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Photograph by STÉPHANE FEUGÈRE Fashion. Beauty. Business. 18 FEBRUARY 2016 Collections Fall 2016 “A Simple Girl In a Simple Dress” Fran Lebowitz said it way-back-when about Claudia Schier, and these days, appropriation is all the rage. For his Michael Kors Collection show on Wednesday, Michael Kors appropriated the classics, zhooshing them up on his runway and in his front row. Here, the simple pleasure of a chic glamour-girl sighting: camel-clad Blake Lively, bejeweled and beguiling. For more on the collections, see pages 7 to 11.

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Page 1: “A Simple Girl In a Simple Dress”pdf-digital-daily.wwd.com.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com/... · 2/18/2016  · Photograph by STÉPHANE FEUGÈRE Fashion. Beauty. Business

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Fashion. Beauty. Business.18 FEBRUARY 2016

CollectionsFall

2016

“A Simple Girl In a Simple Dress”

Fran Lebowitz said it way-back-when about Claudia Schiffer, and these days, appropriation is all the rage. For his Michael Kors Collection show on Wednesday, Michael Kors appropriated the classics, zhooshing them up on his runway and in his front row. Here, the simple pleasure of a chic glamour-girl sighting: camel-clad Blake Lively, bejeweled and beguiling.For more on the collections, see pages 7 to 11.

Page 2: “A Simple Girl In a Simple Dress”pdf-digital-daily.wwd.com.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com/... · 2/18/2016  · Photograph by STÉPHANE FEUGÈRE Fashion. Beauty. Business
Page 3: “A Simple Girl In a Simple Dress”pdf-digital-daily.wwd.com.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com/... · 2/18/2016  · Photograph by STÉPHANE FEUGÈRE Fashion. Beauty. Business

● The Italian group’s sales were boosted mainly by its retail network.

BY LUISA ZARGANI

Helped by currency fluctuations and growth in its own stores, Prada SpA on Wednesday reported preliminary 2015 revenues that were relatively flat com-pared with the previous year.

In the 12 months ended Jan. 31, sales totaled 3.54 billion euros, or $3.91 billion, compared with 3.55 billion euros, or $4.67 billion, in the previous fiscal year.

Retail sales rose 2.5 percent to 3.05 billion euros, or $3.35 billion, compared with the previous year. As of Jan. 31, the group had 618 directly operated stores. In line with Prada’s strategy to focus on its own stores, wholesale revenues dropped to 444 million euros, or $488.4 million, down 16.5 percent.

Europe and Japan showed gains, while the Chinese market dented the perfor-mance of the Asia-Pacific region.

Sales of the Prada brand were up 1 per-cent, lifted by currency swings, to 2.48 billion euros, or $2.74 billion, while Miu Miu’s and Church’s sales rose 10 percent and 14 percent, respectively.

Dollar figures are converted at average exchange for the period to which they refer.

“Throughout 2015, we had to deal

with an economic environment charac-terized by extreme volatility in currency markets, as well as by the deteriorating geopolitical situation in many world regions,” said chief executive officer Patrizio Bertelli. “These two factors have made prices fluctuate widely and diverted tourist traffic in sudden and unpredictable ways. Our retail network — now truly global, thanks to investment in recent years — enables us to keep developing a direct relationship with our ever-more demanding customer all over the world.

“In the coming months, the Prada Group will be focusing its energies on the development of new commercial and marketing initiatives to sustain organic growth, also by means of an extensive digital project to strengthen dialogue with our customers.”

In December, commenting on the nine-months results, Bertelli said during a call with analysts that the company was focusing on technology and social media, from Instagram to Twitter, to engage customers and that, from Jan. 15, Wi-Fi service would be available in its network of Prada and Miu Miu stores to make products more accessible to customers. Chief financial officer Donatello Galli said during the call that Prada’s planned inter-activity with customers will also allow the company to acquire “deeper insight” on their behavior. He noted it is increasingly challenging to serve the customer but

sees this as “an opportunity.”On Wednesday, Bertelli said, “These

actions, taken against the background of rigorous and disciplined cost control, will enable us to consolidate our market position with satisfactory margins and returns on investment.”

The company said licensed products “performed well” and royalties were up 14 percent to 44 million euros, or $48.4 million, thanks to the contribution of its eyewear collections and the first Miu Miu fragrance, which was launched during the second half of the year.

Europe was up 6 percent, lifted by tourists from the Asia-Pacific region and the U.S. The company said the “results of the Italian market have been even better and remained positive in the fourth quarter.”

Japan rose 11 percent, continuing the upward trend seen since 2010. At con-stant exchange, sales grew 4 percent.

“The economic situation on the Chi-nese market remains negative, although there was some improvement in the final quarter,” said Prada. As a consequence, the Asia-Pacific area, excluding Japan, saw a 4 percent drop in sales. At constant exchange rates, revenues were down 16 percent.

Helped by favorable exchange rates, sales in the U.S. rose 5 percent, but, in real terms, revenues decreased 9 percent largely because of the stronger dollar, which affected the flow of tourists to the area.

A good fourth quarter boosted the performance of the Middle East, which closed the year up 11 percent. At constant exchange, sales were down 5 percent.

Full financial results for the 2015 fiscal year, including profits, are expected to be released in the first half of April.

BUSINESS

Prada Sees Growth In Its Own Stores

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New York Fashion Week, Fall 2016 Street Style● WWD went off the runways and onto the streets and sidewalks for the best looks from New York Fashion Week.

● Oscar de la Renta, RTW Fall 2016

● Coach, RTW Fall 2016

● Social Media in the Beauty Landscape

● Vera Wang, RTW Fall 2016

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TOP 5TRENDINGON WWD.COM

● Wht Space represents the department store’s first move into a pre-fall capsule for guys.

BY JEAN E. PALMIERI

Shaun White is switching teams.

The Olympic gold medal snowboarder and skateboarder has ended his eight-year association with Target and will now collaborate with Macy’s on a new capsule collection for men that will hit stores in mid-June.

The line will be called Wht Space and is designed to be more representative of the Shaun White of today. The Target line was for boys.

“This is Shaun White 2.0,” said Durand Guion, vice president and men’s fashion director for Macy’s. “He was ready to do something that reflects his life now.”

White, who is now 29, called it a “nat-ural transition” that “really represents who I am today. I’ve aged up and this is a more appropriate capsule for now.” He stressed, however, that the boys collec-tion will continue to be produced and will be sold on Shaunwhite.com going forward. “We still have a huge following for the line,” he said.

His new collection will consist of around 19 pieces of fashion-forward staples such as printed short-sleeve wovens, jeans and novelty Ts. The first collection will hit about 175 Macy’s stores

and the retailer’s Web site on June 15 and represents the retailer’s first foray into a pre-fall capsule, Guion said.

