FASHION’S SECOND CIRCUIT
PLAGUED BY FASHION ENNUI AND TRYING TO FIND SOMETHING UNIQUE TO CAPTURE CONSUMERS’ ATTENTION, BUYERS ARE COMBING ALL CORNERS OF THE EARTH FOR NEW, INTERESTING RESOURCES. HERE ARE REPORTS FROM RECENT FASHION WEEKS IN BRAZIL AND AUSTRALIA.
Byline: Patty Huntington
Sydney’s Swimfest
SYDNEY — If one thing emerged from the recent fashion week here, it’s that Sydney designers are past masters at the art of swimwear. And for that alone, say buyers, it’s worth putting up with the long flights, leg cramps and days away from the office.
“From a swimwear point of view, it’s the number one destination now for us,” said Harvey Sutton, fashion coordinator for London’s Selfridges, and one of 150 international delegates from 16 countries who attended the most recent Mercedes Australian Fashion Week.
“We’re shocked with the number of brands we’ve picked up — nearly 20,” said Sutton, who was shopping for Selfridges’s expanded swimwear and intimate apparel department. Australian brands will make up 80 percent of the department and could generate $2.8 million at retail over the next year. (Local currency is converted to U.S. dollars at current exchange rates).
Swim has been percolating here for some time. The fashion-forward Zimmermann and C Design lines have done well in the U.S., while European exports for the more mainstream Seafolly brand have jumped 50 percent in the past six months. Selfridges added swim and resortwear from Tigerlily, Jaclin Chouchana, Rebecca Davies, Wayne Cooper, Billion Dollar Babes and Kitten.
Sutton also was interested in Jets, a label that emerged as one of the biggest hits of the week. Previously owned by Seafolly, Jets has been remade for spring by its new owner, swim designer Jessika Allen.
“It’s beautifully made, it’s real and it’s functional,” said Caroline Withey, House of Fraser’s designer buyer and trend coordinator for women’s wear.
“The quality was amazing, the fit is terrific,” said Ann Watson, vice president of fashion merchandising at Saks Fifth Avenue. “They truly understand their customer.”
The hits in swimwear underscored the increasingly important place Sydney designers hold in buyers’ appointment books. It’s not quite Milan, but the city has become more and more important as stores jockey for distinctive lines.
“What’s great is if designers that surface from the secondary selections come to a primary market and have a second showing,” said Watson. “I think that gives them a running start on everyone else.”
“I think the secondary cities are very good for the industry,” added Colette buyer Sarah Lerfel, back at the fashion week after a two-year break. The Parisian specialty retailer added lines including Tsubi and Ian Nessick’s YPV. “The fashion circuit is established, but it’s necessary to open it up so that more creators have their chance. We try to be as open as possible and travel quite a lot, but we thought that in five days, maybe we would find some new lines for the shop. In the end, that’s what counts.”
“It was actually really good for us to go out there and check out the scene on the other side of the globe,” said Terri Gustafson, associate buyer of ready-to-wear for Henri Bendel, which has sent reps to Sydney for the past four years. As well as stocking up on Allannah Hill, Gustafson said she liked Tigerlily, Bonds and the girls’ streetwear label Kitten.
“We need to travel to find new and exciting concepts,” said Selfridges’ Sutton, here for the second consecutive year, who said he’s also considering Auckland. “If we’re going to find new people we have to go off the schedule. Sydney, for us, gives us our point of difference.”
“It wasn’t about ‘Mercs and perks,”‘ she added, referring to a controversy about buyers being offered incentive packages to make the trip. “It was about business. It was 10 days out of my diary in London and out of my life, and it was an economy fare and it was hell. But we’ve found some good things this time and certainly for swimwear, I think it would be worth the trip.”
Denim is proving to be another Australian forte. The cult line Bettina Liano is gaining momentum, and buyers also liked Third Millennium, the new Babydoll denim line and the striped shirts and tartan micro kilts from Marcs. Surf-inspired Tsubi and Sass & Bide from Heidi Middleton and Sarah-Jane Clarke also generated a lot of buzz.
But beyond bikinis and bootlegs, the question is whether this city can cut it on the worldwide circuit or will it remain a solid resource more or less for the local crowd. Many middle-market labels seemed focused on interpreting global trends for their domestic retail businesses, and high-end designer fashion with an international point-of-difference is in short supply. This situation is exacerbated by the fact that marquee Australian and New Zealand names who now show in cities such as New York, Paris or London are finding it increasingly hard to squeeze Sydney into their own itineraries. Dinnigan, Karen Walker, Zambesi and Scanlan & Theodore, who all show elsewhere, opted out of this year’s runway lineup here.
Among lines garnering attention from buyers was Easton Pearson, who whipped up a resort range that was one of the week’s strongest showings, retailers said. It also found a fan in designer Anna Sui, who attended several shows while she was in town to promote her beauty line.
“I saw it at [Melbourne boutique] Flinders Way and I kept looking at it thinking, ‘This is too good, it’s too good,”‘ said Sui. “I ended up buying some pieces and have ordered new summer stuff from the showroom.”
Frankieanna Woo, Seibu Hong Kong’s senior buyer for the women’s division, liked the Paablo Nevada line. Woo said she’s ordering about $150,000 worth of Australian fashion — double what Seibu spent last year, and half of Woo’s fall budget in Paris. Woo said half of Seibu’s Australian order will be from Allannah Hill who is finding a growing global audience for her perennially feminine dresses and separates.
“I loved all the florals, pretty little shift dresses, sequined things,” said Breda Byrne, from London’s Fenwick’s, another MAFW first-timer, who said she will also buy Wayne Cooper, Aurelio Costarella, Blanchet and Bettina Liano. “There was an awful lot out in Australia for us. Autumn will finish delivering by October, spring doesn’t get started until January, and we have a gap. It’s perfect.”
“There’s something up-and-coming going on here,” said Sui. “In big cities like New York or London or Paris, it’s so expensive, people who have great ideas and not a lot of money really have to struggle. Where here, they’re able to make some sort of a splash and hopefully get pushed into the international circle.”