TakeAway: This is another big victory for online retailers. Anyone in fashion who does not take them seriously should think again.
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Excerpted from WSJ, “From the Runway to Your Laptop,” By Christina Binkley, October 1, 2009
At the D&G runway show in Milan last week, the CEOs of Saks, Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman were relegated to second-row and third-row seats. In front of them, sitting primly in the first row, was the CEO of online retailer Yoox.com.
The moment—coming as the super-sexy women’s styles for next spring pranced down Milan’s runways—marked a shake-up in an ultra-hierarchical world. The privileged treatment of a digital-media figure showed that luxury fashion is ready to introduce styles to the public in new ways …
Front rows are reserved for those most important to a brand’s success … In past years, Yoox CEO sometimes borrowed tickets to shows from other guests. But in the past year, Yoox has expanded its business of creating online stores for luxury brands such as D&G … and for Jil Sander … and this season, Yoox CEO has been invited to too many shows …
The warm welcome extends to bloggers. While the New York shows have been inviting some bloggers for a few seasons now, many of Europe’s luxury houses have been slower to allow bloggers into the shows. But two days after the D&G event … four surprised bloggers found themselves seated in coveted spots near the queen of fashion …
Luxury brands have long been leery of the pedestrian Internet, a place where consumers coldly compare prices while forgoing attentive service … But online luxury sites like Net-a-Porter.com proved that many women would do just that. Now, Yoox … is running online stores for brands including Bally, Valentino, Pucci, and Marni …
This season, Twitter and Facebook are littered with fashion brands—including Louis Vuitton and Burberry—testing how social-media sites might benefit them … A number of brands have tried streaming their shows live on the Internet …
Designers feel that the Internet offers the possibility of talking directly to customers …
Edit by TJS
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Full Article
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424052748704471504574445222739373290.html#mod=todays_us_personal_journal
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