NEW YORK — It’s Bad Boy meets Pretty Boy.
Sean “P. Diddy” Combs and Zac Posen confirmed Tuesday that they had entered into a joint venture, with Combs’ Sean John Clothing making an undisclosed investment in Posen’s three-year-old business, Outspoke LLC. Outspoke and Sean John are equal partners in the venture, which Posen said will enable him to build infrastructure and expand his collection while remaining creatively autonomous.
While at first glance the pairing might seem an odd one, there are similarities between the two men in terms of ambition, vision and even showmanship. It was clear they had bonded as early as last June, when Combs championed the younger designer at a Midtown nightclub following the Council of Fashion Designers of America Fashion Awards, yelling over the house sound system, “You ain’t got s— if you ain’t got Zac Posen in your closet.” They were perhaps reveling in something else they have in common — both have been nominated for awards, but neither has won one.
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Combs’ investment in Posen, however, demonstrates the serious business plans of both designers and is seen by many as a validation of Posen’s long-term prospects.
“I see Zac as someone who shares the same drive and vision that I have,” Combs said in a written response to questions. “I also saw an opportunity for Sean John to make an impact with Zac Posen by giving him the tools and resources that he needed for his business to grow and mature. He has been able to establish a real profile as an American contemporary and evening designer. He dresses amazing women, the stores love him and clearly he is a force to be contended with in the designer ready-to-wear scene.”
Posen has staged only six runway shows, each increasingly sophisticated, the most recent being his fall collection called Blixen. In that show — which took its inspiration from a triple entendre of the writer Karen Blixen, the German word for lightning and the reindeer — Posen subtly expanded his oeuvre from flowy eveningwear to include sportswear, with knee-length pants, painted skirts and deerskin vests.
Susan Posen, the designer’s mother, has been a driving force in the collection’s growth at retail as chief executive officer of Outspoke. She would not disclose the company’s current volume, but sources said it was around $3 million last year.
“The challenge of a young company is in growing properly,” said Susan Posen, who will be vice chair and acting ceo of the joint venture. “In the past three years, we’ve been very strategic in putting in place a firm footing. We have a strong foundation and now we’re trying to figure out how to build the rest of it.”
The Posens said they are looking at the investment as an opportunity to build on the firm’s initial growth by developing an accessories business and exploring licensing opportunities.
“This came together organically through our working together,” Zac Posen said, noting that Combs, who is also ceo of the music production company Bad Boy Entertainment, has collaborated on the soundtrack for his past two shows. “He really understands the clothes I was making and my vision for how I want to grow. It’s a wonderful thing when a successful businessman, musician and entrepreneur can help another designer.”
The impact of Combs’ Sean John collection on the fashion industry since it was introduced in 1998 has helped the urban streetwear market become a mainstream business and pave the way for a slew of pop stars and actors to establish their own fashion licensing brands. Despite bad publicity resulting from his brushes with the law and a bruised relationship with Jennifer Lopez, Combs has largely won over the respect of the industry with his gentlemanly courtship of everyone from Oscar de la Renta to Anna Wintour.
His company said Tuesday that the Sean John business now has retail sales of $450 million in the U.S., a figure that is likely to expand with the opening of a Fifth Avenue flagship around June, followed by plans for 200 more in the coming years. Sean John also secured $100 million in backing from The Yucaipa Cos. last year.
Bloomingdale’s has been a major promoter of both designers, championed by Kal Ruttenstein, senior vice president of fashion direction at the store, who said on Tuesday: “I think it will be an excellent marriage. Puffy’s interest in fashion and powerful company will be a great guiding light for Zac. I think it’s just great for both of them.”
Robert Burke, vice president and senior fashion director at Bergdorf’s, which picked up Posen’s collection for spring, added that, like many young designers, Posen had reached a point where it becomes difficult to continue to grow independently.
“I can understand Zac’s willingness to look at an investor and I think Puffy sees the full picture,” Burke said. “He knows talent in music and in fashion. He is a very smart business person and I think he sees something very interesting there. Here, we are very supportive of Zac and we want to see his business grow. Zac is very clear about his vision for growth, so this is a pairing that I think can work well.”
Posen is thinking big for his business, with ambitions to build a luxury lifestyle brand. Of the new generation of designers who have debuted in this decade, he has proven to be among the most adept at navigating the retail and editorial landscape, even embracing the trunk show circuit and taking the line to Paris to sell to European retailers in February. He is planning to host a fall showing in Dallas at Neiman Marcus, followed by an appearance at a benefit the store is hosting for the Dallas Children’s Theater with a theme of “Girls Gone Wild.”
“We’ve accomplished more than most people would dream of,” Susan Posen said. “And we managed to do it with very little money. Really, what it takes is creativity, not dollars.”
— With contributions from Julee Greenberg