So the lovely BF spoilt me with a little weekend trip to Barcelona :) Unfortunately the weather wasn’t really on our side, but wasn’t too bad either (can’t afford to let myself get too critical living on this soggy little island!)… it was lovely to be in Barcelona again after 3 years! Tapas, Cerveza, Café con leche, lovely dinner, lots of drinkies, a nice bit of shopping, a lovely hotel and a stylish club – what else could I possibly ask for?!
Inditex’s Zara may have overtaken H&M to become the absolte leader in turnonver in international women’s high street fashion. This based on turnover is indeed very impressive when you consider the absolute lack of advertising and celebrity collaborations Zara uses. So their growth is fully based on their speed in delivery, their catwalk-to-closet copy speed so to speak. In the meantime however Mango continues collaborating with Penelope & Monica Cruz for another and the topic of the post – at the moment atleast there is no end in sight to H&M designer collaborations.
The November 2004 Karl Lagerfeld for H&M collection which was the first of these designer collaborations was a massive success. Everyone knows Lagerfeld – the genius behind Chanel, the designer of the Fendi logo and a man of absolute mystery who is known for statements onle he and no one else could afford to make (we absolutely love the Kaiser Karl quotes). Karl Lagerfeld’s name is associated with couture, luxury and Chanel so it was no surprise that this much anticipated collection had crowds waiting for hours before stores opened and was in certain cities sold out within an hour. The man is pure genius, mystery and the very essence of haute couture personified. Everyone wants a piece of Lagerfeld.
November 2005 saw the Stella McCartney for H&M collection hit the 1600 H&M stores in over 34 countries (ok, very subdued, very earthy colours, very Stella, it was fine).
This was followed the next year by November 2006 Viktor&Rolf for H&M collection brought to us by this amazing avantgarde Dutch designer team. I had my doubts about H&M pairing up with Viktor & Rolf – they’re so stylish, so avant garde and just sooo way too creative and non-chav mainstream for the average H&M customer…but oh well, so be it.
March 2007 saw the ‘M’ by Madonna collection hit stores (I have a pair of awesome Madonna sunglasses everyone still compliments me on and refuses to believe they’re H&M) – this collection was quite shit. Don’t get me wrong – I’m the biggest Madonna fan ever (the only poster in my room is Madonna, currently reading ‘Like an Icon’ and I have every album she ever made and can’t wait to get my hands on the Madonna Sex book) – but this collection was quite a disaster and not very Madonna at all (apart from that one pair of sunglasses) so very very disappointing indeed. I even saw some ‘M’ by Madonna stuff go reduced into sale – something that should not have happened and a clear sign of the shittiness of this ‘collection’. Seriously, I’d been sooo excited and looking forward to it and I felt so incredibly let down it was unbelievable.
April 2007 saw the ‘Love Kylie’ swimwear collection by Kylie Minogue being brought out in Hong Kong (I think it was) – again quite a disappointing and tragic show. We love Kylie, she’s wonderful but she’s not a designer now is she? (about as much designer as Madonna I guess, meaning ‘not’). That was another collection of crap just like the Madonna collection so to speak.
In November 2007 however H&M got a real designer back on board – Roberto Cavalli. The Cavalli for H&M collection did manage to sell out very very quickly as well and I personally think it was the fact that this super designer known for his extreme glamour was made accessible to the masses that made it such a success. Now you could wear a dress by the same designer you always see on screen hanging out with Posh and Jennifer Lopez – woohay, how swell!
Soooo, now it is November 2008 soon and who do H&M lasso in for us this time around? It is the wonderful Rei Kawakubo from the one and only Comme des Garcons who will be offering us her talent on show this year! Again, similiar to Viktor&Rolf I’m not too sure the masses will have the ability to fully appreciate the depth and value of Rei Kawakubo…
Rei Kawakubo: Fashion Designer Rei Kawakubo, founder of Comme des Garçons, was born in Tokyo. Kawakubo studied fine arts and literature at Keio University. After graduation she worked in a textile company and began working as a freelance stylist in 1967. In 1973, Kawakubo established her own company, Comme des Garçons Co., Ltd in Tokyo. Founded on creativity and originality, the company is always pushing the frontiers of design and never accepts the status quo. With stores in more than 25 countries, Comme des Garçons now produces 14 different brands and employs almost 700 people.
“A one-time Comme des Garçons for H&M collection is slated to launch in early November as the Swedish fast-fashion giant opens its first stores in Japan: a 10,000-square-foot unit in Tokyo’s Ginza district and a 16,000-square-foot location in hyper-trendy Harajuku. An international rollout will follow.
Kawakubo – acclaimed for a fearless, experimental approach to fashion – will design H&M fashions for women, men and children, as well as accessories and a unisex fragrance.”
This Rei Kawakubo Comme Des Garcons exclusive for H&M could potentially be the best thing H&M has ever done (apart from Lagerfeld – but then they managed to piss him off so much that Kaiser Karl then publicly stated never to work with them again).
But – H&M goes Harajuku?! That is blasphemous!! Don’t get me wrong but Harajuku is the holy nerve central of creative genius – not a place for mainstream central H&M. But I guess its all about giving each other a helping hand – you give me some designer and creativity cred and I’ll give you mass sale turnover cred…
