Knit a Homer NEW YORK — As the Academic Year Ends, WWD Brings You Round Two of Our Coverage of Student Fashion Shows
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WYATT EXITS WARNACO/2 MUDD’S NEW BACKERS/2 WWDWomen’s Wear Daily • The Retailers’TUESDAY Daily Newspaper • May 25, 2004 • $2.00 Ready-to-Wear/Textiles Knit a Homer NEW YORK — As the academic year ends, WWD brings you round two of our coverage of student fashion shows. The final grade? Another handful of bright hopefuls with the right training and enough creative mojo to make things interesting. Here, from Nan Kyoung Seo, an MFA student at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, an intricately knitted angora and lambskin coat over a silk, cotton and Lycra spandex turtleneck. Winner of the CFDA Best Portfolio Scholarship in 2003, she says her collection was inspired by “a maze in winter with snow-covered branches.” For more student designers, see pages 6 and 7. Burberry’s Bonanza: Luxe Brand Eyes Growth As Earnings Climb 75% By Samantha Conti LONDON — The turnaround is over at Burberry and now the brand’s in growth mode. Rose Marie Bravo, its chief executive officer who over the last six years has overseen the transformation of the British label from a dusty company known for trenchcoats to one of luxury’s major brands, said Monday that Burberry is entering its next phase. “In many ways, this is a new era for Burberry,” said Bravo, who joined Burberry in September 1997. “We’ve completed the turnaround, and now See Burberry’s, Page12 PHOTO BY RANDY BROOK RANDY PHOTO BY 2 WWD, TUESDAY, MAY 25, 2004 WWDTUESDAY Ready-to-Wear/Textiles New Asian Backers at Mudd GENERAL By Scott Malone more than 17,000 employees at its “We have the potential to grab factories in China and Cambodia. an older teenage girl,” she said. Led by strong women’s wear and fragrance sales and aggressive retail NEW YORK — A pair of Asian ap- As of Monday afternoon Eastern “We’re not going from black to 1 expansion, Burberry reported a 75.3 percent surge in profits. parel makers bought a majority Daylight Time, it had a market white. But we will update our A consortium of Asian apparel companies, represented by Conrad Lung, stake in junior jeans powerhouse capitalization of $126.4 million on image to speak to the 18- to 20- 2 bought a majority stake in junior jeans powerhouse Mudd. Mudd on Monday and, with the the Hong Kong stock exchange. It year-old customer….We believe new backing, the company has set also currently produces Mudd’s the customer we have aspires to EYE: Cannes goes out in style…Yann Samuell’s tale of obsessive itself the ambitious goal of hitting swimwear products. be like her sister or an older girl.” 4 love…Models dine with Alaïa…Plus a scoop. the $1 billion revenue mark. Gilbert said the new backers Lung also noted the company Barneys returned to the black for the first quarter, reporting earnings of The new investors are Tack will bring Mudd much-needed will be seeking acquisition candi- 5 $3.5 million. Fat Group International Ltd., a sourcing expertise. dates. “That is very much the publicly traded apparel maker “If we had a weakness in this strategy of the whole company,” George, the fashion and accessories brand created by Wal-Mart’s Asda subsidiary, based in Hong Kong, and Wind- company, it’s that nobody in the he said. “We’re going to be focus- 5 will establish George Global to centralize its design, sourcing and manufacturing. sor Garment, a Chinese apparel company was ever trained in ing on mergers and acquisitions READY-TO-WEAR: A group of top designers have headed back to the company. production,” he said. “We were and licensing.” 8 classroom this spring. Mudd founder Dick Gilbert all sales guys who got together In addition to getting new and shareholder Conrad Lung years ago.” owners, Mudd got a new home on BEAUTY BEAT: The beauty profession quickly figured out how to get lawmakers’ —who represented the new in- Gilbert said the risks inherent Monday. The executives were in- 13 attention on Capitol Hill: Offer free haircuts, manicures, facials and massages. vestors in their approach to in that lack of knowledge became terviewed at Gilbert’s still-bare- Classified Advertisements ..................................................................14-15 Mudd — disclosed the news in apparent to him last year when bones office in the firm’s new an exclusive interview Monday shipments started to come in late. headquarters and showroom, a To e-mail reporters and editors at WWD, the address is at the company’s Manhattan of- His suppliers blamed hang-ups in 8,500-square-foot 29th-floor space [email protected], using the individual’s name. fices. They did not detail finan- Customs, which Gilbert said he at 1407 Broadway in the Garment WOMEN’S WEAR DAILY IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF FAIRCHILD PUBLICATIONS, INC. COPYRIGHT ©2004 FAIRCHILD PUBLICATIONS, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. cial terms of the transaction. was never able to understand. District. Pictures were propped VOLUME 187, NO. 109. WWD (ISSN # 0149-5380) is published daily except Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, with one additional Lung, who is also an owner of “We didn’t even know,” he said. against the wall, still waiting to issue in January, May, June and November; two additional issues in February, April, September, October and December; and three the New York importer Sunnex “That’s how stupid we were.” be hung. 