Culture Club

PLUS: DESIGNERS ARE GOING FOR GOLD FOR FALL, WITH THE SHINY STUFF ALL OPEN HOUSE OVER THE RUNWAYS. EYE: BARNEYS NEW YORK CHIEF MARK LEE THROWS A BASH AT HOME FOR KATIE HOLMES AND HER HOLMES & YANG LINE. SEE STYLE, PAGE 8 JAPAN NUCLEAR CRISIS Fashion Firms Shift Workers Out of Tokyo By WWD STAFF FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2011 ■ WOMEN’S WEAR DAILY ■ $3.00 FASHION COMPANIES BEGAN to leave Tokyo WWD Thursday, moving westward to Osaka amid the threat of radioactive fallout, widening blackouts and diminishing food supplies. Six days after a massive earthquake and tsunami hit Japan, damaging the Fukushima nuclear plant 124 miles northeast of the capital city, Chanel was handing out iodine tablets to workers and Hennes & Mauritz and PPR temporarily relocated offi ces. And some brands stopped giv- ing updates on their operations in the country. Ordinarily accessible, Polo Ralph Lauren Corp., Burberry and Paul Smith, as well as several other fi rms, did not respond to requests for comment Thursday. Procter & Gamble Co. issued a state- ment saying all its employees were safe, but a spokeswoman declined to say whether they had been instructed to leave Tokyo. Many fi rms in the capital have already given their employees the green light to work remotely, given rolling blackouts on the edges of the city and erratic train service. Japan’s Energy and Trade Ministry warned Thursday that there was a risk of a widespread blackout in the Tokyo area. That prompted many to leave work and stores to close their doors earlier than usual. Although plenty of people decided to stay put and certain food items were reappearing in su- Culture permarkets, conditions still hadn’t returned to normal. The Japanese government has pleaded with Tokyo residents to not hoard food since it ex- acerbates a dire shortage in areas most affected by the earthquake and tsunami, which claimed more than 10,000 lives. Club SEE PAGE 8 Estée Lauder is aiming to celebrate the beauty of women of IN WWD TODAY all races with two new skin care launches and a new ad campaign featuring spokesmodels Joan Apparel Prices Fall PAGE 6 FINANCIAL: Apparel prices fell sharply in Smalls, Liu Wen and Constance February, a sign retailers aren’t able to Jablonski. Idealist Even Skintone pass on higher raw materials costs Illuminator and Idealist Cooling to consumers. Eye Illuminator launch in June, as Vanessa Seward to Exit Azzaro PAGE 2 does the new advertising. FASHION: The designer is said to be For more, see Style, page 6. leaving the French fashion house in what is claimed to be an amicable split. Casual Male Rolls Out Prototype PAGE 7 MEN’S: The big and tall retailer plans aggressive expansion of its new Destination XL format, with plans to open 10 to 14 new units this year. L PHOTO BY ROBERT MITRA 2 WWD FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2011 WWD.COM Seward Said Exiting Azzaro Prada Makes Return to Berlin By MILES SOCHA By MELISSA DRIER continuous stretch of windows on both fl oors, further accentuated by new generation steel- PARIS — Vanessa Seward, the designer who helped put Azzaro back on the BERLIN — After an absence of more than and-glass shelving. The store houses women’s fashion radar, is parting ways with the Paris-based house, WWD has learned. eight years, Prada has opened a freestand- and men’s wear, bags, accessories and footwear. Seward joined the company in 2002 as fi rst assistant to the founding de- ing store on Berlin’s main luxury shopping Prada closed its first Berlin store in signer, Loris Azzaro. Following his death a year later, Seward was named stretch, Kurfürstendamm. early 2003 when the lease ran out, arguing creative director, relaunching and tweaking its glamorous eveningwear, The luxury brand’s new retail home the 2,370-square-foot space just a few doors including such iconic styles as the Three Rings dress. here is almost literally that. The two-fl oor, down from the current address was too small Azzaro is expected to reveal Seward’s departure as early as today, char- 5,385-square-foot store in a late 19th cen- to effectively present the full collections. acterizing it as an amicable parting that leaves the company in a solid tury landmark building feels like a grand, “While we were missing a freestanding fi nancial position to pursue its development. rambling apartment. The women’s wear presence on Ku’damm, we were present [in It is understood Azzaro will name Seward’s successor next month. department at the back of the second fl oor, Berlin] at wholesale,” Suhl said. “And it’s a A vivacious brunette, Seward cooked up a slew of collaborations during her fl ourishing