Q&A: André Leon Talley

Andre+Leon+Talley+Rockport+Celebrates+Fashion+u9oK6hP94o4lMILAN — Privet, André!
André Leon Talley better get used to hearing that phrase, since he’s just joined Numéro Russia as editor at large. The first issue of the magazine is slated to be published this month.
That’s not his only new venture, though. While continuing to contribute to Vogue, the flamboyant editor has also inked a deal with production company Electus to develop a late-night talk show, after serving as a fashion correspondent for “Entertainment Tonight” since last year and as a judge on “America’s Next Top Model” from 2009 to 2011. Sitting in a suite at the Four Seasons here wrapped in a furry Louis Vuitton scarf on a chilly, rainy day during fashion week, Talley chatted with WWD about his projects for Numéro Russia, his take on the Academy Awards, the most influential designers, and what he views as the “exhaustingly tacky” fascination of Americans with tabloid celebrities.
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Macy’s Continues to Square Off With Martha, Penney’s

Dennis+Basso+Front+Row+Fall+2013+Mercedes+JA293QaB_8QlNEW YORK — After a lifetime in the fashion industry, Robin Marino was caught off guard when she found out in December 2011 that Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. had cut a deal to sell home goods through J.C. Penney Co. Inc.

First, she was surprised none of her friends had leaked word of the deal to her — and she no doubt has lots of friends who could have, since she was an executive at Martha Stewart for six years and eventually ascended to co-chief executive officer overseeing the company’s merchandising operations.

But Marino was also surprised, because she didn’t think Martha Stewart’s similar agreement with Macy’s Inc. — a deal she conceived of and helped negotiate and execute — would allow it.

That’s certainly the position of Macy’s, which sued Stewart last year, ultimately bringing the three parties to New York Supreme Court, where Marino, now group president at Li & Fung, was testifying.
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Opening Ceremony to Fete Rihanna’s River Island Collection With Exhibit

RIH-TROSPECTIVE: Opening Ceremony is paying a special tribute to Rihanna in March. The New York-based specialty retailer, which will stock the singer-cum-designer’s debut collection for River Island beginning Tuesday, has curated an exhibition of seven of her best-known outfits to fete the in-store launch, called “RIHtrospective.”

The number of looks to be exhibited bears a certain significance: Rihanna has released seven albums in seven years, received seven Grammys and seven Billboard awards, graced the cover of Complex seven times — and then there was the infamous, globe-trotting 777 tour she went on to promote her album, “Unapologetic.” The outfits span from her stage to red-carpet looks and testify the chameleonlike qualities of her wardrobe, whether “really pulled together or grungy for performances,” said her stylist, Mel Ottenberg. Rihanna helped hand-pick the looks, which include custom pieces like the Adam Selman-designed pink lace minidress that she wore for the Victoria’s Secret fashion show last November.

The Rihanna for River Island collection, which ranges between $45 and $350, will only be available at River Island and Opening Ceremony locations, as well as online at openingceremony.us. The exhibition will be presented at Opening Ceremony’s New York flagship at 35 Howard Street, where it will remain for three weeks.

Dana Lorenz Makes Foray Into Fine Jewelry

dana-lorenzLORENZ’S FORAY INTO FINE: Designer Dana Lorenz of collections Fenton and Fallon will unveil her first fine jewelry line today, a capsule collection created for Plukka.com. Staying true to her aesthetic, the five-piece Dana Lorenz for Plukka offering welds the punk and classic elements (like spikes and pearls) that Lorenz’s contemporary lines have become known for. Fashioned from 18-karat yellow gold, sterling silver, labradorite, lapis lazuli and diamonds, the two bracelets, necklace, earrings and ring will range in price from $1,200 to $7,500. The Web site, which launched over one year ago, will price the pieces in line with the “made-to-order” category of its unique retail model (which also includes fixed-rate items and its patented reverse auction Plukka Value Proposition). The collection will be available at Plukka.com through the end of August.

Fausto Puglisi Gets Set for First Ungaro Show

ungaro01MILAN — The first Emanuel Ungaro collection designed by Italian designer Fausto Puglisi will be unveiled Monday with a runway show at the Chamber of Commerce venue in Paris.