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; and of the Go Silk bridge line, Lung said sourcing expertise The deal does not include Steven T. Florio, Vice Chairman; Charles H. Townsend, C.O.O.; John W. Bellando, Executive Vice-President and C.F.O.; Jill Bright, said the investors first ap- will become all the more impor- Paper Denim & Cloth, a high-end Executive Vice-President_Human Resources; John Buese, Executive Vice-President_ Chief Information Officer; David Orlin, Senior proached Mudd in August be- tant over the next year as the jeans line that Mudd launched in Vice-President_Strategic Sourcing; Robert Bennis, Senior Vice-President_Real Estate; David B. Chemidlin, Senior Vice- cause they believed the company 147 nations of the World Trade 2000. Gilbert said that line has President_General Manager, Advance Magazine Group Shared Services Center. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY and at additional mailing offices. Canada Post Publications Mail Agreement No. 40032712. Canadian Goods and Services Tax Registration has “a lot of room to grow.” Organization drop their quotas passed to other private owners. No. 88654-9096-RM0001. Canada post return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: 4960-2 Walker Road, Windsor, ON N9A 6J3. “Globalization has now creat- on textiles and apparel. He declined to provide further POSTMASTER: SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO WOMEN’S WEAR DAILY, P.O. Box 15008, North Hollywood, CA 91615-5008. ed very affluent consumer “The WTO change is looming, details. FOR SUBSCRIPTIONS, ADDRESS CHANGES, ADJUSTMENTS, OR BACK ISSUE INQUIRIES: Please write to WOMEN’S WEAR DAILY, P.O. Box 15008, North Hollywood, CA 91615-5008; Call 800-289-0273; or visit www.subnow.com/wd . Four weeks is economies in Asia and there’s and that will affect all companies, Paper, Denim & Cloth’s for- required for change of address. Please give both new and old address as printed on most recent label. First copy of new also room for growth in Europe,” not just Mudd,” he said. “You mer vice president, Scott Mor- subscription will be mailed within four weeks after receipt of order. Address all editorial, business, and production Lung said. Mudd’s sales — in- need to rethink your global sourc- rison, resigned his position in correspondence to WOMEN’S WEAR DAILY, 7 West 34th Street, New York, NY 10001. For permissions and reprint requests, please call 212-221-9595 or fax requests to 212-221-9195. Visit us online: www.wwd.com. To subscribe to other Fairchild cluding 16 categories of licensed ing and production strategies.” February and Gilbert named his magazines on the World Wide Web, visit www.fairchildpub.com. Occasionally, we make our subscriber list available to carefully products — last year came in at He noted that Tack Fat also son, Chris Gilbert, to succeed screened companies that offer products and services that we believe would interest our readers. If you do not want to receive around $500 million, Gilbert said. operates a chain of retail stores him, with the new title of chief these offers and/or information, please advise us at P.O. Box 15008, North Hollywood, CA 91615-5008 or call 800-289-0273. WOMEN’S WEAR DAILY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR LOSS, DAMAGE, OR ANY OTHER INJURY TO UNSOLICITED Gilbert, 61, said he will re- in China, which will aid in operating officer. Morrison has MANUSCRIPTS, UNSOLICITED ART WORK (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DRAWINGS, PHOTOGRAPHS, AND main on board as chief executive Mudd’s entry into that region. since launched the Earnest Sewn TRANSPARENCIES), OR ANY OTHER UNSOLICITED MATERIALS. THOSE SUBMITTING MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOGRAPHS, ART officer and also retains an owner- “It’s notoriously tough to grow jeans line. WORK, OR OTHER MATERIALS FOR CONSIDERATION SHOULD NOT SEND ORIGINALS, UNLESS SPECIFICALLY REQUESTED TO DO SO BY WWD IN WRITING. MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOGRAPHS, AND OTHER MATERIALS SUBMITTED MUST BE ship stake in the firm, which he there, unless you have an on-the- Gilbert founded Mudd in 1995 ACCOMPANIED BY A SELF-ADDRESSED OVERNIGHT-DELIVERY RETURN ENVELOPE, POSTAGE PREPAID. cofounded in late 1995.