“We wanted to make it about what’s going to be cool for fall,” he said. “This is a new approach for the men’s store at Macy’s. We’re good at building shrines for fashion brands, but this is more of-the-moment. It’s meant to sell out and leave you hungry.”

He said the second Wht Space cap-sule will drop on Oct. 15 for the holiday season.

White, who is intimately involved with anything that bears his name, said he was the one who suggested the name for the line during a brainstorming session with the Macy’s team. “When we were design-ing the line, everybody was saying, where will it fit into the floor plan, where’s the white space, what should we call it? I said, ‘why not call it Wht Space?’”

The line, which will incorporate White’s influences from sports, music and fashion — he’s also a musician and has a band — is expected to appeal to the fashion-savvy, active Millennial and post-Millennial man,

Guion said. White said the line will not be “logo driven” and will be sleek and modern.

Items will range in price from $24 to $29 for Ts, $49 to $59 for woven shirts, $59 to $69 for denim and $89 to $299 for outerwear.

The “icing on the cake,” Guion said, will be leather moto jackets that will be hand-painted by White and some of his artist friends. Only one jacket per door will be offered. “They will be very special pieces,” he said.

Wht Space will be merchandised in the Millennial zone within stores and will hang next to premium denim, Guion said. In addition, both the retailer and the athlete will promote the collection as its launch date approaches. “Shaun is very social media-friendly,” Guion said, “and he is the brand ambassador.”

White has nearly 1.5 million followers on Twitter and 392 million on Instagram. White said he plans to wear the collection during his public appearances and will also make some “cool videos” of the pro-cess of the hand-painting of the jackets.

Guion said he’s “very hopeful” the asso-ciation with White will continue beyond this year. “We’re in love with the first capsule and are very enthusiastic that it can be a new brand at Macy’s,” he said.

White has won two Olympic gold med-als in snowboarding and 24 medals in the winter and summer XGames. He recently bought a majority stake in an event series called Air + Style that merges boarding with music. He’s also continuing to compete and expects to participate in the Burton U.S. Open Snowboarding Cham-pionships in Vail, Colo., at the end of this month as he eyes a run at his fourth Olympics in 2018.

“Whenever I sit still,” White said, “I always think there’s something I should be doing.”

MEN’S

Macy’s to Offer Shaun White Men’s Line

Shaun White

18 FEBRUARY 2016 3

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4 18 FEBRUARY 2016

● The two-level unit anchors the new luxury wing of the Roosevelt Field Mall.

BY DAVID MOIN AND SHARON EDELSON

With its array of designer shops, high level of service and famous popovers, Neiman Marcus is set to muscle in on the affluent yet luxury-deprived Long Island market.

On Friday, Neiman’s will open its first store on the island, a 105,649-square-foot, two-level unit anchoring the new luxury wing of the Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City, N.Y. The store has the expected concentration of European and American designer brands and exclusives as well as an eye-catching exterior designed by Elkus Manfredi Architects of Boston. It is also the chain’s most technologically advanced unit to date, with many features that were developed in-house.

For the Dallas-based Neiman’s, Long Island has been a long time coming. “We have been wanting to build on Long Island for about 16 years,” said Karen Katz, president and chief executive officer of the Neiman Marcus Group. “But it wasn’t until a few years ago that the right opportunity arose. When we started talking to the Simon Property Group [which owns Roo-sevelt Field Mall] about coming to Long Island, they were thinking about building a luxury wing. The two things came together really well.”

Neiman’s is anchoring a wing that also houses stores for Tory Burch, Jo Malone, Montblanc, Furla, Kate Spade New York and Jonathan Adler. Besides that, in 2014, Roosevelt Field Mall began extensive renovations that brought a new dining district and upgrades to the common areas, further enticing Neiman’s to come to what’s considered a mega mall with a mass appeal.

The retailer does play well in varied locations, ranging from such upscale settings as Bal Harbour Shops in Miami; Beverly Hills, and Short Hills, N.J., to NorthPark Center in Dallas, which, like

Roosevelt Field, has a broad spectrum of retailing. Anchors at Roosevelt Field include Bloomingdale’s, J.C. Penney, Macy’s and Nordstrom.

Asked why Neiman’s regards Roosevelt Field as a good fit, Katz replied, “Because we don’t open many stores, we do a tre-mendous amount of research on customer demographics and psychographics” before deciding on a site. “Without question, on Long Island there are the right demograph-ics and psychographics, which are equally important, to support a Neiman Marcus.”

Bloomingdale’s and Nordstrom are com-petition in the area, while Katz singled out the Americana Manhasset. “It’s a beautiful shopping center,” she said. There also is Mitchells in Huntington, N.Y., formerly called Marsh’s.

According to Katz, “There are proba-bly plenty of customers that live on Long Island that may be traveling elsewhere, whether it’s into the city, maybe to Bergdorf Goodman, or many that go to Westchester,” where Neiman’s has a store. “Finding a neighborhood Neiman Marcus will be a real treat for them.”

The Long Island store is important for several reasons. Aside from entering the market for the first time, it’s significant because Neiman’s rarely opens stores. The last one was four years ago in Walnut Creek, Calif., and the next will be in Hudson Yards on Manhattan’s West Side in 2018. Also, given how the luxury business is slumping, Neiman’s could use a lift right now after a tough 2015.

“Probably if you look at the major cities in the United States, we have good cov-erage,” Katz said. “If opportunities come along, we always keep our eyes and ears open.”

Rather than opening stores, Neiman’s will seek growth more through online sales, new technologies, renovations, attempting to raise productivity at existing stores and international. “We continue to invest lots of capital” into stores, Katz said, citing the Beverly Hills unit as an example, which is halfway through a renovation.

For Long Island, Neiman’s stuck to its

formula. “The way we open any new store is very consistent: We go in with the best designer matrix that we can absolutely attract to that market,” Katz said. “Based on the feedback from customers, sales associates and the management team on the ground, we will very quickly make adjustments to the assortment if we are missing something. Remember, this is just store number 42 for us. The beauty of that is we can get that feedback very quickly.”

On the technology side, “Over the years, we keep upping the ante,” Katz said. “We have always focused on architecture in the stores, the art in the stores. But this is the first store where we really have a high component of technology built in from the beginning.”

The Long Island store is outfitted with two “memory mirrors” that capture images and videos of whatever a customer tries on, enabling them to see outfits side by side and with 360-degree views. Images can be shared by e-mail, social media or with a sales associate. The mirrors were developed by Neiman’s iLab and MemoMi.

The store has charging stations and asso-ciates are equipped with iPhones to notify customers of new products arrivals and

store events. The phones also have look books and access to neimanmarcus.com to augment offerings on the selling floors.

In terms of product, the store has a larger-than-average men’s area with hard shops, such as one for Stefano Ricci, where a $120,000 blue crocodile jacket, the only one in the U.S., hangs. Other shops for men include Moncler, Brunello Cucinelli and Ermenegildo Zegna.