business.” tenure, even allowing customers to personalize dresses on the company’s Web Store openings “are always site. Prior to Azzaro, Seward had design stints at Chanel and Yves Saint Laurent. a question of priority. Not that The designer’s departure comes on the heels of two management Germany is not a priority or an im- changes last year. portant market. Germany is a very Sagra Maceira de Rosen, managing director of the luxury and retail division wealthy country and especially im- of Reig Capital, Azzaro’s parent company, left the company, as did Reig Capital’s portant in terms of image,” he said. chief executive offi cer José Caireta. The team at Azzaro had been a tight one, and But that wealth is well distributed Seward and Maceira de Rosen remain close friends, according to industry sources. throughout the country, he pointed Founded in 1962, Azzaro quickly became known for body-hugging out, and the structure of different gowns worn by the likes of Marisa Berenson and Sophia Loren. Over the federal states or provinces means last decade, stars including Nicole Kidman and Penélope Cruz have worn there are many smaller cities Azzaro on the red carpet. where “we don’t — and won’t — But the brand is probably best known for its men’s fragrances, pro- have our own stores.” duced by Groupe Clarins, which owned the brand from 1995 until 2002. The Prada unit in Berlin. As a result, the lion’s share — WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM SAMANTHA CONTI of Prada’s business in Germany, which he said generates about 5 for example, is comprised of several rooms percent of group sales worldwide, remains or salons. “We enhanced what we found,” dominated by wholesale. “Because of the city Nike Shares Slip on Earnings said chief operating offi cer Sebastian Suhl, structure, it’s one of the few markets, along who described the Berlin door as the latest with Italy and the U.S., where wholesale is By ARNOLD J. KARR als. The rest was attributable to air evolution of Prada’s signature retail design so important,” he said. Elsewhere, Prada freight costs, partially mitigated by concept featuring pastel green walls, beige has been on a retail expansion course. Suhl AN 11 PERCENT pickup in future an increase in its direct-to-consum- velvet and ivory Saffi ano leather. said retail has grown to more than 70 percent orders couldn’t keep shares of Nike er businesses. “But we don’t cookie-cutter our fl agships. of total sales worldwide, which exceeded 2 Inc. from stumbling in after-hours But Nike, which has “strategical- There are always different elements,” he said. billion euros, or $2.8 billion at current ex- trading Thursday after the sporting ly” raised prices in recent months, In Berlin, it’s the daylight, provided by an almost change, in the fi scal year ended Jan. 31. goods giant reported third-quarter according to Charlie Denson, presi- sales and profi ts that fell short of dent of Nike Brand, will do so in a analysts’ consensus estimates. more across-the-board fashion in In the three months ended Feb. the months ahead. “The bigger mag- Arcapita Eyeing Deals Beyond J. Jill 28, the Beaverton, Ore.-based fi rm nitude will be in the second half ” reported net income of $523 mil- of its next fi scal year, covering the By DAVID MOIN Jill has done well under Golden Gate,” which lion, or $1.08 a diluted share, up 5.2 spring and summer seasons, he said. will remain a minority shareholder in the percent from the $497 million, or The company’s apparel business ARCAPITA IS LOOKING to build its portfo- company. “There haven’t been any issues with $1.01, reported in the third quarter for the quarter rose 11.6 percent to lio of fashion and retail fi rms beyond J. Jill. lack of capital.” The source also said that J. for fi scal 2010. Revenues rose 7.3 $1.29 billion and was up a robust The private equity and venture capital Jill, with an estimated volume between $400 percent to $5.08 billion from $4.73 17.9 percent, to $481 million from fi rm late Wednesday disclosed it was buy- million to $450 million, is profi table. billion in last year’s quarter. $408 million, in North America, a ing a majority stake in J. Jill from Golden Before Golden Gate, J. Jill was owned by The results, reported after the percentage jump surpassed only by Gate Capital, but one fi nancial source said The Talbots Inc., which struggled with the close of the equity markets Thursday, the company business in Greater Thursday, “They’re still actively looking in business. “J. Jill got rid of the harness of fell short of consensus estimates, China, where sales rose 31.4 per- the sector.

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