DONNA KARAN: IN A NUDE MOOD
Byline: L.L.
NEW YORK — Donna Karan has taken a cue from the cosmetics crowd in marketing her new hosiery collection called The Nudes.
The new collection matches hosiery to skin tones, and all the collateral packaging, advertising, in-store interactive fixtures and direct mailers talk about flawless finishes, foundations and color tones.
Karan, who pioneered the bodysuit, black opaque hosiery and body and tummy toners, is now evangelical about nude hosiery.
“I am obsessed,” said Donna Karan. “My whole existence is about the leg. I design purely from the leg. Unless the shoe and the stocking are dealt with, I don’t care what you put on.”
The hosiery, manufactured and marketed by Hanes Hosiery, Karan’s licensee, is projected to hit $1.2 million its first year with five key retailers: Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdale’s, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and Marshall Field’s-Dayton Hudson. To advertise The Nudes, which will hit stores at the end of April, Herb Ritts photographed Nadja Auermann, Lorraine Pascal and Nadege — each representing different skin tones — wearing the nude hosiery only. A six-page insert will appear in the May issues of W and Vogue. Ads will later appear in Elle, Allure and Harper’s Bazaar. Hanes will spend just over $1 million this spring on The Nudes campaign. In addition, Karan will send out 250,000 mailers.