The men’s shoe area stocks John Lobb, Gucci, Fendi, Prada and Saint Laurent, among others, and the large sneaker offer-ing includes Adidas by Raf Simons, as well as Giuseppe Zanotti’s rhinestone shoes, $1,395.

More space than usual was allocated to women’s shoes, which has 1,100 styles on display, including made-to-order Manolo Blahniks.

The main level was modified with lower sight lines and light or transparent fixtures so that the entire floor can be seen from any vantage point.

There is an emphasis on exclusives; Neiman’s tapped designers ranging from Sachin + Babi to Valentino to incorporate the butterfly symbol into designs. Exclu-sive merchandise is identified by bright yellow hangtags that say “#OnlyatNM.”

The store features 32 hard shops for brands such as Tom Ford, whose handbag and men’s shops are unique to the market. The store also has the first Céline shop on Long Island. The fine jewelry salon will offer the Neiman Marcus estate collection.

A mannequin wearing a dramatic gold Carolina Herrera coat over cropped gold pants sets the tone for ready-to-wear on the second level. The assortment includes Akris, Balenciaga, Alexander McQueen, Proenza Schouler, Givenchy, Burberry Brit, Moncler and Etro. The Cusp contem-porary department offers brands including Rag & Bone, AG jeans and Calypso.

The NM Cafe will offer Neiman’s signa-ture popovers and strawberry butter as well as lunch and Sunday brunch. Illumi-nated glass crystals hanging outside the café’s window evoke a waterfall. A glass footbridge leads to a parking structure.

The store’s interior, designed by Burdi-filek, was inspired by a “Cubist gallery,” the company said.

Contemporary art is displayed through-out the store, with plaques identifying each artist. The canvases are colorful and geometrical canvases were created by artists who are from Long Island or have ties to the New York area.

Most striking is the exterior, covered with 2,100 aluminum panels that shimmer like the scales on a fish and a roof line that gently rises at opposite ends to subtly suggest the company’s butterfly wings symbol. The building’s double-height gran-ite frame acts as a proscenium and is meant to suggest a fashion runway. Elkus Manfredi, which designed the facade, is also working on the Neiman’s in Hudson Yards.

RETAIL

Neiman Marcus Lands on Long Island

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On Friday, Neiman’s will open its first store on Long Island, a unit anchoring the new luxury

wing of the Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City, N.Y.

Neiman’s men’s department at Roosevelt Field Mall.

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● The former Valentino chairman was sentenced to 10 months and the payment of the expenses for the trial, but the judge suspended the punishment because of extenuating circumstances.

BY LUISA ZARGANI

Italy seems set for another long-running tax trial in the fashion world.

After a trial that lasted a little more than a year, Matteo Marzotto was on Wednes-day found guilty of tax evasion by a Milan courthouse headed by Judge Orsola de Cristofaro — but the young entrepreneur immediately vowed to fight back. Mar-zotto plans to appeal once the reasoning behind de Cristofaro’s decision is depos-ited and issued a statement reiterating his innocence.

“We were always confident that our defense in the trial would, sooner or later…highlight our innocence and for this we had at the time declined any idea of a plea bargain,” said Marzotto.

Marzotto, along with his sister Dia-mante Marzotto and real estate entrepre-neur and broker Massimo Caputi, were sentenced to 10 months and the payment of the expenses for the trial, but the judge suspended the punishment because of extenuating circumstances — the fact that the Marzottos have no criminal record and that they paid their fiscal debt (in Italy, fiscal and penal trials are indepen-dent). The judge also ordered Marzotto properties that had been sequestered to be returned to their owners in 90 days.

After retiring to the council chamber for 30 minutes, de Cristofaro quickly deliv-ered the verdict to a room that had gone suddenly dark as the lights unexpectedly went off. The defendants, indicted for alleged omission of earnings declaration and tax evasion, were not present in court and only a handful of reporters quietly jotted down the sentence.

After de Cristofaro left the room, the defendants’ lawyer Paolo De Capitani, with his colleague Alessandra Mereu, did

not hide their surprise and disappoint-ment and told WWD they had expected an acquittal. “We remain firmly convinced of [the defendants’] innocence and this will be seen with the final verdict at the next [court] levels,” said De Capitani. “We need to wait for the motivations, which we have trouble imagining, [to be depos-ited] in 90 days and then we will appeal.”

An appeal can be filed 45 days after the motivations are released. De Capitani continued: “This is not the first time that innocent [individuals] are found guilty at the first court level and then acquitted with a final and definitive sentence.”

In his statement, Marzotto said: “We were always convinced that the accusa-tions were unfounded and this clearly emerged during the hearings: all the paperwork and all the witnesses, called by the prosecutor as well as by our lawyers, always confirmed that we were entirely uninvolved in the facts. For this reason, the Milan courthouse verdict surprises us and we have trouble under-standing how two minority shareholders who never took part in the management of the company can be considered guilty of a crime that could have been poten-tially committed by the administrators.”

Marzotto took the time to also defend his sister Diamante. “It’s been proven, with documents and witnesses, how

uninvolved in the facts she was, as she has always taken care of her family for all her life, without taking any interest in the management of the companies,” he said.

Without naming Stefano Gabbana and Domenico Dolce, Marzotto hinted at their lengthy tax case and their final acquittal in 2014 after six years. “One is guilty only after a definitive sentence and this is only the first level, as happened in other well-known cases that the prosecutor himself recalled during the trial and for whom the Supreme Court finally ruled out any charge. We will read the motivations and we will defend ourselves by appealing. It is certain, however, that it becomes dif-ficult to combine being an entrepreneur and investments in this context.”

After selling his stake in the Vionnet brand and holding a position as president of Enit, Italy’s national agency for tour-ism, Marzotto is now president of Fiera di Vicenza, which organizes a range of trade shows, including jewelry fair VicenzaOro.

The allegations involve the Marzotto family’s association with the sale of Valen-tino Fashion Group to private equity fund Permira in May 2007 for more than 782 million euros, or $872.5 million at current exchange. According to the indictment, taxes on the profit derived from the trans-action were never paid in Italy. Core to the trial was International Capital Growth, a firm the tax police believe to be a fic-titious entity based in Luxembourg and managed in Milan, and allegedly created for the purpose of selling 29.9 percent of VFG. Caputi was the broker for ICG.

The defendants’ lawyers had asked the judge to acquit their clients, contending that there was no case to answer. Prose-cutor Gaetano Ruta, who was not in court on Wednesday, was seeking one year and four months in prison for the Marzottos and Caputi.

After two earlier delays in 2014, the trial got underway in November 2014.

In April 2013, Milan’s prosecutors’ office notified 13 individuals of the Mar-zotto Group, including members of the Marzotto family and administrators of the company, for alleged omission of earn-ings declaration and tax evasion of more than 71 million euros, or $79.2 million.

