non-Chanel product. That for me is important,” he said. “At the moment we are doing well.

A big reason that the company is doing so well globally right now stretches back to its decision in early 2015 to harmonise its pricing structure worldwide, allowing customers in all regions the chance to make their purchases on home turf, without needing to travel to take advantage of currency fluctuations between markets. It was an agile, albeit risky, move, and one that within two years has paid off.

“No doubt, we had two phases,” Pavlovsky explained. “For the first two months after the announcement there was a bit of panic. If you reduce the price by 20 per cent in Korea and China, everyone is of course going to ask, ‘What’s happening at Chanel? What’s gone wrong?' After these two months, when we had the opportunity to explain it to everyone, we saw a strong comeback and development in our product. Today we can see two-digit growth which means that it was the right for our customers. Chanel is stronger than ever and by harmonising prices we continued to give a strong message to customers to just enjoy Chanel – the price is the same everywhere.”

But despite offering universal pricing structure, Pavlovsky still has no plans to make Chanel’s ready-to-wear collections available universally online any time soon.

“If you try to define what is luxury today and ask the customers, first of all they think about the quality of the products, and then the exclusivity. We need to not forget in this world where everything is digital, that keeping this exclusivity is an important way to engage with customers,” he said. “A long time ago we did a test in the States with ready-to-wear – in the early days of e-commerce - to see what was happening, but we are not active at the moment with fashion, because we want to maintain some exclusivity," he added, explaining that rather than use their digital reach to sell products, they use it to gain insight into what their customers want from the Chanel experience and offer a better service.

“What we can achieve online is to give a strong editorial to our customers. Many different media can do this also, influencers, bloggers, many people. But that will never replace the feeling of being in a fitting room. It’s about being able to try the product, to test the product and also for us to be able to have conversations with the customers in the boutique to explain and suggest options. A lot of people want to keep this relationship,” he explained. “E-commerce is more about buying something and if you don’t like it then you send it back, which is difficult to do with what we are doing, so we try to keep something back. But there is no question that it is a part of the evolution of the world and we want to find the best way of doing that. If we think we need to do it, then we’ll do it. If we think we need to do something else, then we’ll do something else, but what we need to keep in mind, firstly, is all of our customers.”

An added element of the luxury experience – and another reason why Pavlovsky sees e-commerce posing another conundrum for the brand – lies in being able to cater for different demand in different regions. “You see in New York something that you don’t see in Asia,” he said, “and so I think we have to respect that all our customers are not the same. They don’t want to be the same.”

This independent rationale is adopted when it comes to Chanel’s ambassadors, Pavlovsky continued, who - rather than be chosen for their millions of social-media followers (as has become the norm for many big-name labels) - are selected because they have “something important to say”.

“You don’t see anyone in the front row who has nothing to say about the brand. They are here and they are our guests because we feel that we have a connection,” he said. “They are inspiring for the studio and for Mr Lagerfeld because they have a point of view, and we choose them because they have some idea about Chanel and because they support the brand. It’s nice having a multi-faceted way of looking at Chanel. They are not the same, they can agree or disagree and it’s important for us as a brand to listen as this is what happens in everyday life.”

Everyday life, Pavlovsky revealed, involves touching base with Lagerfeld “more or less every day” (“We have a very clear vision of roles and what is the next step of the brand”) and at the moment concentrating on the forthcoming Metiers D’Art show, which the brand announced last month would take place in the newly reopened Paris Ritz Hotel, a location that holds special significance for the house.

“After the Ritz's renovation I think it’s a strong move for us to show there,” he smiled. “There is lot to say about Mademoiselle Chanel and Mr Lagerfeld there and it’s going to be an amazing story for us. And, on top of that, we love Paris and Paris needs support at the moment, so it is important to us to be here and give a strong sign that Paris will stay the capital of creation.”

Considered, creative and paving its own way in commerce, long may Chanel continue to craft its trajectory as carefully as it creates its clothes.

