Today’s news that Tamsin Cooper and the Royal New Zealand Ballet have entered into a collaboration for a fashion accessories’ line has been one of those items we’ve known about for a while, but had to respect an embargo. Now revealed, it’s one of those unexpected tie-ups, but one which makes sense. Both organizations get to extend their brands, and try their hands in a new market. And being someone who knows full well how tricky co-branding efforts can be, this one certainly has more up sides and than down ones.
The folks at Lancôme have released their latest Magnifique commercial with actress Anne Hathaway. Previews have floated around for a few months—here is the final 30-second spot. Strangely, there has been less attention for Hathaway’s second spot compared with her first.
Top: H&M’s Margareta van den Bosch and Jimmy Choo’s Tamara Mellon. Centre: Van den Bosch and Mellon with a model wearing items from the Jimmy Choo for H&M range. Above: Shoes from the range.
After collaborating with Stella McCartney, Karl Lagerfeld, Viktor & Rolf, Roberto Cavalli, Comme des Garçons and Matthew Williamson, Hennes & Mauritz has announced that Jimmy Choo will be next to design a guest collection for the mass-market retailer.
H&M says its Jimmy Choo range will be launched in 200 stores on November 14.
Jimmy Choo founder and CEO, Tamara Mellon, says there will be designs for women and men in the collection.
Margareta van den Bosch, H&M’s creative director, says in a statement, ‘We adore Jimmy Choo’s shoes and bags. They are glamorous and sexy, and they add instant style to the simplest of outfits. I like the way we have worked with clothes to accessorize the shoes and bags rather than the other way around. This collaboration is particularly exciting because it’s our first shoe designer collection. It’s a joy to be able to offer top-end designer shoes and bags of excellent quality to our customers.’
[Cross-posted] I never expected this a few years ago, but a few weeks ago, it was becoming more likely: Koenigsegg will buy Saab, says The New York Times. GM and Koenigsegg say there is now a memorandum of understanding, contingent on loans from the European Investment Bank, guaranteed by the Swedish government.
I am confident. Christian von Koenigsegg strikes me, in the conversation I had with him some years ago, as someone who is not afraid to answer questions directly. He is accessible, and he loves cars.
People also had doubts about how Jaguar and Land Rover would fit with Tata, which made subcompact cars and heavy trucks in India. Yet, Tata has shown a readiness to push forward new models that Ford never had the guts to do. We need to look at the management style and the national culture.
I think we might see information on a bunch of products inside Saab that the company was never permitted to do under GM ownership, either because they were too risky or that the funds were going to other brands. Saab fell into a GM-division funk like Saturn did. But new ideas have been bubbling under there, and while $600 million is nowhere near what it will cost to get some of them out—given that the funds have to cover everything from salaries to plant upgrades—the Swedish people are not short on ingenuity. Sweden has shown us that a little country can have leadership or near-leadership positions in so many things, from cellphones to defence technology to music. Once upon a time, the Swedish state even owned Absolut Vodka.
I know the economies of scale are not looking that good for Saab: it sold fewer cars in more territories last year than MG Rover in its final year (2004–5) before that fell into administration. However, could make the same argument about economies with many Swedish products before they took the rest of the world by storm.
And Christian has been thinking of a lot more than supercars. What the world seems to have ignored is that he showed a solar electric sports’ saloon at Genève this year, designed by our mutual friend Joachim Nordwall.
Could it be released with the Koenigsegg brand? Probably not. As a Saab? Most definitely: it is a natural fit for the brand.
GM, Honda and Toyota may have dabbled in solar energy but Koenigsegg may well outflank them all.
Most of us will agree that the GM ownership of Saab has not been that successful and the division has been starved of new product for years. GM’s great contributions have been a few Opel Vectra platforms, rejigging a Subaru Impreza for the US market and put Saab badges on it, and reworking a deleted Oldsmobile SUV.
When I was growing up, Saab was known for the Combi Coupé (a fastback, liftback coupé—not particularly common in the 1970s) and the early Turbos, then a great UK campaign connecting the car maker to the aircraft manufacturer. Stefan Engeseth says the company could have done quite well with a retro-modern version of the ur-Saab, the original postwar model with aircraft technologies incorporated. I am not so sure about now, but I agree that during the years of the New Beetle and the last Ford Thunderbird, a limited-edition ur-Saab could have been chic.