Among the individuals notified at the time, in addition to Matteo and Diamante Marzotto, were Vittorio, Margherita, Maria Rosaria and Cristiana Marzotto and Andrea, Isabella and Rosanna Donà Dalle Rose. All those charged have denied the accusations. The group in May that year — including Matteo Marzotto — paid a sum of around 56 million euros, or $72 million at current exchange, to the Agenzia delle Entrate, Italy’s internal revenue service.

According to the allegations, ICG allowed the accused to net a capital gain of 200 million euros, or $223.1 million, and elude the payment of more than 71 million euros in tax, the police claim.

Matteo Marzotto’s lawyers throughout the trial repeated the defendant’s unwill-ingness to sell the Valentino brand in an attempt to underscore how removed he was from any tax evasion plan. “Matteo Marzotto is totally absent from ICG, there are no signatures, no mails,” said Mereu earlier this month. “The only episode is a letter from Nov. 28, 2006, from the administrator of ICG chastising Matteo about speaking up against the sale, urging him to avoid expressing his thoughts and reminding him that only the administra-tors were allowed to speak for ICG,” the lawyer said.

Marzotto in his statement also underscored this issue. “In addition, it was proven during the trial with national and international press articles and numerous depositions — including that of the administrator of the Luxem-bourg company at the time — that I, as then-president of Valentino, was always against the sale of the fashion house and the ensuing development of the company unfortunately proved me right. Today I am sentenced for an operation, the sale of Valentino, to which I was opposed with all my strength, since my only intent in acquiring the shares of ICG was to consolidate control and to thus avoid the hostile takeovers that were emerging from different fronts. This is another circumstance that has been proven time and again, as it emerges from my statements at the time [before any fiscal trouble], and from the documents presented during the trial.”

BUSINESS

Matteo Marzotto Plans Appeal for Guilty Verdict

Matteo Marzotto

Out at HerreraAfter a 14-year run at Carolina Herrera New York, Hervé Pierre has exited the company as creative director. A Herrera spokeswoman confirmed his departure Wednesday, but declined to discuss the details.

Pierre could not be reached for comment. Online, he described his role at the company as “in charge of all the collection, special projects and celebri-ties at Carolina Herrera New York.”

He had worked side-by-side with Her-rera on her signature collection, as well as her bridal line, and was very much on the scene earlier this month. Raised in

the Loire Valley, he studied at the Écoles de la Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture in the late Eighties. By the age of 24, Pierre led haute couture at Pierre Balmain. He later relocated to New York and joined Herrera’s company in 1992. — ROSEMARY FEITELBERG Calvin’s New HiresCalvin Klein Collection is beefing up its executive ranks. The brand has tapped Simona Zerchi as senior vice president of global sales and Stephanie Reiner as senior vice president of merchandising. Both report to Michelle Kessler-Sanders, president of Calvin Klein Collection, a division of Calvin Klein Inc. — LISA LOCKWOOD

First Lady of N.Y.’s Fashion Moment“Everyone said I had to be here,” said

Chirlane McCray, the First Lady of New York, at the DKNY show. Dressed in a black-and-white jacket by Annie Kwon and black pants, McCray said this was her first and only fashion show this week.

Asked what she thinks of the move-ment to gear fashion shows to consum-ers and whether quick turnaround times will help the domestic manufacturing industry, she said, “Anything that helps manufacturing in New York City, I am all for. Fashion feeds New York City’s creative spirit and we have to do more.”

She said one of her goals is to get more young people working in the fashion industry “so they can have this creative avenue.”

McCray said she hasn’t met DKNY designers Dao-Yi Chow and Maxwell Osborne “but can’t wait to meet them.”

While the First Lady said she doesn’t have a lot of spare time on her hands, she enjoys shopping. “I do love to look

and browse,” she said.She said her son Dante is enjoying

his freshman year at Yale, studying global affairs and global history. As for her daughter, Chiara de Blasio, she said, “I think my daughter will be jealous to know I am here today.” — L.L.

Fashion Scoops

A look from Calvin Klein’s fall Eveningwear Capsule Collection.

Beth Ann Hardison and Jennifer Hudson at DKNY.

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● Next week’s three-day show will mix established and emerging brands.

BY KRISTI GARCED

Whether they’re first-timers or veter-ans, designers and brands among Coterie’s 1,400 exhibitors are primed to stand out from the crowd.

Each season, Danielle Licata, Coterie’s vice president and general manager, sets out to make the show — opening Monday for a three-day run at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center — a place of discovery.

“It’s about newness — mixing strong, existing brands with up-and-coming brands, whether they’re launching or just new to America,” Licata said of the show’s labels, “and enabling buyers to easily shop under one roof and differentiate their stores from competitors.”

Among the better-known brands show-ing at Coterie for first time are Belstaff, Hilfiger Collection, M Missoni and House of Holland.

The team behind Japanese label ICB, another first-time exhibitor at Coterie, is keen to promote its recent fall collection that bowed Feb. 9 on Instagram, marking the brand’s updated, relaxed aesthetic. ICB has increased staff on its Japan-based design and production teams, aiming to provide a more elevated product at similar prices.

“Our ICB customer in the past was more of a young, feminine and romantic city girl, but it’s time for her to grow up a little and become a chic, effortlessly cool woman,” said Maika Nakaoka, ICB’s U.S. brand manager. “She is still an urbanite, but she has graduated from nightclubs to dinner parties. Our new collection will show the maturity of our brand, while keeping its edge and wit.”

Denim label AG, which has participated in the Coterie show for more than 10 years, continues to return for the access to domestic and international retailers. Johnathan Crocker, the brand’s director of global communications, said retro trends show no sign of stopping: new fall styles include cropped denim flares and vintage, tapered high-waisted skinnies for “that Nineties supermodel fit.”

Two newer brands showing at Coterie are Cinq à Sept and Likely, both out of the New York-based Jaya Apparel Group.

Jane Siskin, chief executive officer of Jaya and the founder of Cinq à Sept — which launched for pre-fall 2016 in depart-ment stores including Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom — said she looks forward to introducing the label to the specialty-store community.

At the show, Cinq à Sept will introduce a capsule collection of six to eight styles that will be exclusive to boutiques.

“In order for the specialty stores to compete against the big boys, they need special product that won’t be promoted everywhere,” Siskin said. “We think spe-cialty stores are a big part of the future of retail. They’re the ones that really talk to the customers every day and spend time with them. You learn more about what’s

THE MARKETS

Fresh Approach Seen From Brands at Coterie

happening out there.”The brand ships to retailers on a

monthly basis. Its fall collection fuses themes of boudoir romance with a bit of Seventies-inspired rock ’n’ roll, and includes more knits and fur outerwear.

Likely, headed by the president of Jaya’s contemporary division, Crystal Slattery, is aimed at a slightly younger customer, with prices averaging $200 or less. The brand launched for this spring with colorful, form-fitting dresses, but plans to expand into separates — with an emphasis on tops

— for fall. Slattery said the season’s trends range from romantic Victorian to Sixties Mod with a mix of velvet and lace in a vibrant, rich color palette.

