Vogue Arabia casts Paloma Elsesser and Ashley Graham for their July/August issue
Vogue Arabia continues their diverse cover streak for the July/August issue casting bombshells Ashley Graham and Paloma Elsesser in all their glory. The sirens take a glamorous swim in diamonds and glitter frocks shot by Miguel Reveriego and styled by Anya Ziourova. Kudos to showcasing #BeautyBeyondSize!
Kering is shutting down Tomas Maier’s eponymous line
As conglomerate groups trim the fat from their all-star rosters, more news of dropped houses comes from Europe. On the heels from the announcement a few weeks ago that he would be leaving Bottega Veneta, Kering announced that they would be ceasing operations for Tomas Maier’s line. Founded in 1997, the luxury group has invested in the line since 2013 and the designer will keep his trademark but his two Manhattan stores and e-commerce business are expected to go dark by the end of the year. [WWD]
LVMH is Ceasing U.S. Operations of Edun
And LVMH joins the fray, as they, too, are ceasing U.S. operations of the Made-in-Africa, ethical fashion house, Edun. Started by musician Bono and his wife Ali Hewson, LVMH will sell its 49% stake back to the founders as it continues its restructuring plan. In a joint statement shared with WWD, the founders have not yet decided on the future of the label founded in 2005 but “remain committed to Edun’s mission for sustainable fashion and thank LVMH for its support and dedication during this journey together.”
Vaquera is partnering with Century 21 to help immigrant families and the LGBTQ community
Between the migrant crisis, women’s reproductive rights in jeopardy and the shaky ground of the LGBT community, if you’re a warm-blooded human, you’ve probably been reeling from the news as of late. The design collective behind Vaquera is deciding to do something about it by hosting a clearance sale and party at Century 21 tonight from 6-9pm. Sales of the t-shirt collaboration with the famous department store chain will be donated to RAICES and Callen-Lorde LGBTQ Health Center. Head down to 21 Dey St and grab a classy Four Loko.
Tommy Hilfiger’s TommyNow is on the road again, next stop: Shanghai
Come September, Tommy Hilfiger is taking his TommyNow formula to Shanghai where the brand will execute their fifth see-now-buy-now runway show event. The location choice taps into Asia-Pacific, the market with the highest growth potential, as reported by WWD. Previously TommyNow runway events were held in New York, Los Angeles, London and Milan. They also featured a capsule collaboration with Gigi Hadid which drove revenue gains, but Shanghai will instead feature a collaboration with Formula One world champion, Lewis Hamilton, who is an ambassador for the brand. [WWD]
J. Mendel has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Known for their evening gowns often sported on the red carpet and custom furs, J. Mendel has filed for Chapter 11 protection in U.S. bankruptcy court in New York, a move in order to restructure debts and gain financial stability. Gilles Mendel, the brand’s creative director and member of the founding family, is “actively designing” the Spring 2019 collection, he told WWD, continuing, “The creative team is committed to the brand my family created in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1870.” The list of companies and clients the company owes large sums and unpaid fees to includes: Karla Otto; The New York Times; DNA Management; Er Fur Trading Corp; Acadaca LLC, an e-commerce platform; and The Arensel Co., the real estate firm that leased their previous Midtown headquarters. WWD reports that J.Mendel is said to have about $30 million a year in sales. [WWD]
Court filing points to Peter Brant (only) as to who may get paid in Interview Magazine bankruptcy
More information on how Interview’s messy chapter 7 bankruptcy will ultimately unfold has been released in a court filing, reported by WWD. The filing names Peter Brant, who also owns the entity, as the sole secured creditor, stating about $8.2 million came from Brant. Though there are hundreds of creditors waiting in line to get paid, who are collectively owed more than $3.3 million, it is likely that Brant will be the only one to see anything considering the paltry value of the remaining assets. Those assets are a deposit account for copyrights, a domain name, its subscriber list and a bank account with $17,000. A memo published on Daily Front Row recently reported that Interview would be acquired and relaunched by Crystal Ball Media, an entity newly created by Kelly Brant and Jason Nikic, Interviews’ chief revenue officer. The memo states Nick Haramis would stay on as editor in chief and Karl Templer’s position as creative director would be replaced by stylist Mel Ottenberg. [WWD]
Jeremy Scott’s “illegal aliens” caption kerfuffle rubs the internet the wrong way
“The only thing illegal about this alien is how good she looks!”, captioned Jeremy Scott across his social media channels, referring to his Meisel-shot fall 2018 campaign that features a colorfully painted Gigi Hadid, Kaia Gerber, Rianne Van Rompaey, Soo Joo Park and Vittoria Ceretti. In a very Kendall-Pepsi moment, the internet quickly called Scott out on trivializing and leveraging current hot-button politics for promotional purposes. Scott wasted little time expounding without backtracking, “The concept of my ad campaign is to bring attention to the U.S Administration’s harsh stance toward ‘illegal aliens.’ I painted the models in my show and this campaign as a way to open a discussion on what exactly an ‘alien’ is –– are they orange, blue, yellow, green? Does this matter? They are our friends, neighbors, coworkers, relatives and people we love.”
