VICTORIA’S BEAUTY SECRET ABROAD/3 THE LADIES’ FAVORITES/4 WWDWomen’s Wear Daily • The Retailers’MONDAY Daily Newspaper • September 20, 2004 • $2.00 Accessories/Innerwear/Legwear Hi-ho, Silver... …and gold and bronze. Metallic fabrics and motifs played important roles on the New York spring runways. They turned up, for example, at Donna Karan, who went in a new, more clean-cut and industrial direction this season, which influenced even relatively small details, as in corset looks with utilitarian net insets. Here, one of her metal- spiked styles: a striking cotton jersey evening dress with splashes of silver sequins. For more on the trend, see pages 6 and 7. Diego Della Valle’s Drive: New Products at Tod’s Seen Speeding Growth By Alessandra Ilari MILAN — Diego Della Valle of Tod’s SpA may take a long-term view toward luxury goods, but he’s upping the tempo of his company’s expansion. Tod’s has opened 38 stores worldwide in the last 18 months; a new, modern shoe factory, and is adding more small leather goods and similar products. Now Della Valle expects to see the financial benefits. “The litmus test and stock market response of how we’ve prepared for the future will be visible in the second half of 2005,” he said in an interview. For more on Tod’s, and the upcoming Milan season, see Section II. PHOTO BY ROBERT MITRA ROBERT PHOTO BY 2 WWD, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2004 WWW.WWD.COM WWDMONDAY Holt Renfrew Eyeing Cicio? Accessories/Innerwear/Legwear NEW YORK — Joseph Cicio, a for- ering his experience as well as GENERAL Tod’s chief Diego Della Valle said he believes in taking the slow and steady mer Macy’s executive and presi- Joseph his sense of showmanship and approach to building the luxury leather-goods brand. dent of British fragrance retailer Cicio high taste level. He spent 19 1 Penhaligon’s until several months years at Macy’s, where he rose to A boyfriend’s complaints drove Geren Lockhart to try her hand at designing ago, is a candidate to run Holt senior vice president of fashion 8 loungewear. Three years later, she has a growing business. Renfrew, according to sources. direction and creative resources The upscale Toronto-based and was instrumental in creating Exhibitors at Vision Expo West said the outlook for spring was bright — and chain has been seeking a succes- some of Macy’s most striking 9 that’s not because they were looking through rose-colored glasses. sor to Andrew Jennings who was stores and private labels. He FINANCIAL: Business has been booming for factors on the West Coast, president and managing direc- later was chairman and chief ex- 13 prompting several firms to open offices there. tor of Holt Renfrew until ecutive officer of I. Magnin, a for- February, when he became pres- mer division of Macy’s which, ident and chief merchandising like Holt Renfrew, catered to an EYE officer of Saks Fifth Avenue. upscale audience with high-end After sitting through New York Fashion Week, the front row’s boldface Cicio, who also held the title goods. In addition, Cicio served 4 names weigh in on their runway favorites. of senior vice president of re- as president of retail develop- tail, product development and ment for Donna Karan and presi- merchandising for Cradle dent of retail development for FASHION Holdings Inc., parent of Sun International. Metallic fabrics and motifs were a key trend at New York Fashion Week, as Penhaligon’s, could not be Holt Renfrew is part of designers used them in clean-cut looks. reached for comment. One Under Jennings, the $250 mil- Wittington Investments, con- 6 source said Cicio has held talks lion Holt Renfrew, with nine re- trolled by billionaire Galen but there are other candidates tail units and two clearance cen- Weston, who is also owner and Classified Advertisements ..................................................................18-19 being considered and he is not ters, developed a reputation for chairman of Holt Renfrew. Aside To e-mail reporters and editors at WWD, the address is necessarily the lead candidate. strong visual presentation and from Holt Renfrew, Weston’s [email protected], using the individual’s name. A Holt Renfrew spokes- marketing extravaganzas high-end retail holdings include WOMEN’S WEAR DAILY IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF FAIRCHILD PUBLICATIONS, INC. COPYRIGHT ©2004 woman said Friday the company through extensive remodels and Brown Thomas in Ireland and FAIRCHILD PUBLICATIONS, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. would not confirm anything special events. Cicio