The name alone must sell

Is it me or has this been happening to you too? You absorb so much information daily, you start to forget where you read/saw/heard what. For instance, I know this week I read that sales at Gucci have been exploding,and that the company moved product past the 2 billion dollar mark. I remember reading that the new store on 5th Ave at Trump Tower was a sumptuous extravaganza of unmatched awe and spectacle with a stunning view of the avenue from all of it's floors. Most of all we were assured Frida Giannini knew what she was doing. She had feminized the brand. Made it warmer and more spontaneous and accessible. The message of the PR spin was, (and it was written this bluntly in the article)... “Tom who? “.
Now weigh all that information against the reviews the last Gucci show has garnered. The general temperature? Lukewarm, much of it on the order of “This Will Sell Well. Especially In Russia” In her diplomatic review of the show , Cathy Horyn in the NY Times made reference to Gildo Zegna, the chief executive of Zegna, as saying this week that 20 percent of his company’s sales now come from new markets such as Russia, India and Brazil with profit margins said to be higher than those of the “ established markets."
This then leads me to a thought that has been bugging me as a dedicated consumer of designer fashion. What is it that drives me to buy? The reviews of fashion critics? (In my case, no) . The packaging and PR done in the glossy fashion magazines (Somewhat, especially if the magazine is “renegade/independent” like Fantastic Man).

But who will meet the unstinting Prada camapign standards this season?

The frenzy of the runway is done and so the fashion sweepstakes switch to the campaign platform. Which models will explode as new stars for SS 08? Is there another Catherine McNeil, a first season girl who goes on to corner 4 campaigns, waiting in the margins? Or are we to be treated to the joy of fresh faced beauties like Irina K and Anabela flitting through bookings for Prada and Balenciaga. Not likely, because as we noted earlier celebs like Jennifer Connolly, Posh Spice and Claudia Schiffer are already circling the campaigns for Balenciaga, Marc Jacobs and Chanel respectively. Natalia Vodianova, back in fighting condition only mere weeks after having her third child is ready to battle for her blue chip bookings now that she will not be doing Calvin Klein Collection SS08. TI sees Valentino, Lagerfeld Gallery and Missoni in her sights. Otherwise Calvin is spoken for. Gucci is spoken for. Burberry is looking very familiar (I mean how many blue chip Brit babes are there anyway?) Lanvin is calling up its recruits even as we speak and the YSL...well let's just say it will continue to be peculiar. And so that means...