Justin O'Shea Parts Ways With Brioni

Justin O´Shea has parted ways with Brioni, having shown just one collection for the menswear brand. O'Shea, who was appointed as creative director of the Italian fashion house in March, had no previous design experience when he succeeded Brendan Mullane earlier this year, but he had formerly been the global fashion director at German luxury e-commerce company Mytheresa.com. He showed his first offering for the label at Paris Couture Week in July, but the autumn/winter 2017 collection will be presented to buyers at Brioni’s Milan showroom from mid-November, without being shown on the runway.

In a statement released by Brioni, CEO Gianluca Flore thanked O'Shea for his "collaboration" during his short tenure. "The strategy of revitalisation of Brioni that started at the beginning of this year is set to continue being implemented through a long-term plan aimed to further establish the brand as a leader in the luxury menswear category," the statement read.

When his appointment was announced in March, O'Shea told the Business Of Fashion that he was "fascinated by the unique and rich heritage of Brioni", revealing his desire to "reinterpret all these elements and make them relevant for today's customer". The brand also shed light on the unconventional appointment.

"Challenging boundaries has always been in Brioni's DNA and this choice confirms it once again," Flore said at the time. "Justin soon emerged as the best choice for the brand's creative direction as he has shown an accurate understanding of the company's heritage and an assertive approach on how to reinforce our core values."

Alber Elbaz Decorated With Highest French Honour

Alber Elbaz has been awarded the Commander of the Legion of Honour title - the highest order for military and civil merits in France - during Paris Fashion Week.

The former Lanvin designer accepted the honour in front of a room filled with some of his most famous fans - including Kristin Scott Thomas, Demi Moore and Anna Wintour - as well as former executives from the storied fashion house which he helmed for 14 years, prior to his departure last October.

“I’m still in love with fashion and I miss fashion and I miss you all,” he told the crowd, reports WWD. “One day we may be back together, but maybe another place. It’s the people I miss,” he continued, briefly alluding to his acrimonious exit from Lanvin last year, which saw him ousted from the house and forced to defend the quality of his work.

Audrey Azoulay, French minister of culture and communications, decorated Elbaz at the prestigious ceremony, taking the opportunity to relay the Israeli-born designer's journey to Lanvin, describing his relationship with the label as "the beginning of a great love affair, even if love affairs don’t always end well" to knowing laughs from the audience.

Elbaz thanked his "fabulous front row" during his speech, but apologised that, “here I am during fashion week, inviting you to a show without dresses.” His fans, meanwhile, are clearly keen for the designer to make his return - “He has to: I need more dresses,” Scott Thomas said.

While they wait, Elbaz did have something to keep them going - he announced a fragrance collaboration with Frédéric Malle yesterday, sending each guest home with a sample.

Bottega Appoints New CEO

Fresh from celebrating its 50th anniversary at Milan Fashion Week (with Lauren Hutton and Gigi Hadid hand in hand on the catwalk), and creative director Tomas Maier's 15 years at the brand, Bottega Veneta has announced that it has appointed Claus-Dietrich Lahrs as its new CEO.

“Lahrs's outstanding experience and extensive knowledge of the luxury market will be crucial in the management of the exceptional maison that Bottega Veneta is,” said François-Henri Pinault, chairman and CEO of Kering, which owns the Italian fashion house, in a statement, reports the Business of Fashion.

Lahrs, who will report directly to Pinault, hails from Hugo Boss where he stepped down from his role as CEO in February. Prior to that, he held senior positions at some of the most prestigious luxury brands in the world, including Cartier, Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior Couture. He succeeds Carlo Alberto Beretta, in his new role at Bottega Veneta, who has been promoted to the role of chief client and marketing officer at Kering, tasked with the building a "profitable customer culture" for each Kering brand.

“I wanted to give our maisons exceptional support and expertise in what is their main challenge in the years to come: the ability to meet their customers’ needs and fulfil their desires," said Pinault of Beretta's appointment.