A new plus-size line from designer Roxanne Heptner, who has designed her Los Angeles-based label Wilt since 2009, will also make its debut at the show. Wilt Plus will soft launch for fall with a selection of Heptner’s signature T-shirts in a broader range of sizes.

“It frustrates me that women of all sizes do not have access to contemporary

clothes,” Heptner said. “I see it as an opportunity to lead the pack.”

She looks forward to receiving feedback on the collection’s fit, with a fuller range of plus styles slated to launch for spring 2017.

Another debut at Coterie is New York-based Becken, a women’s line founded by Angela Beck, entrepreneur and owner of the Kentucky-based home accessories com-pany Pomegranate Inc.

When Beck connected with Laura Siegel, a former sales and development executive who had stints at Elie Tahari, Halston and Vince, the two assembled a team to help conceive their advanced contemporary label, bowing this past fall. Becken comes to market with a sturdy infrastructure set in place, thanks to additional staffing and operations support from Beck’s Pomegran-ate Inc.

Siegel, Becken’s president, described its design philosophy as inviting, polished and unfussy.

“To be polished and unfussy is a very delicate place, and it’s where we think we’re striking a chord with people,” she said. “There are thoughtful details you might overlook at first pass. It’s for this grounded woman with nothing to prove, who puts on a beautiful item and it just fits the way it’s supposed to — in a tailored but relaxed way.”

The label skews classic rather than trendy, with luxe fabrics sourced from Italy and Japan, including cotton poplin, jacquard, brushed wool, cotton flannel, satin-back silk crepe and Japanese denim, as well as shearling outerwear. Beck and Siegel intend to launch accessories in upcoming seasons.

Licata said the TMRW section for emerg-ing, innovative designers, which has grown 30 percent this season, will be helmed by showroom Polly King & Co. for the second year. This season, the company plans to showcase ready-to-wear collections from Todd Snyder and Designers Remix and eyewear from Le Specs, House of Holland, Preen by Thornton Bregazzi and Karen Walker, who is also launching her line of handbags in the U.S.

At TMRW, Todd Snyder will be showing his women’s collaboration with Champion, launched last December for spring.

“He quite literally borrowed from the guys, striking the balance between sporty sex appeal and tomboyish ease,” said Kylie Conibear, Polly King & Co.’s New York-based showroom coordinator.

Silhouettes include soft sweatshirts, worn T-shirts and slouchy sweatpants, all tweaked for a woman’s body.

Ahead of the show, Licata said every exhibitor wants to talk location, location, location. “It’s most important to us,” she said. “You only have so many prime locations, and it’s important to us that everyone on the floor has a good show and that everyone wants to come back….And in order to get that strong show, you need to help [brands] with the matchmaking. We want to make sure that we’re changing the floor plan to make it more sensibly merchandised, so buyers can shop areas that are centered around what their stores are about.”

A look from the first collection of the

New York-based Becken, showing at Coterie.

“In order for the specialty stores to compete against the big boys, they need special product that won’t be promoted everywhere....We think specialty stores are a big part of the future of retail. They’re the ones that really talk to the customers.” JANE SISKIN, CINQ À SEPT

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The ReviewsMichael Kors Fashion, like life in general, abounds with half-truths. A perfect example occurred at the Michael Kors Collection show Monday morning, right there in the front row. Blake Lively wore a camel coat and dress. Classic camel, overcast morning, 10 a.m. — OK. But only half the story, at most, Blake glowed, a glorious vision in monochrome, from her modified Bardot bouffant right down to her ladified stilettoes. In between, her slipdress was aglow in Swarovski crystals, uplighting her movie-star face and ample décolletage.

Such is the way of Michael Kors (with clothes; he can claim no credit for Blake’s other assets). He elevates the real, the wearable, in some cases, the mundane, to a place so alluring, what fashion-aware woman wouldn’t want in? But then, Kors’ seasonal starting point is always “the women.”

“It’s always been about the muses,” he said during a preview. “In a strange way, they all kind of float through my head, they all kind of mash up together.” He ran off a litany of “theys”: Lee Radziwill, Penelope Tree, Diana Ross, Nan Kempner, Alexa Chung, Zendaya, Blake, women “unabash-edly in love with looking fabulous.”

And doing so in a real-world context, albeit a tony one. This show was all about function made special and chic — coats (and more coats), sweaters, pants and skirts, the regular trappings of getting dressed, only delightfully zhooshed up. How everyday? Kors opened with the core basics — peacoat, white blouse, pullover and jeans, but the jeans happened to be feathered from the knees down. Camel made it onto the runway in a shawl-col-lared coat — a floral intarsia mink, worn over a sweater and tattersall cropped pant. Other coats got abundant fur collars or were cut in glistening floral brocades. An otherwise austere officer’s coat was sashed in mink. Another simple pleasure, knitted cashmere, came in a charcoal sweater-and-skirt duet that got the reality diva treat-ment with feathers — including matching feathered opera gloves.

The appeal of this collection was in its relatable glamour. As for Kors’ Ready-to-Wear, Ready-to-Go pieces, available immediately at the Madison Avenue store and online: Look 52, featuring a lot of snappy studs.

Not everything was gussied up; some-times, a herringbone tweed suit and silk leopard-print shirtdress were just that, as Kors kept his shapes from classic to retro. If he erred with some dresses that rang a little too literally Sixties, they were few and far between.

A Sixties note that worked: versions of the song “Windy” on the soundtrack, including, for the finale, The Associa-tion’s 1967 original. The ditty finds Windy “tripping down the streets of the city…smiling at everybody she sees.” Of course she is. She’s a great-looking young woman dressed to the nines and loving it. So why not smile? — Bridget Foley

Michael Kors

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Oscar de la RentaFor Peter Copping’s purposes at Oscar de la Renta, 1973’s fashion Battle of Versailles — French vs. Americans — had it all in terms of relevant source material to apply to his fall collection. De la Renta was one of the young American designers who participated in the original event, famously upstaging the highfalutin French couture establishment with their fresh, fluid ready-to-wear. “Oscar was much more minimal at that time than what he became,” Copping said before the show. “I love the idea of that modern invasion in France and it taking place at Versailles.”

The parallel between that bullet point in de la Renta’s history and Copping’s task at hand was obvious: an outsider refreshing something beloved, revered and not bro-ken, but perhaps a bit old guard. Interest-ingly, Copping homed in on Oscar’s favor-ite silhouettes — bell-shaped fit-and-flares with boned waists, neat lady jackets and skirts and strapless bodice cocktail dresses and gowns — which brought the collection obviously closer to de la Renta’s signature vision than it has been. Clearly the loyal customer still wants what she knows. And yet Copping successfully simplified and modernized the look in a way that felt like a natural, painless progress.