“It’s a fantastic brand with an international charm, and an incredible fame — there is a strong request for the label and room for it in the market,” said Massimo Ferretti, chairman of Italian apparel manufacturer Aeffe SpA, which tapped Puglisi in September to relaunch the top line. After previous unsuccessful attempts prior to Aeffe to rejuvenate the Ungaro brand, Ferretti said the turnaround starts with a clean slate.

“There were two seasons of gap, nothing was on the market, and there is no memory of previous efforts,” contended Ferretti. “It’s an international label with Italian roots, quality and know-how, and we will keep its historical headquarters in Paris.”

Ferretti noted that the target is to reach 250 stores in the first season.

The entrepreneur turned to Puglisi believing in his talent to reinterpret Ungaro’s style and spirit while renovating it as a contemporary and international brand, positioning it in the high-end range of the market. Couture is not in the cards at the moment, he said.

“When I asked Fausto to provide ideas, he came to me with a book of sketches, already projected into the future,” said Ferretti.

Puglisi hardly sits still at the Aeffe offices here, clearly brimming with energy. “I am super-excited; I love the Seventies and Ungaro, with [Gianni] Versace, [Thierry] Mugler and [Christian] Lacroix. It’s an aesthetic I’ve always found fascinating,” said Puglisi, who will continue to design his own namesake collection, launched in 2010.

While declining to reveal details about the fall collection, he conceded he has reworked iconic looks and Ungaro’s “polka dots, trenches and knits.” But retro is not part of his vocabulary. “The lineup is contemporary,” he said.

Asked to describe the collection, Puglisi said: “Woman, woman. Emanuel Ungaro was one of the few heterosexual designers. He loved women, and his looks were never vulgar; they were seductive while respectful of women. Sometimes today you see designs that are either for the untouchable nun or for a prostitute.”

Ferretti said he’d heard positive comments on the new course of the brand by its founder, Emanuel Ungaro. “First I have to prove my skills; I have huge respect for him,” said Puglisi of potentially communicating with the retired couturier.

While technically a license for the global production and distribution of the brand’s women’s clothing and accessories under the Emanuel Ungaro moniker, Ferretti defined the agreement as a “partnership” with Ungaro owner Asim Abdullah, a San Francisco-based high-tech entrepreneur, and his investment vehicle Aimz. Aeffe has the option to acquire a significant minority share of Ungaro’s capital stock on achieving shared goals, but not before 2020. The agreement will be active for seven years, with the option to renew for another seven.

New Paris Flagship Puts MAC in Another World

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PARIS — MAC Cosmetics is ratcheting up its international profile with an otherworldly flagship set to open on the tourist-clogged Champs-Elysées here on Tuesday.

And the Paris unit could be only the first of many as the brand plots an aggressive push overseas. Another five flagships could be in the offing, including units in Beijing, Shanghai, London, Rome and possibly Tokyo and Seoul, according to Karen Buglisi, global brand president of MAC Cosmetics. These will join two more Paris store openings before the end of the fiscal year in June 2014. In the Europe, Middle East and Africa region alone, 70 MAC stores were added this year.

“It has to be the right place, it has to have the right opportunity for business and the right opportunity for exposure,” Buglisi said.

James Gager, senior vice president and creative director of MAC, added, “And they will be very carefully designed, so it feels relevant to the market we are entering into — but still feels MAC.”

Like a Thunderdome of beauty, the Paris store has a soaring ceiling in an elliptical arch, a gleaming white floor — and makeup as far as the eye can see. Futuristic touches include a columnar LED display featuring colorful, amorphic forms gliding around, and highly reflective black glass panels.

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Jane Pratt Takes on Beauty With XoVain

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NEW YORK — Jane Pratt’s new digital platform XoVain covers beauty in a way that’s very, well, Jane Pratt.

Rather than traditional beauty coverage, Pratt wants to take a more realistic approach, taking on real beauty issues and providing readers with an easy way to shop the products featured in posts.

Today’s launch of the Say Media-owned digital property solely dedicated to beauty comes after the introduction of almost two-year-old XoJane, Pratt’s first online venture. For XoJane, which just surpassed two million uniques a month, beauty was the top performing category on the site (where stories could sometimes receive 1,000 comments).

Maybelline is the official launch sponsor of XoVain, which will see a revenue model that consists of advertising and a percentage of proceeds from embedded shoppable items in stories. Pratt said readers don’t have to leave the site to purchase product. The site will also contain some sponsored content, and Pratt plans to partner with additional brands going forward.