would be a Selfridges in the U.K. VOLUME 188, NO. 61. WWD (ISSN # 0149-5380) is published daily except Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, with one additional about the job candidates. good fit for Holt Renfrew, consid- — David Moin issue in January, May, June and November; two additional issues in February, April, September, October and December; and three additional issues in March and August, by Fairchild Publications, Inc., a subsidiary of Advance Publications, Inc. PRINCIPAL OFFICE: 7 West 34th Street, New York, NY 10001. Shared Services provided by Advance Magazine Publishers Inc.: S.I. Newhouse, Jr., Chairman; Steven T. Florio, Vice Chairman; Charles H. Townsend, C.O.O.; John W. 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Box 15008, North Hollywood, CA 91615-5008; Call 800-289-0273; or visit www.subnow.com/wd . Four weeks is Back Namesake Brand required for change of address. Please give both new and old address as printed on most recent label. First copy of new subscription will be mailed within four weeks after receipt of order. Address all editorial, business, and production correspondence to WOMEN’S WEAR DAILY, 7 West 34th Street, New York, NY 10001. For permissions and reprint requests, 2.5M A&F Shares please call 212-221-9595 or fax requests to 212-221-9195. Visit us online: www.wwd.com. To subscribe to other Fairchild By Robert Murphy magazines on the World Wide Web, visit www.fairchildpub.com. Occasionally, we make our subscriber list available to carefully screened companies that offer products and services that we believe would interest our readers. If you do not want to receive PARIS — Ines de la Fressange NEW YORK — Abercrombie & these offers and/or information, please advise us at P.O. Box 15008, North Hollywood, CA 91615-5008 or call 800-289-0273. has got her name back. Fitch Co. said it neither recom- WOMEN’S WEAR DAILY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR LOSS, DAMAGE, OR ANY OTHER INJURY TO UNSOLICITED MANUSCRIPTS, UNSOLICITED ART WORK (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DRAWINGS, PHOTOGRAPHS, AND A court here ruled Friday to mends nor endorses an unso- TRANSPARENCIES), OR ANY OTHER UNSOLICITED MATERIALS. THOSE SUBMITTING MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOGRAPHS, ART reinstate the Ines de la licited minitender offer from a WORK, OR OTHER MATERIALS FOR CONSIDERATION SHOULD NOT SEND ORIGINALS, UNLESS SPECIFICALLY REQUESTED Fressange brand to the former private Canadian investment TO DO SO BY WWD IN WRITING. MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOGRAPHS, AND OTHER MATERIALS SUBMITTED MUST BE ACCOMPANIED BY A SELF-ADDRESSED OVERNIGHT-DELIVERY RETURN ENVELOPE, POSTAGE PREPAID. Chanel model and designer, now firm to buy up to 2.5 million director and communications STEPHANE FEUGERE PHOTO BY shares of its class A common coordinator of the Roger Vivier stock. The firm, TRC Capital MONDAY: London Fashion Week continues (through shoe company. Corp., provided Abercrombie Friday). Fressange was fired in 1999 with offer to purchase docu- Nike Inc. reports first-quarter sales and earnings. from her namesake fashion ments dated Sept. 8 in which it house after majority sharehold- said it will buy the shares at $30 TUESDAY: Première Vision, Texworld, Mod’Amont, ers — including François Louis Ines de la each in cash, the retailer said in Expofil and Indigo trade shows, Paris (through Vuitton — claimed she had dam- Fressange a statement Friday. Friday). aged the house’s image by de- The offer, however, represents signing a pillbox. mine her course of action but a 5.4 percent discount to WEDNESDAY: Dress Barn Inc. reports fourth-quarter She then filed an unfair dis- she would likely demand to re- Abercrombie’s closing stock and full-year sales and earnings. missal suit, which she won in examine the type of products price of $31.71 on Sept. 7. Inditex Group reports first-half sales and earnings. 2000, along with some $220,000 bearing her name. Abercrombie said it is not affili- in damages. “I’m happy at Vivier,” said ated with TRC, and emphasized SATURDAY: Milan Fashion Week (through Oct. 3). More recently, however, she Fressange, stopping short of rul- that stockholders who have al- American International Designers at the Waldorf, also sought control of her name. ing out a comeback as a fashion ready tendered shares can with- New York (through Sept. 29). She argued that the house, designer. “But it’s embarrassing draw them before the offer’s ex- which operates a boutique on to see your name on ugly things.