Central to the result was the simple act of pairing skirts and dresses with clean, seamless stretch knits, some in ribbed viscose, some in toile de Jouy lace. These tempered the grander shapes, fabrics and color scheme, which were largely inspired by 18th-century interiors. Copping worked in rich combinations of oyster gray, Bordeaux and French blue. Fancy fabrics, such as damask silk jacquard, silk faille and toile, were updated in lighter constructions and metallic treatments. A navy ribbed knit top with a French blue mink collar atop a wine techno canvas pleated bell skirt was a great example of dynamic color and fabric play presented in a classically polished ensemble. Corsets, too, came in stretch viscose knit, achieving a traditional, bosomy cinched effect minus the 18th-century pain.

As the collection progressed to the eveningwear portion, Copping introduced more elaborate metallic modernism. While conceptualizing the lineup, another famous study in contrasts staged at Ver-sailles came to mind: the 2008 Jeff Koons exhibition that filled the gilded halls with giant balloon animals. “I was thinking about a Koons bunny rabbit in a baroque interior,” Copping said of a strapless cocktail dress with a shimmery light green organza skirt and mirrored sequin bodice. It was striking, but less shocking than a Koons rabbit. — Jessica Iredale

Delpozo

DelpozoDelpozo’s runway shows — magical, emotional, transportive — are a hot ticket on the New York Fashion Week circuit. Fall was no exception. A confluence of themes informed Josep Font’s latest collection, a dreamy lineup that fused futurism with artful romance. The former aesthetic, delivered mostly through voluminous, couturelike silhouettes, was derived from “Metropolis,” the 1927 silent film by the Austrian-German expressionist Fritz Lang, whose sci-fi drama tells of a dark, futuris-tic, urban dystopia. Yet a soft ethereality ran simultaneously throughout, as Font referenced the illustrations of Italian digital artist Daria Petrilli, whose surrealist works depict seductive Victorian-era women in nature.

Nodding to the industrial and Art Deco-style sets in “Metropolis” — Font’s first career, after all, was as an architect — the lineup’s sculptural, geometric silhouettes floated away from the body with exagger-ated volume, conveying power and drama. Shoulders were a focal point, either left bare — as in the cutouts on a prim, vio-let-collared minidress — or covered up with rounded wool coats and capes cut with generous cropped sleeves.

Font’s palette played metallics and vibrant primary colors against muted pastels and neutrals in contrasting fabrics: structured satins, jacquards and wools versus feather-light silks and chiffons. The magic was in the embellishment: Sculpted bows elevated a simple cotton shirt, while floral-embroidered paillettes made every look bloom — as did leather evening gloves

covered in 3-D appliqués. An oversize cape with a gigantic shoulder bow, done in pale pink and black spotted silk jacquard and velvet, fused Font’s opposing themes in one big, beguiling statement. And all of it exemplified the house’s impeccable craftsmanship.

The standout evening look — a red chiffon skirt layered over a crackle-metallic trouser with a sheer-embroidered sleeve-less blouse — felt effortlessly modern and suited to a daring, thoughtful red carpet starlet. At its core, Font’s collection had some easily translatable daywear — tailored suiting, inventive knits, derby platforms and chic mini handbags — though one must wonder if the rest of the lineup will have the same commercial appeal. Gorgeous as they are, these are fairytale clothes for fairytale lives. — Kristi Garced

CollectionsFall

2016

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CollectionsFall

2016

Narciso RodriguezRemember power dressing — all sharp tailoring and pulsing with confidence? For fall Narciso Rodriguez offered a chic update, loosening the structure while retaining the authoritative air. It was, he said backstage, “a very New York City kind of collection — very urban.”

If by urban he meant clothes both practi-cal and smart — check and check. And beau-tiful, too, as he focused less on the exacting tailoring he loves and more on eased-up silhouettes. There was a casual swagger to the clothes, and a vague nod to Eighties’ scale in the outerwear. Rodriguez opened with a white crinkled wool coat with a huge, off-kilter collar, which set the tone for three of the collection’s key elements: texture, volume, asymmetry. In addition to the plissé, he worked with a precision grid in laminated matelassé for a dress and coat, and a reverse-wool jacquard that created a large tone-on-tone block pattern for a big, unstructured coat and a more fitted jacket.

Rodriguez has long believed in the allure of a good dress. His looked easy but inter-esting as he made liberal use of bias cuts and asymmetry, constructing unfussy tiers via angular seaming, and turning necklines and hems slightly askew. He went for subtle

contrast with layered tank dresses, and a black underpinning just peeking out from white wool crepe, and black from brown suede. The overall effect was of polished, street-smart currency. — Bridget Foley

DKNYDao-Yi Chow and Maxwell ’s DKNY show notes didn’t mince words about their fall objectives: “We just want to have fun.” Isn’t that the dream?

It went on: “Celebrate the obvious, but turn things on their heads and flip things inside-out.” Aha. The obvious. For Chow and  and the brand they’ve been tasked to revive, that’s the Nineties and streetwear — two genres that feel more popular now than they were originally 25 years ago. 

It’s not easy to clarify a vision in a crowded field. The collection certainly exuded a sense of play with many strong and well-ex-ecuted, if not totally original, ideas. Chow and are still finding their way. They seemed to have approached fall as a game of free association with all things Nine-ties and DKNY — wide-shoulder pinstripe tailoring, cropped tops, minimalism, Helmut Lang, Japanese deconstruction — threw them in a blender and sent them to the Public School of layering. 

The tomboy sexuality of Nineties girl bands was a focus. One could see the TLC “Creep” era attitude in the wash-board-ab-baring proportions of a cropped pin-striped tailored jacket and white shirt and ultrawide, baggy pin-striped pants with suspenders. There was decon-structed shirtdressing and slinky, satin apron dressing. They did some cool things with jumpsuits, including a sporty, blank tank style with a cable-knit top and bunchy sweatpant bottoms. Some of the denim was printed phonetic plays on the DKNY logo — DICNY and DICKNEE — and for the finale, the models all donned sweatshirts bearing funny new meanings for DKNY, such as “Dazed Kids New York,” and the possibly self-effacing “Designers Know Nothing Yet.” They’re getting there. — Jessica Iredale

BossBoss is not a brand associated with femininity. Its business is still dominated by men’s, and the overarching brand identity is that of rigorous, masculine Teutonic tailoring. In his time as artistic director, Jason Wu — whose own collection is defined by an innate sense of the ladylike — has bolstered Boss women’s, driving the category into double-digit gains last quarter. He’s steadily tapped into the softer side of the label’s aesthetic while upholding its tradition of no-nonsense tailoring, but the fall collec-tion felt like a major stride in womanly confidence.