“We’re covering beauty in the context of your entire life, not just how to get a look,” Pratt said in her office here, rattling off the kinds of topics XoVain might tackle. These include: how to look like you haven’t been on a flight for 12 hours when you’ve been on a flight for 12 hours, or what to do when you’ve been out partying until 4 a.m. and have a meeting at 7 a.m.

“Everything isn’t epic. [Sometimes it will be something like] ‘It looks like I shoot up but it’s eczema,’” Pratt added.

The images are personal but a little more polished and produced than those on XoJane, but for Pratt, it’s about getting to know “this cast of characters” who are writing and “going through someone’s life with them.”

The site has a beauty director and senior beauty editor, as well as crossover with staff from XoJane, including managing editor Corynne Cirilli and executive editor Emily McComb. There are also about seven regular contributors who will help produce about seven posts daily.

Pratt will speak about the new venture at SXSW in Austin, Tex., on March 12 and wants to bring a touch of reality to beauty coverage. “Beauty doesn’t have to be that serious,” she said, noting that the site will not use “experts” or quote “people with Ph.D.’s” to comment on issues. “Someone who has had skin problems their whole life is an expert on the issue.”

Barkley L. Hendricks Talks Latest Exhibit, ‘Hearts Hands Eyes Mind’

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Barkley L. Hendricks has his own distinct sense of dress. On a recent mucky day, the artist is in a gloomy monochromatic ensemble: black loafers, black jeans, black vest over a black oxford, and a black handkerchief wrapped around his neck, accentuating his fuzzy salt-and-pepper goatee. His accessories have a little more quirk: a leather fedora, a trio of chunky gold chain bracelets and a toothpick tucked discreetly behind his ear.

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Gucci Launches Chime for Change Foundation

gucci01Gucci and TEDxWomen hosted a lunch salon during the annual TED Conference in Long Beach, Calif., that served as the official kickoff for the company’s new Chime for Change foundation to further women’s education, health care and justice through social media platforms Facebook and Catapult.

Dovetailing with the women’s empowerment theme, guests were treated to an extended trailer of the short film “The Supreme Price,” a documentary by Joanna Lipper about her friend, Nigerian activist Hafsat Abiola. The film was the recipient of the Gucci Tribeca Documentary Fund’s Spotlighting Women Documentary Award and will premiere at film festivals and in theaters this year before running on PBS.

The event was hosted by Pat Mitchell and Salma Hayek Pinault, a cofounder of Chime for Change along with Frida Giannini and Beyoncé Knowles. “Not to be disrespectful to my fellow actors, but so many are using their fame to bring ‘awareness.’ But it’s time to actually do something,” said Hayek Pinault to the room, which included Jada Pinkett Smith, Jodie Foster, Guy Oseary, producer Jesse Dylan, Desirée Rogers, Annie Philbin, One Kings Lane founder Ali Pincus, One Campaign founder Jamie Drummond and David Carey.

“They drop that bomb in your lap and then go on to bring awareness to their next film. But there are no innocent bystanders in the information age. We need to use the tools available to us today to turn awareness into action,” she said, referring to Catapult and how it enables users to find charities and projects to donate their money and skills to, and the way Facebook enables people to start movements in the virtual world that can transform into tangible events. “Everyone get on their smartphone and like Chime for Change on Facebook. This is a pretty popular room, and I know Guy Oseary must have like 10,000 friends and Jodie Foster must have 50 million Twitter followers.”

The campaign will utilize a film platform, executive produced by Hayek Pinault, which comprises 10 shorts, the first being “The Supreme Price,” to set the narrative for its initiatives. Mariane Pearl will be managing editor of the campaign’s journalism platform, curating stories from around the world. There will be a major concert this summer, about which details are still under wraps.

Afterward, Foster said, “That was inspiring. I need to go lie on my bed and think about it all.” Pinkett Smith, who has been a vocal activist against the trafficking of women, told Hayek Pinault, “We’re chiming. This is a great day because an extension of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act and the Violence Against Women Act passed today in Congress so it shows that our hard work pays off.” “I’m inspired by you both,” Abiola told them. “I knew you could do a lot because you memorize all those movie lines, but this is amazing.” “Please, we are thankful to have someone like you here,” Hayek Pinault told her. “We’re tiny, but don’t let that fool you.”