Logic tells us that things are not sorted with the new ownership. The numbers do not add up, the new products are going to be expensive to get out, and how many of those forward-thinkers that Saab was once known for are still in the firm?
But logic also told us that it was impossible for Sweden to be putting out a supercar that would take the world’s imagination. Christian has done that. Conventional thinking also says that a solar–electric car is too left-field. I beg to differ.
Saab quality with Koenigsegg innovation sounds like a pretty potent mix to me.
With hindsight, I wish I had made a few more calls then just so I could say I spoke to the boss of Saab, and show off that I do know a bit about automotive marketingstrategy. I say with a lean R&D model, Christian can take the risks with innovative, world-beating Saabs that make a decent leap ahead of the rest of the industry.
The 1980s’ supermodels seem to be evergreen: Elizabeth Arden, Inc. sent us a release in French yesterday, saying that Claudia Schiffer will be the face of Alberta Ferretti’s first signature fragrance.
The fragrance and the campaign will be released in the autumn.
Creative Director Alex White collaborated with Alberta Ferretti on the concept for the campaign, which was shot by photographers Mert & Marcus.
It’s been a wonderful few days chilling out with our ed.-at-large, Summer Rayne Oakes, in Lucire’s home country of New Zealand to promote her book, Style, Naturally.
Summer Rayne was out this way to attend Greenfest in Brisbane, Queensland, and decided that she should venture to New Zealand to see us and to give Style, Naturally, which launched here earlier this year, a push.
Summer Rayne interviewed by National Radio’s Jim Mora, broadcast live on June 9.
With David Farrier for TV3’s Campbell Live, which aired June 11.
Checking out Trade Aid on Victoria Street, Wellington, with Carolyn Enting; and Summer’s subsequent interview at Mojo Coffee on Bond Street.
Barbora Hromadova of Southern Publishers Group, which distributes Style, Naturally here, did an incredible job of arranging the Auckland media. While I cannot mention who has interviewed Summer until their pieces run, some of you will already have seen her story in The Dominion Post and Campbell Live, as well as on two radio stations, including Radio New Zealand National.
I flew up on Sunday, a few hours ahead of Summer, to collect her from Auckland Airport. We’ve been seeing the journalists that Barbora arranged initially, and thanks to Mark Patterson at Volvo, had a very comfortable ride in the form of the XC60 diesel SUV.
We had plenty of comedies of errors with the keys at the Cintra Lane Apartments, my regular haunt, which are too plentiful to list here.
I introduced Summer to Bridget Saunders and Miss New Zealand Katie Taylor, both of whom have interests in sustainability, during the evenings, and spent quite a bit on food to boost the Auckland economy.
Here in Wellington, I was adamant that I would at least show Summer Rayne a bit more of this part of the island than the central city, and got to drive her around our south coast.
She mastered the use of the Kiwi superlative suffix (the use of as at the ends of adjectives) and the distinctively odd ‘Flag it’ (‘Ignore it’), and I admit I was more liberal with the former than I otherwise would be.
But the highlight was probably dinner with fashion editor Samantha Hannah and some of our crew on Wednesday night. We invited Laurie Foon of Starfish, whose label was featured in Style, Naturally. Laurie had bought the book many months before without knowing Starfish was in it. She had it for two months before getting to the references’ section; and was further surprised when I called her to ask if she wanted to meet the author.
Earlier today, Samantha filmed an interview with Summer Rayne for both Snapstar and Lucire TV.
After her final Style, Naturally interview on this leg, Summer Rayne relaxes with the Lucire crew in Wellington and at Te Papa Tongarewa.
Summer Rayne Oakes at the Bush City trail at Te Papa Tongarewa—before the joke that the water could be from the toilets.
Afterwards, we hung out at Te Papa before I drove Summer to Wellington Airport as she left our shores, only to be dicked around by Air New Zealand over an error in her ticketing, which spoiled an otherwise enjoyable tour.
The error seemed to emanate from the Brisbane end, when the booking was originally done, and some of the Air New Zealand staff here tried their best to remedy the situation.
These five days in Auckland and Wellington were thoroughly enjoyable. We’re looking forward to seeing more of the press that Summer Rayne deservedly received during her time here; and needless to say, we recommendStyle, Naturally wholeheartedly as the definitive guide to sustainable fashion and beauty.
With all the worry about GM going into Chapter 11, Saab boss Jan Åke Jonsson responded, to say all was on track for his company finding a financially strong buyer.
