WINES FOR CHRISTMAS 2021

The Grands Crus de France are truly the showcase of the excellence of French viticulture. Indeed, it is with these wines that the whole world can perceive the exceptional character of the terroirs and the know-how of our winegrowers, our oenologists and all the people who make up the fabric of France’s winemaking world.

From the 13th century through the 17th and 18th centuries, most of the wines of France enjoy an outstanding reputation! Cheval Blanc in Saint-Emilion, Petrus in Pomerol, Yquem in Sauternes, Margaux, Latour in Pauillac, Haut-Brion in Pessac-Léognan, to name but a few, find their names mentioned in numerous historical collections.

Margaux is one of those jewels that adorn the crown of Bordeaux’s great growths. Situated on the left bank of the Gironde river in the wine region of the Médoc, this appellation of more than 1450 hectares, includes 21 grands crus classés in 1855. Continue reading

YANNICK MACHADO

Perfectly constructed, superbly embroidered, he announces it himself, one is never better served than by himself. “I would like to give women the opportunity to show their strength, not their power”. So here is a chapter for a label that is Chinese whereas it should be French and be part of Chambre Syndicale. Yannick Machado, half Italian and half French with a hint of Portuguese, is a hardened bachelor who loves wedding dresses. Who knows why? Continue reading

THE PURPLE ROSE OF CAIRO

Egypt-Based Okhtein Branches Into Eyewear, Retail. The brand is looking to grow from a handbag label into a lifestyle one and expand its international footprint.

Accessories label Okhtein has become a star in its Cairo, Egypt, Now the label is broadening its ambitions, with the aim of growing from a handbag label into a lifestyle one by way of a new eyewear category.

The sunglasses seemed like a good transition to play around with, and to display the strength of the brand identity.

Their brass minaudière bags have been gaining more visibility internationally and catching the eye of major celebrities including Beyoncé and Cardi B, while select international retailers such as Browns and Selfridges have picked up the label.

The company’s sunglass launch saw immediate traction, with one style even making an appearance in Balmain’s latest men’s wear campaign featuring the Colombian superstar Maluma.

NO MATTER WHO WINS FOR EU

No matter who wins Tuesday’s presidential election, the future will most likely remain challenging for British and European firms looking to do business with the U.S., according to Allyson Stewart-Allen, who argues that domestic issues will dominate the agenda in a Joe Biden, or a second Donald Trump, term.

Since Trump took office, the U.S. has been seen as a much more nationalistic and isolationist place: The messages around ‘America first’ and ‘Make America great again’ are about prioritizing the U.S. before any other place or country.

You see it a less attractive place possibly to want to hire people, set up offices, and create jobs if you are a non-U.S. company. All of that isolationism is bad for the American economy and bad for the world. Continue reading

JOHNNY ZHOU

Vice President of the Grace Chen fashion house, having worked in Sydney for the Schenker company, a division of the German rail operator, Deutsche Bahn
Johnny Zhou was previously in logistics for Bax Global. This young Chinese executive graduated from the Australian Graduate School of Management and soon this art lover turned to fashion as a natural choice. Behind a successful brand, there are always men in the shadows.

Athletic, he could be an actor in a Wong Kar-wai movie, and with his costume from one of the best French designers, he would not denote if he came to Paris for Fashion Week. A fan of sleepless nights of work, this globetrotter embodies the fury of extreme oriental living. With the look of an aristocrat, he is in couture as he could be a hero of Marguerite Duras. Continue reading

MIU MIU ICONS CAMPAIGN 2021

Miu Miu Launches Icons Campaign Revealing Pre-spring 2021 Collection. The Italian fashion house on Oct. 29 will launch the holiday 2020 ad campaign called Miu Miu Icons, fronted by seven diverse artists, embodying women’s polyhedric personalities and talents.

The campaign will also reveal the brand’s pre-spring 2021 collection, aligning it with its delivery in Miu Miu boutiques, specialty stores and on Miumiu.com in early November.

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CHINA VIEW

Betty Bachz, cofounder of British eyewear brand Møy Atelier, said she has been seeing a lot of oversized sci-fi-inspired eyewear designs in China, priced at the accessible $200 mark. The brave new world may already be upon us, the future is now.

The futuristic-looking design comes with a one-piece lens design and a fluid oversized titanium frame that stretches across the forehead with triangle patterns Hadid commonly used in her works in China. If you are wearing this piece in a strong wind, you would see you are not only in style, but it functions like a windshield. This piece and three additional commercial styles will be available beginning in February in selected stores. Continue reading

TIFFANY THE BIG UGLY DEAL

The European Commission gave the now-disputed deal the thumbs-up on Monday, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission by Tiffany.

“All regulatory approvals required for the completion of the merger have now been obtained,” Tiffany said.

But the most important approval of all the go-ahead from LVMH chief Bernard Arnault has been withdrawn and the two sides are embroiled in a nasty court fight that’s set to go to trial in Delaware on Jan. 5.

LVMH started to back away from the deal over the summer and in September publicly said it was walking away, citing a letter from the French government.

Immediately, the case went to the courts with Tiffany accusing, among other things, that LVMH was dragging its feet over approvals. Continue reading

AMAZING GRACE

To me she seemed apparelled in celestial light. She represents glory and freshness of a dream where the sunshine is a glorious birth, when the birds sing a joyful song, who gives beauty and cheerful.

