Kering acquired Valentino & other big fashion business news + learn about the Battle of Versailles
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Can you share your fashion opinions with us?
Dear readers, we are building the Glam Observer Report 2023 that will recap what happened in the fashion industry in 2023 and we would like to hear from you in this survey so you can be part of it as well. It's anonymous and will only take you 20 seconds :)
The report will be available to download for free on glamobserver.com next Thursday, December 14th.
Please share this survey with your fashion friends because the more opinions we collect, the more interesting the report will be for everyone.
Thanks so much for your help, we appreciate it 💖
Happy first day of December! ❄️
The festive season officially began with Christmas preparations and closing all the projects before the new year begins. Many of us are starting to reflect on what has happened during the year, and the fashion industry does as well. So to begin this newsletter, we prepared for you the recap of the top fashion moments of 2023 according to Lyst.
The London-based online shopping platform LYST released its annual “Year in Fashion” report that highlights the top brands, products, and trends of 2023. The data was compiled from 200 million fashion shoppers in the past 12 months by Lyst.
Hottest brand of 2023: Miu Miu
Miu Miu has been voted the hottest brand of the year, for a second year in a row, with searches increasing 39% year-on-year. Some of the biggest momentums of the brand that led to this success include a combination of viral product releases, such as cashmere cardigans seen in the Fall 2023 show and ballet flats, and collaborations with New Balance and Church’s; Miu Miu’s runways and ad campaigns made some buzz as well.
The logo of the year: Loewe’s Anagram logo
Creative director Jonathan Anderson has been using the Anagram logo on many of Loewe’s products. One of them, the tank top, was voted the hottest product of the year in Q2, with searches rising 132% year-on-year.
The trend of the year: Underwear-as-outerwear
Searches for the hot pants have increased 133% year-on-year - a trend that has been seen on the SS24 runways at Tom Ford, Chloé, Khaite, Stella McCartney, GCds, and Coach, and Miu Miu’s show particularly stood out and sparked the trend with Emma Corrin walking down the FW 2023 Miu Miu runway in a pair of gold sequin knickers that spiked searches 257% in 24 hours!
Best shoe: The Naked shoe
The trend was seen on the runways of Loewe, The Row, Khaite, Bottega Veneta, Nensi Dojaka, Chanel, and Stella McCartney, but it’s Alaïa’s ballet flats that were the leader of naked shoes this year, with searches increasing 56% on Lyst on February.
Sneaker of the year: Adidas Samba, searched every 1.7 minutes on Lyst. And I can’t agree more about it being the sneaker of the year. I could only get my hands on a pair one month ago after weeks they were sold out everywhere.
The hottest bag: Uniqlo’s shoulder bag. Priced under $20, it’s the cheapest product to ever be featured in Lyst’s Year in Fashion, and the brand’s best-selling bag of all time.
The best campaign: Jacquemus’ Bambino bags on wheels traveling down the streets of Paris, and the ballerina shoe turning into a boat drove a lot of engagement on social media, and searches for the two products increased by 30% and 49% respectively on Lyst year-on-year, while searches for the brand rose 28%.
The best fashion show: Versace’s FW 2023 show in Los Angeles generated over 39.8 million views on TikTok, and searches for the brand increased 44% on Lyst in the days following the event.
Check the full report of Lyst with other winners of 2023 here.
What do you think about this selection? What was your favorite brand, product, trend, campaign, and show of the year? Share your opinion with us in this survey :)
What happened in the industry this week? 💚
Kering finalized the acquisition of Valentino
This just in: Kering announced yesterday it completed the acquisition of a 30% shareholding in Valentino, following a green light from antitrust authorities. The deal has been made under the terms first disclosed on July 27, stating at the time that it had entered into a binding agreement with investment equity firm Mayhoola for the 1.7 billion euro deal. The luxury conglomerate said it could acquire 100% of Valentino’s share capital no later than 2028, and the transaction is “part of a broader strategic partnership” between Mayhoola and Kering, which could lead the Qatari company becoming a shareholder in Kering.
This acquisition is an important step for the luxury conglomerate. Adding one of the most internationally recognized Italian luxury houses to Kering’s portfolio is a significant moment for the future development of Valentino.
Overall, joining a conglomerate can be beneficial for a brand for several reasons: Receive significant financial investment from the conglomerate, which can help designers build and sustain their brand; protection from a volatile economy, access to the know-how of a specific industry (e.g. technology, innovation, advertising) from group leaders, as well as access to a bigger network of suppliers, and professional talent.
Richemont x Farfetch deal updates
On October 2023, the European Commission approved the acquisition by Farfetch of a 47,5% stake in YOOX NET-A-PORTER (YNAP) in exchange for the issuance of Farfetch Class A ordinary shares of 64.2 million to Richemont. As a result, “Richemont and its Maisons, along with YNAP, would adopt Farfetch Platform Solutions (FPS) as part of the deal,” according to a Vogue Business article. The deal has received regulatory approval from the U.K. and the European Union but has not been finalized yet. However, this Tuesday, The Telegraph said Farfetch’s CEO José Neves reportedly considered taking the company private, which raised questions about how this could affect the deal between the two companies.
“This arrangement means that Richemont’s payout is dependent on Farfetch’s share value — which was already on the decline,” Vogue Business added, but Richemont said it has “no financial obligations towards Farfetch and notes that it does not envisage lending or investing into Farfetch” because the deal hasn’t officially closed yet, so Richemont and YNAP remain separate from Farfetch.
