FUR SHOW’S NEW LOOK/2 CHINA IN DEPTH/SEC. II Global Edition WWDWomen’s Wear Daily • The Retailers’TUESDAY Daily Newspaper • March 22, 2005 • $2.00 Ready-to-Wear/Textiles Coat Call LOS ANGELES — Twenty-two-year-old Jenni Kayne’s fall presentation drew the likes of Rachel Bilson and Anthony Kiedis. Her collection itself was soigné yet fresh in its clever mix of masculine wool looks with light and feminine silk pieces. Here, her wool canvas coat with a goat fur collar, worn with a silk blouse and skirt. For more on the L.A. runways, see pages 6 and 7. Saks’ Luxury Battle Plan: Focus on Shoppers’ Needs To Redefine Retail Image By Vicki M. Young NEW YORK — Saks Fifth Avenue is banking on “world class” customer service as a linchpin to help replenish its cachet in the fiercely competitive luxury segment. The retailer outlined a strategic plan to Wall Street investors and analysts on Monday that centers on improved customer service, as well as an edited merchandise assortment, redesigned job responsibilities and changes in the management structure to emphasize the store associates. Without giving away too much detail, top management said the evolution of See Saks, Page11 PHOTO BY GIOVANNI GIANNONI GIOVANNI PHOTO BY 2 WWD/GLOBAL, MARCH 2005 WWD.COM FICA Retools Annual Show NEW YORK — The Fur Information Council of Goldin Feldman. “It’s anticlimactic to put on this WWDTUESDAY America has scrapped its annual fashion show in fur show, when so many great furs have already Ready-to-Wear/Textiles favor of a more low-key and presumably less ex- been shown on the runway. It’s more of a trade pensive format. kind of fashion show than a press fashion show. GENERAL The group, which typically stages a runway “I truly think this is a move of strength, not Saks Fifth Avenue is banking on “world class” customer service to show featuring 18 to 24 labels in April, plans to weakness,” she said. 1 replenish its cache in the fiercely competitive luxury segment. host a multimedia event in June. The location She noted that last month, many designers The Fur Information Council of America has scrapped its annual fashion hasn’t been disclosed. “went beyond fur accessories and fur-trimmed show in favor of a more low-key and presumably less-expensive format. Keith Caplan, executive director of FICA, said pieces to show fur coats at 7th on Sixth. 2 organizers initially thought they had some great “To show fur coats coming down the runway China safeguard petitions based on actual market disruption seem ideas for this year’s event, but eventually decided from FICA would have been kind of sad, after so 2 imminent, after a court ruling kept review of threat-based petitions stalled. it would be tough to top what designers showed on many great, spectacular designers sent fur down EYE: Talking with Lily Rabe, daughter of playwright David Rabe and actress the runways in Europe and New York. the runway,” Goldin said. 4 Jill Clayburgh, who is making her Broadway debut in “Steel Magnolias.” “We asked if we could show them anything in a In the past, all FICA members could have their format they hadn’t seen before,” he said. “We de- looks featured in its runway show, which made for FASHION: As Los Angeles Fashion Week came to a close, designers trotted cided that probably wasn’t the best way — if you’ll lengthy presentations. In addition, many design- 6 out more grown-up and thoughtful looks on the runway for fall. pardon the expression — to skin a cat.” ers like Goldin opted to display their wares in Given the breadth of new techniques being used their showrooms instead of participating in the China In Depth appears as a Section II in this issue. in fur, FICA supporters agreed a more intimate plan FICA show. Classified Advertisements ..................................................................18-19 would be appropriate to allow editors to see the de- Larry Schulman, executive vice president of signs up close. The group has decided to go with a Alixandre Furs, which makes licensed fur collec- To e-mail reporters and editors at WWD, the address is multimedia format mixing informal modeling with tions for Oscar de la Renta and Isaac Mizrahi, [email protected], using the individual’s name. still life displays, photographs, video footage, casual said it is more personal to have presentations in WOMEN’S WEAR DAILY IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF FAIRCHILD PUBLICATIONS, INC. COPYRIGHT ©2005 exchanges with designers and, of course, cocktails. his showroom, where editors and buyers can FAIRCHILD PUBLICATIONS, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. By staging the event in June instead of April, FICA touch the coats and try them on. VOLUME 189, NO. 60. WWD (ISSN # 0149-5380) is published daily except Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, with one additional issue in June; two additional issues in April, May, August, October, November and December, and three additional intends to be more in sync with editors, who are Alixandre sat out last year’s show. “It’s not a re- issues in February, March and September, by Fairchild Publications, Inc., a subsidiary of Advance Publications, Inc. PRINCIPAL then writing about fur for fall issues. flection of FICA. This is what our designers sug- 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. Bellando, Executive Vice-President and C.F.O.; Jill In recent years, FICA’s fashion show has been gested to us.” Bright, Executive Vice-President_Human Resources; John Buese, Executive Vice-President_ Chief Information Officer; David Orlin, panned by editors for its lack of cohesion and am- This year, Alixandre plans to preview its col- Senior Vice-President_Strategic Sourcing; Robert Bennis, Senior Vice-President_Real Estate; David B. Chemidlin, Senior Vice- ateurish style. lection with major accounts at the end of next 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 At least two furriers welcomed the new approach. month and will open the collection the second or No. 88654-9096-RM0001. Canada post return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: 4960-2 Walker Road, Windsor, ON N9A 6J3. “I think it’s a great idea,’’ said Anne Dee third week of May. POSTMASTER: SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO WWD, P.O. Box 15008, North Hollywood, CA 91615-5008. FOR — Rosemary Feitelberg SUBSCRIPTIONS, ADDRESS CHANGES, ADJUSTMENTS, OR BACK ISSUE INQUIRIES: Please write to WOMEN’S WEAR Goldin, owner and chief executive officer of DAILY, P.O. Box 15008, North Hollywood, CA 91615-5008; Call 800-289-0273; or visit www.subnow.com/wd . Four weeks is 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, please call 212-221-9595 or fax requests to 212-221-9195. Visit us online: www.wwd.com. To subscribe to other Fairchild 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 Coalition Set to File New China Petitions 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 the government’s authority to im- able. The changes would elimi- MANUSCRIPTS, UNSOLICITED ART WORK (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DRAWINGS, PHOTOGRAPHS, AND By Kristi Ellis TRANSPARENCIES), OR ANY OTHER UNSOLICITED MATERIALS. THOSE SUBMITTING MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOGRAPHS, ART pose safeguard quotas on nate the one-month lag time in WORK, OR OTHER MATERIALS FOR CONSIDERATION SHOULD NOT SEND ORIGINALS, UNLESS SPECIFICALLY REQUESTED WASHINGTON — A coalition of Chinese apparel and textile ex- reporting import figures, a com- TO DO SO BY WWD IN WRITING. MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOGRAPHS, AND OTHER MATERIALS SUBMITTED MUST BE textile and fiber producers and ports based on the threat of mar- plaint of the industry that has de- ACCOMPANIED BY A SELF-ADDRESSED OVERNIGHT-DELIVERY RETURN ENVELOPE, POSTAGE PREPAID. organized labor may file new ket disruption. That means the layed the filing of market-disrup- China safeguard petitions based CIT’s two-month-old temporary tion cases. The figures will be re- on actual market disruption as injunction barring the govern- ported biweekly on a Web site early as next week, after the lat- ment from accepting or review- maintained by the department’s In Brief est court ruling to quash their ing threat-based safeguards peti- Office of Textiles & Apparel. hopes of getting quick relief tions, or from self-initiating such Meanwhile, several China ● VF BUYS REEF: VF Corp. said Monday it was acquiring — for from threat-based petitions. petitions, remains in place. safeguard scenarios could play an undisclosed amount — Reef Holdings Corp., which does some The U.S. Court of Inter- Senior Judge Richard W. out over the next month: $75 million in sales of surfer clothes and shoes, and is based in national Trade on Friday denied Goldberg rejected the govern- ● The Bush administration San Diego.