Every fashion designer are on holidays except Grace who presented her collection at the Shanghai Fashion Week. What a pretty first name for a Fashion designer ! In the soothing thoughts that spring out of human suffering,

Since the beginning of the Shanghai Fashion Week, we had been collecting hundreds of chimeras and dresses. But, for the first time, we saw beauty in all its luminescence. Regarded as one of China’s most influential fashion innovators, Grace Chen has been hailed as “the Power Dresser of China” by South China Morning Post and “China’s Most Sought-After Couturier” by The Hollywood Reporter.

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CAVALLI FAUSTO COPY

Roberto Cavalli Has Found Its New Creative Director, Fausto Puglisi . Roberto Cavalli has zeroed in on its new creative director, according to sources here, who believe Sicilian designer Fausto Puglisi has been selected for the job.

This isn’t the first time Puglisi’s name is associated with the brand, as he was rumored to join the company back in 2017, but Paul Surridge ended up nabbing the role, succeeding Peter Dundas.

Surridge exited last year, and the collections have been designed by an in-house team since then. Things have changed this time around as Cavalli has a new owner, Hussain Sajwani, who is looking to relaunch the brand with the help of Puglisi, sources say. Continue reading

THE EXCEPTIONAL SALE OF PRADA AT SOTHEBY’S

The luxury brand Prada had chosen to auction 40 looks from its autumn-winter 2020 collection as well as the decor of the fashion show in which it was presented last February. Entitled “Tools of Memory”, the operation enabled a donation to be made to UNESCO and the Global Coalition for Education, an educational response to covid-19 .

A Prada sale at 439,362 euros this Wednesday, around 4 p.m., the press release sent by the Prada press department had a taste of success. All the pieces were sold for a total amount of 439,362 euros. The sale brought together 72 items, participants from 27 different countries and a large majority of new bidders: 68 percent of them were first-time participants at Sotheby’s and 30 percent were 40 years old or younger. Continue reading

FIRST AWARD AT 42 YEARS OLD

The designer From the flat country, I mean from Belgium for uneducated people,  Tom Van Der Borght won the Première Vision Grand Prize at the 35th edition of the Hyères International Festival of Fashion and Photography, which wrapped on Sunday, winning over a jury headed by designer Jonathan Anderson, founder of JW Anderson and creative director of Loewe.

In a break with its recent tradition of rewarding graduates fresh out of school, finealy. The Hyères jury selected a designer who is already established almost a retired fashion designer, It’s always better than Didier Grumler’s choices for his nights in Toulon. Van Der Borght started his fashion education at the age of 30 and established his label in 2013 after graduating from the Stedelijke Academie voor Schone Kunsten Sint-Niklaas, a fashion school located between Antwerp and his home base of Ghent. Continue reading

ARNAUD SUPPORT LAGARDÈRE

Bernard Arnault has again upped his stake in Lagardère SCA, as a French commercial court is expected to wade into a battle between French industry titans for control of the embattled publishing and retail company.

Acting in concert, Groupe Arnault and Financière Agache, the holding company controlled by Groupe Arnault, together with a group of companies controlled by Arnaud Lagardère, chief executive officer of Lagardère, now jointly hold 15.01 percent of the capital of Lagardère SCA and 16.93 percent of voting rights.

The move, revealed by stock market regulator AMF in a filing on Tuesday, comes as a Paris court is set to rule on Wednesday on a request from Vivendi, a media group controlled by French billionaire Vincent Bolloré, and activist investor Amber Capital for an exceptional shareholder meeting, part of their bid to gain board representation. Continue reading

PERFUMES AND THE WINNER IS

A variety of independent brands joined the likes of L’Oréal, the Estée Lauder Cos. Inc. and Coty Inc., taking home several awards. Diptyque, for example, won both of the home fragrance categories, and Gucci took home three awards for three different scents. Kim Kardashian West even joined the webinar to accept her award for fragrance of the year: Popular.

Among the presenters were designer Jason Wu, Rob Smith, Cher, Lionel Richie and Wes Gordon of Carolina Herrera, each of whom introduced several categories.

Fragrance of the Year, Women’s Luxury: YSL Libre Eau de Parfum, L’Oréal, IFF, Anne Flipo, Carlos Benaïm. Continue reading

PUMA’S HELPS KERING

Kering is selling 8.8 million shares, representing 5.9 percent of Puma’s capital. Kering said on Monday it was selling about 8.8 million shares that it owns in Puma, representing 5.9 percent of the German sporting good-maker’s share capital, through a placement to qualified investors.

Since 2018, the group gradually reduced its stake in Puma after spinning off 70 percent of the company to its shareholders as part of a plan to refocus on its luxury division. That move left the Pinault family’s private investment arm Artémis with a 29 percent stake, and Kering with around 16 percent.

“The proceeds of this transaction will be used for the general corporate purposes of Kering and will further strengthen its financial structure,” the French luxury group said in a statement.

Kering’s share price has recovered to its levels at the start of 2020, after plummeting by as much as 39 percent in March as the coronavirus pandemic shut stores and brought factories to a halt. Continue reading