We will keep you posted about how this deal evolves.
Gucci plans to relocate to Milan
The luxury brand plans to relocate a significant part of its design studio team (153 out of a total of 219 employees) from Rome to Milan, motivating the decision by saying that “the involved teams will have the opportunity to work closely with the brand’s strategic functions already based in [the city], thereby maximising the necessary interactions and synergies,” according to The Guardian.
In the face of the news, 50 Gucci employees in Italy have gone on strike, claiming that this project is a “mass redundancy in disguise,” The Guardian reports. The newspaper added that according to Chiara Giannotti, a union representative, “Kering was taking advantage of the restructuring to reduce staff numbers and push out employees who had been offered unsatisfactory conditions or could not leave Rome because of familial obligations.” Gucci assured the relocation did “not envisage any reduction in personnel” and would be “implemented in full compliance with current regulations”, and that the company would provide economic and support measures for affected staff.
Matteo Tamburini - the new creative director of Tod’s?
Market sources say that Matteo Tamburini, who currently works with creative director Matthieu Blazy at Bottega Veneta, could become the new creative director of Tod’s, succeeding Walter Chiapponi after he left the house in September. Stay tuned for the official confirmation.
Carlos Nazario was appointed style director at large at Harper’s Bazaar
In this new role, Carlos Nazario will oversee the styling of most of Harper Bazaar’s covers. His first will be the magazine’s February 2024 edition. He will also remain as global fashion director of i-D magazine.
Louis Vuitton staged a fashion show in Hong Kong
Creative director Pharell Williams presented his first Men’s Pre-Fall collection on November 30 in Hong Kong, located at the 500-year-old Victoria Dockside. Have you watched it yet? You can do it here.
Dior’s next fashion show will be in Hong Kong as well
The luxury brand announced its plans to show its next Men’s Pre-Fall collection in Hong Kong in the first half of 2024. The event will mark Dior’s return to Hong Kong after a women’s haute couture show in 2014 and a men’s runway in 2016. Dior’s last Men’s Pre-fall was in Cairo, and the brand stages previous shows in Tokyo, Miami, London, and Los Angeles.
Net-a-Porter x Hurr x By Rotation
The luxury retailer Net-a-Porter has teamed with rental platforms Hurr and By Rotation on a partywear rental edit with the aim to explore the UK rental space and “test appetite to rent high-end pieces to a demographic of fashion-engaged, sustainably-minded Gen Z and Millennial customers, who are already attuned to fashion rental,” according to Yoox-Net-A-Porter (YNAP). The collection includes more than 100 partywear pieces across dresses and bags from luxury and contemporary designers, including Nina Ricci, Rebecca Vallance, Saloni, Victoria Beckham, and Roksanda. The items in the edit can be purchased via Net-a-porter’s, Hurr’s, and By Rotation’s websites until January. Have you found your Christmas outfit already?
Ralph Lauren x Mr Bags
Ralph Lauren has teamed with Tao Liang, professionally known as Mr. Bags on limited-edition versions of the Polo ID bag exclusive for the Chinese market. It comes in a black calfskin, a pink suede version of the mini Polo ID, and a black calfskin large-size Polo ID.
What’s new in sustainability 🌱
Stella McCartney x Veuve Clicquot created leather products from champagne waste
Renowned for her sustainable fashion initiatives, Stella McCartney, who serves as sustainability adviser to LVMH’s CEO Bernard Arnault, collaborated with the group’s champagne producer Veuve Clicquot on the next-gen leather alternative that consists of turning grape and cork waste into bags and shoes. The line of accessories includes 3 iconic Frayme bags, sandals, and a bottle holder housing a bottle of Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label. Some of those products were already presented in McCartney’s Spring 2024 show, and the full collection is planned to be released in March next year.
Fashion Career Tip of the Week
Looking for tips to stand out from other applicants when applying for a job in fashion?
Whether it’s your first time applying for a job or internship in fashion or you already tried but keep facing rejections from companies, you might think that the reason for not getting the job is because you didn’t study fashion or don’t have any experience. However, this is not the reason why your fashion job application does not stand out.
In my recent article, I explain what applicants are truly competing about, and share some unconventional strategies to stand out among other candidates and impress recruiters.
Read the article here.
Nice Things 💖
Yummy: Moschino and the pastry shop Martesana created “Il panettone d’oro”, a typical Italian Christmas cake with candied and dried fruits with a golden chocolate glaze.
What to read this week 📚
Did you know The Battle of Versailles celebrated its 50th anniversary on November 28th?
Want to learn more about this historic event?
Many iconic fashion shows have been staged throughout the years, and each fashion house had at least one landmark runway that particularly impressed the media and the audience. However, if we have to point out one fashion show that left an enduring mark on the fashion industry, it’s the Battle of Versailles.
We recall its fascinating history in our latest article on Glam Observer. You will learn:
Why this event took place
What happened at the Battle of Versailles
How it marked a new chapter in the history of fashion, and why fashion critics and enthusiasts cannot get enough of it so many years later.
Read the article here.
Fashion Profiles to follow this week
Carlos Nazario, style director at large at Harper’s Bazaar and global fashion director of i-D magazine
Victoria Prew, founder & CEO at HURR
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That’s all for this week.
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Giada Graziano, Inside Fashion Editor in Chief and Glam Observer Founder
Margarita Skacenko, Fashion Editorial Assistant
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