One of the individuals named to date has been Christian von Koenigsegg. While some of the media are saying that he would be an unlikely buyer, it’s fascinating for me to think that I could have been speaking to the owner of Saab six years ago.
Sadly, Saab has been a forgotten brand, with GM investing relatively less in new models over the years. Let’s hope this once proud brand can stand firmly on its own feet soon.
I know Lucire is not a car magazine, but I thought I should clarify my statements about the A-pillar area on the Peugeot 308 SW being messy. At left is a photograph I took on my old cell illustrating what I meant. Some people might like all these lines that go nowhere and everywhere—I don’t.
While we also have an Audi A4 review online, more importantly, Bron Williams’ interview with tattooed hairstylist extraordinaire Richard Kavanagh is now on-site, and Bulgari had a bash for its 125th birthday. Elyse Glickman, meanwhile, talks to Deborah Anderson, on her new photographic book, Paperthin.
Meanwhile, I should publicly acknowledge that Parmesh Shahani (below right), editorial director of Verve, whom I caught up with yesterday, thought that Stanley Moss hit the nail on the head with his choice of northern Indian luxury resorts. He says that most non-Indians wouldn’t have known of these, and that Stanley did his research in finding the truly best. Verve has an amazing issue coming up in a few months. I am sworn to secrecy, but Indians will love it when that issue hits the stands.
Above: Doutzen Krœs remains in fifth place in 2009, with US$6 million earned between June 2008 and June 2009, says Forbes.
Forbes this week released its list of the world’s top earning models, estimating their income earned between June 2008 and June 2009.
The magazine notes that the recession has hit earnings. While Gisèle Bündchen remains in the top spot with US$25 million earned, it’s US$10 million down from her 2008 figure. While Victoria’s Secret is no longer part of Bündchen’s deals, she still has Versace, True Religion, Dior and Ebel. She added Rampage to her brands.
Heidi Klum retains her number-two spot, this year at US$16 million, thanks to her endorsement deals with Diet Coke, Volkswagen, McDonald’s and LG, and programmes such as Project Runway and Germany’s Next Top Model. Klum improved on her 2008 figure by US$2 million.
Kate Moss remained at third with US$8·5 million, with Versace, Longchamp and Topshop among the brands using her face.
Adriana Lima stayed at fourth, half a million dollars behind at US$8 million. Victoria’s Secret is her most popular endorsement deal.
Both Moss and Lima increased their earnings by around US$1 million since 2008.
Doutzen Krœs remained in fifth with the same figure as 2008, at US$6 million. Forbes notes that while her de Beers contract ended, she replaced it with one for Seven for All Mankind.
She was joined in fifth by Alessandra Ambrosio, buoyed by a Victoria’s Secret contract. Ambrosio was not in the top 10 last year.
Natalia Vodianova remained seventh (US$5·5 million) and Daria Werbowy came up one place to eighth (US$4·5 million). Australian Miranda Kerr also went up one place, to ninth equal (US$3 million). Carolyn Murphy fell one spot to equal with Kerr.
New Victoria’s Secret face Emanuela de Paula is new to the list, with US$2·5 million. Forbes did not list to the 16th place this year.
Last weekend, 25,000 enthusiasts from over 40 countries attended the Mini United Festival at Silverstone to celebrate the 50th anniversary of an automotive icon. It’s hard to believe that the Mini celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, having cemented itself as one of the 20th century’s most significant cars and a style icon in its own right.
Footage includes various special editions (remember the plethora of these in the 1980s?), Mini fans gathered at Silverstone, driving shots of the new limited-edition Camden and Mayfair models, and commentaries from Ian Robertson of the Board of Management at Mini, rally legend Rauno Aaltonen, designer Paul Smith, and musician and “modfather” Paul Weller.
Today’s news that Tamsin Cooper and the Royal New Zealand Ballet have entered into a collaboration for a fashion accessories’ line has been one of those items we’ve known about for a while, but had to respect an embargo. Now revealed, it’s one of those unexpected tie-ups, but one which makes sense. Both organizations get to extend their brands, and try their hands in a new market. And being someone who knows full well how tricky co-branding efforts can be, this one certainly has more up sides and than down ones.
The 1980s’ supermodels seem to be evergreen: Elizabeth Arden, Inc. sent us a release in French yesterday, saying that Claudia Schiffer will be the face of Alberta Ferretti’s first signature fragrance.
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