Wu focused on the female form, working in curves for the first time. “It’s still linear,” he said backstage before the show. “But the lines are curvy.” The main silhouette was a modernist hourglass worked on dresses, tops and coats with lightly fitted tops that hugged the waist and released into soft folds. Skirts were midi-length A-lines cut with great movement. There were a few modified slip- and apron-dresses with low, scoop backs but the dominant shape was minimal, sleeveless with a high neck.It was some of Wu’s best work, in which he demonstrated a capacity for a controlled, sophisticated femininity that was totally new for him, by his own collection’s standards and Boss’.

Abiding by Boss’ principles of structure, precision and geometry, Wu softened and sensualized, tracing the body with curvi-linear seam work that came in a textural, colorful needle-punch technique. Some of the pieces were crafted from multiple fabrics

Narciso Rodriguez

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i — mesh, satin, felt and bouclé — assembled in neat but pretty panels. A dress with a geometric, asymmetric neckline featured fil coupé velvet flowers, bouclé and satin.

There were gorgeous, double-face cash-mere coats, one a light, clean tailored style over a black dress with orange-and-white needle-punched seams; another a compi-lation of black, oatmeal and floral panels. The palette included plenty of neutrals, but also bright Eames-inspired colors worked in powerful combinations — fuchsia against burgundy and deep teal against loden green. Dresses and coats were a focus, but the col-lection also included some fantastic classic tailoring in jackets that opened in smooth folds over cool baggy trousers, a great office look for the neo power woman. — Jessica Iredale

Naeem KhanThe opening look, a velvet-appliquéd slen-der gown and long, swingy vest, instantly telegraphed Naeem Khan’s charming new direction. The key was the color mixes — lots of them — used to create a crocheted or knitted effect that went beyond the more predictable beaded looks so pop-ular with his Middle Eastern customers. Those classics were there, too, but were eclipsed by fall’s more elaborate and considered motifs.

It wasn’t just the abundant palette that made Khan’s offering so strong. A black-and-white ankle-length illusion dress and all sorts of gold, silver and mixed metallics were executed in arresting embroidered patterns — a black tulle skirt and strapless gold top, a tailored jacket and trousers with gold-bullion-thread embroidery, and a hand-cut metallic leather cocktail dress — all mir-rored Khan’s ease with a sportier approach to his signature shimmer. — Bobbi Queen

Brandon MaxwellBrandon Maxwell is redefining what it means to be an eveningwear designer, a dis-tinction that gets less credit than it deserves, for a new generation. His second collection of mostly black with a few white looks included separates — a taut, cropped velvet jacket and cuffed skinny pants, for example — but it was most definitely evening driven, a fresh, swanky take on it, too.

He presented an idea of glamour from the eyes of someone who spent his childhood steeped in small-town, department-store glamour (Maxwell’s grandmother ran a store in his hometown of Longview, Tex.), and grew up to be the personal stylist to the most progressive red carpet act in Holly-wood: Lady Gaga. The lineup was a clever blend of avant-arch modernism and classic debutante pageantry. Each model made a grand entrance down the mini flight of stairs into the dining room of the Monkey Bar, pausing to sashay before the intimate audience, including Gaga, who, along with

Maxwell, came straight from the Grammys in Los Angeles the night before. An old-school MC would not have been out of place: “Introducing Miss Imaan Hammam,” who closed the show in a fabulous ivory off-shoul-der “gown jumpsuit” with fluid wide legs and a sweeping train that fell from the shoulder blades.

Silhouettes were sharp, with an empha-sis on sculptural wave and curve details, such as the stand-up collar of a jacket and the structured, petal-shaped bodice of a top. There was a winking level of kitsch to the collection. A caped, off-the-shoulder, A-line swing mini seemed to mock Seventies flamboyance as it made the look chic. In a way, it felt like Barbie’s fantasy wardrobe post-Dream House, after a few years spent earning her razzle-dazzle in the dark real world. — J

Reem AcraReem Acra’s show notes — The Secret World of the Femme Fatale — more than hinted at what was to come on the runway: Tons of lacy, boudoir-inspired dresses done in endless inventive cuts strategically crafted to suggest nudity. It was Acra at her best.

A stunning embroidered lace and leather fit-and-flare led the way, its matching underpinnings visible, whereas on other versions, cascading ruffles of chiffon or satin provided just enough cover. There were also strong Art Deco influences in embroidered illusion column gowns, most memorably

Cynthia Rowley

Brandon Maxwell

Reem Acra

those with layers of fringe — perhaps the designer’s proposition for the red carpet. But by the end of the show, Acra’s bad girl seemed to have regained her old persona, as the collection finished with a series of traditional glitter-embroidered and chiffon gowns in pretty pastels. — Mayte Allende

Cynthia Rowley Cynthia Rowley presented a small collection of only 24 looks for fall, unveiled via one-on-one appointments in her show-room in the heart of the West Village.

“I’m seeing what’s happening with brands trying to get closer to customers, and I’m totally on board,” she said. “It’s still a tran-sitioning moment, so instead of presenting a big collection I opted for a mini lineup hit-ting stores in July, which will be constantly expanded with new products.”

Rich brocade fabrics were at the core of the offering. Rowley used them not only for very feminine dresses, but also for more masculine pieces, including a military parka. Suede was bonded with jersey for com-fortable pants and ruffled tops worked in a sweet baby blue, while velvet minidresses with a Seventies vibe featured embroidered flowers.

Rowley, who is about to introduce a fragrance produced by Inter Parfums, also channeled a sporty inspiration with a cool satin padded reversible bomber jacket, as well as sweatpants and hoodies crafted from velvet and trimmed with gold-and-black-striped elastic bands. — Alessandra Turra

Naeem Khan

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2016

Angel Sanchez“I’m obsessed with the mystery of the night,” Angel Sanchez said backstage in his showroom as he oversaw his intimate runway presentation for fall. “Dressing for the night is when I feel most like myself.”Inspired by Spanish director Luis Buñuel, most notably his film “That Obscure Object of Desire,” Sanchez translated his fascination into a collection with a seductive flair. His cocktail dresses and evening gowns were sexy and dramatic, showing hints of skin via trans-parent seams, illusion necklines and lots of lace.

The lineup was consistent, featuring a range of textured black looks, with a hint of opulent gold and majestic purple. The neck, in particular, was important to Sanchez — many of his dresses had dramatically high necklines — and he favored ruffled tulle tied with sweet velvet bows. — Antonia Sardone

Chiara BoniChiara Boni continues to expand the range of her brand, La Petite Robe. Along-side dresses and separates crafted in the label’s signature stretch-jersey fabric — also done this season in a textured ribbed version — the designer introduced eco-leather. This enhanced the sensual appeal of fitted dresses with cutouts, mostly in a deep color palette of black, burgundy and red.

A coat with a voluminous hood, as well as a peplum jacket with a matching pencil skirt, were worked in soft blue wool embellished with micro sequins. The shimmering effect complemented the astronomical theme channeled by a group of dresses done in a cosmic print, as well as in lace inserts embroidered with stars that gave a visual twist to a chic dress.

Boni developed a rich, commercially savvy lineup targeting a wide audience of women who want to look very feminine and yet feel comfortable at the same time. — Alessandra Turra

Ohne TitelAlexa Adams and Flora Gill pretty much summed up their Ohne Titel collection in their show notes: Victorian shapes, layered patterns and new weaving techniques. The first was best expressed by ruffled knit tops and matching skirts, while the pattern mixes came in micro-optic prints and sheer graphic panels. The new technique: 3-D-printed micro-cage tops — a first for the designers.

“We are very excited to be working with Shapeways and Microsoft in this; it’s a new material and technique they’ve never used before,” Adams explained. The finale look was constructed this way as well — a white cage-dress version with leather straps. Just when one thought the designers could not push their graphic knit concept further, they managed to do so. — Mayte Allende

Nicopanda Streetwear is experiencing an all-time high in fashion and the sweatshirt is its great signifier. Hoodies have come down run-ways from Baja East to Michael Kors this season. Street cred is another story, and within the increasingly crowded street cat-egory, Nicola Formichetti has it. The punk-goth unisex attitude of his Nicopanda line isn’t

drawn from completely original ideas — Formichetti’s main inspi-ration is Japanese street culture — but his raw, messy way with it makes it believable, or “authen-tic” in the overused parlance of branding speak. That’s a compliment.

For fall, Formichetti invoked Japanese street again.

“I love that they go to vintage stores and mix eras,” he said during his presentation. “They don’t really care. They buy different things and mix them

with something contemporary.” He chose the Forties as his retro moment and — you guessed it — sweats for a modern clash. A male model with skunky pink hair wore a black T-shirt with a delicate white Forties-style dress tacked on the front. A girl with magenta hair wore a tomato-red hoodie with slashed elbows over a long black mourning frock in tiered ruffles, a long floppy bow tied at the neck. The col-lection consisted of more than just sweat-shirts, but it was a key motif, worked in creative yet wearable ways worth describ-ing. Two more: a Forties dress cut out of blue sweatshirt material flocked with black hearts, and a sleeveless, deconstructed zip-up hoodie dress in a patchwork of floral prints.

“The world is going crazy and we just need to be glowing,” Formichetti said. “I’m feeling very optimistic and colorful. “So optimistic that this season he launched Nicopanda World, a “panda-centric” acces-sories collection including bags, wallets and jewelry made from highly tactile faux fur and faux animal skins meant to encour-age touching. It’s a feel-good enterprise. — Jessica Iredale

RR331Just over a year since he walked away from his namesake company, Ralph Rucci came back with an exquisite — perhaps his best — 17-piece collection for his new RR331 label. The evening looks were exhibited on mannequins in a large West Side gallery packed with retailers, press and fans, who seemed happy to be able to get really close to the clothes. Two standouts: the black double-faced cashmere jackets with silk inserts to add a touch of shine where shadows would naturally fall, and the Noh costume-inspired, wide black velvet pants and slender tunic, intertwined with silk organza and lined in silk taffeta — all given body by horsehair. An infanta velvet gown with tulle details was another beauty.

The collection defied simple descrip-tion, filled with clothes that were cerebral in their construction and conceit, creative and subtle in their effect. This was for all intents and purposes couture, although Rucci, paradoxically, described it as “tem-plates for how the pieces can evolve into made-to-order for clients or ready-to-wear for retailers.” The designer’s obsession with construction techniques could easy have driven his furrier — with whom he intricately worked panels of the most luxu-rious light Barguzin sable — mad. But both Rucci and Nick Pologeorgis loved every minute of it. — Bobbi Queen

Angel Sanchez

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“What is this jank party?”It was a surprisingly on-the-

nose assessment given by one partygoer upon arriving to the Mulleavys’ postshow fete on Tuesday night. That is if “jank” means wonderfully low-key.

The Rodarte after party has always been a decidedly inti-mate, grown-up affair — just for friends and family and a small group of press, a group that appreciates its quiet after a five-plus night stretch of booze-soaked ragers.

The flannel-clad Laura and Kate Mulleavy took over Berlin, a dark basement bar in the East Village, for the party, hosting a slew of L.A. friends and notables including Alexander Skarsgard, Kirsten Dunst, Tessa Thompson, Julia Restoin Roitfeld, Rose McGowan, Eddie Borgo and Tavi Gevinson.

Gevinson beelined for the bar shortly after her arrival, attempt-ing to procure a much-needed drink — she’s in the throws of Broadway rehearsals. “I’m having such a great time,” she said of preparing for “The Crucible,” opening next month.”It’s going to look really special. I’m so lucky.”

Just after midnight, a pair of birthday cakes were carted out — it wouldn’t be a Rodarte after party without cake — one for the DJ, Zach Cowie, and one for Kate. Half an hour or so later, Dunst’s “Melancholia” costar Skarsgard wandered in, girlfriend Alexa Chung nowhere in sight. Perhaps word of the birthday cake had

traveled fast?A few blocks west, Miu Miu was

playing host to a curated group of PYTs in honor of its Women’s Tales film series. This go-around, the brand took over EN Japanese Brasserie in the West Village, a spacious restaurant that was packed to the gills with Miuccia Prada-appointed “It” girls such as Emily Ratajkowski, Julia Garner, India Salvor Menuez and Zosia Mamet.

The venue was selected in honor of Japanese film director Naomi Kawase, a regular fixture at the Cannes Film Festival and the director of “Seed,” the most recent installment in Miu Miu’s series.

After screening the 10-minute film — like all of the shorts in the series, it centered around cinematography and clothing rather than plot — Hanneli Mustaparta, Leigh Lezark and Mia Moretti sipped sake cocktails and snapped selfies. Despite being newly on the scene, Mackenzie Davis seemed to already be catching a case of the all-too-pervasive fashion week ennui. “I don’t know, I don’t think I’m made for fashion week,” she said. “I really like Miu Miu, and I like being able to participate in whatever they do, but beyond that I don’t know if fashion is a world that I thrive in. I find it really exhausting.”

Luckily for Davis (and for all of us), it is almost over.

— LEIGH NORDSTROM AND ALLY BETKER

Perfect PairsRodarte and Miu Miu threw understated fashion week parties.

Emily Ratajkowski at the Miu Miu party.

Mackenzie Davis at Miu Miu.

Hanneli Mustaparta and Leigh Lezark at Miu Miu.

Alexander Skarsgård at Rodarte.

Hannah Bronfman at Miu Miu.

Laura Mulleavy and Kirsten Dunst at Rodarte’s after party.

Kirsten Dunst and Kate Mulleavy at Rodarte.

Laura Love and Harley Viera-Newton

at Miu Miu.

Tessa Thompson at Rodarte.

Julia Restoin Roitfeld at Rodarte.

Lily Kwong at Miu Miu.

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