Eyeballing denim branding

It must be hard for denim giants and their marketing departments to come up with new and innovative ways to spend their huge budgets, and in an increasingly grass roots focused on-line world denim brands are coming at you on the web, in clubs and on the catwalk.


In the midst of London Fashion Week, Levi's chose hip man about town Henry Holland (not to mention his supermodel side-kick Agyness Deyn) to launch a designer collaboration on the catwalk and exclusive retail distribution at Selfridges. These holey, slightly pop-art limited edition pairs of jeans retail for £200 each and embody the "of the moment" cache that the House of Holland brand has right now. At the same time Levi's premiered its four new iconic TV ads on-line via its 501 website which was a bit of a first after decades of impactful television and cinema advertising; everyone’s got a favourite, from the days of Nick Kamen in that launderette scene to the more recent US ads that took "impact" to a new level. The Knockout ads resonate with a Youtube generation in need of instant hit laughs and brand appeal. All this and for what? Oh the product - Levi's has reinvented the 501 with a more modern fit that includes a tapered leg, a straighter waistband and a lower backrise - all with three new "vintage-inspired" washes. Contemporised if you will via research in eight capital cities. About time! Better be sure otherwise the wall to wall tube ads at Oxford Circus will be a complete waste of eyeballs!

Meanwhile over in the Italian camp at Diesel it's all about the brand's 30th birthday.
Diesel is celebrating 30 years of denim "by giving something back to its customers" on October 10 with the Dirty Thirty jean at a bargain bucket price of 75% off the normal £200 price tag (=£guess). Available worldwide the special edition dirty wash jean is a one day wonder featuring limited edition hardware, leather tab embroidery and anniversary logo. And to help Diesel fans celebrate the brand has organised a global club night XXX in 18 major cities around the world: Amsterdam, Athens, Barcelona, Beijing, Copenhagen, Dubai, Helsinki, London, Milan, Munich, New York, Oslo, Paris, Sao Paulo, Stockholm, Tel Aviv, Tokyo and Zurich.

The London event, The Creative Experiment, will take place at new venue, Matter, situated in the O2 site but with its own separate entrance on The Thames. Designed by experts to offer a "unique, state of the art proposition for live music and club nights in the UK", Matter will have opened its doors only three weeks before Diesel's birthday. Yes you guessed it, 30 of the hottest musical acts are booked to perform unique and exciting collaborations throughout the night. Diesel friendly artists include, Cock’n’Bull Kid, Disco Bloodbath, Friendly Fires, Hannah Hanra, Lethal Bizzle, Mark Ronson, Mystery Jets, New Young Pony Club, Ox.eagle.lion.man, Pete Doherty, Rob Da Bank, The Lovely Jonjo, These New Puritans, The Souljazz Records Soundsystem, The Teenagers, The View and many more... Partygoers can experience this amazing evening for just £5 a ticket, with all proceeds going to the Youth Intiative Livity.

Andy Griffiths, Head of Communications at Diesel UK, commented “In celebration of 30 incredible years of Diesel, we will be putting on the biggest party of 2008, spanning the globe. London’s unique celebration will focus on 30 one of a kind collaborations from music’s most exciting and groundbreaking artists."

So in true Diesel style the denim brand is a lifestyle choice not just a pair of jeans.

My Moto Tosho

Not only will Topshop finally arrive in New York in October (see previous blog entry: Tosho drip feeds Manhattan fans) but next week the UK retailer will also launch a more "premium denim offer" in the shape of a brand new Topshop Moto shop-in-shop at Oxford Circus.

Kicking off in time for London Fashion Week, Topshop has teamed up with a select few "masters of jeanology": including Sass and Bide, J Brand and Dittos to create a collection of perfect cut, wardrobe essentials especially for Topshop Moto. The premium capsule collections include exclusive styles and washes such as the Strays slim leg, New Nights spray-on and Bon Vivants side-pleat jeans; which are sold alongside the more fashion forward, higher-end pieces in its own Moto denim line.


Check out this rock-chick delight from Sass & Bide for Topshop in-store now.

"Topshop has been revolutionary in changing the face of high street fashion... they are iconic & leaders in the marketplace & we are very excited to be collaborating with them" says Sarah-Jane Clarke of Sass & Bide.

Key rock-chick items such as coloured tiger print jeans or all over black sequin jeans as well as core seasonal pieces such as the Evita or Baxter jean will sit alongside cult brands such as Joe's Jeans, My Lovely Jean and Radcliffe in the new space.

And last but not least because Topshop understands that the quest for the perfect pair of jeans is the ultimate battle, Suzy Radcliffe, the brains behind Radcliffe jeans will be running Topshop's very own pop-up Denim Clinic from Monday 15th - Saturday 20th September in the Oxford Circus store. I'm a massive fan of the W2 Paddington style and Radcliffe's ingenious ankle cuff-links system make the brand stand out from the denim crowd. She's in good company in the new denim space too.

Oh and it's opposite the newly refurbished Kate Moss area in-store, where you'll find Mossy's own take on denim. She says that striped trousers are the new skinny jeans. I kind of like the rock-chick-meets-sexy-clownette look!

New York retail safari

So much new retail action since my last trip! But hey everyone loves a new store so check out these must visits for some fresh shopping inspiration: 

Hudson Square is the new Meat Packing, well according to Rick Owens that is. The quirky LA rock god designer has opened a huge new space at 250 Hudson (currently no man's land but that won't last long) where you can find his slick leather goth rock chick pieces and plenty of amusing men's acruments (loved the toadskin wallet & cock ring combo Hintmag) not to mention it just being an awesome space with the unusual Owens touches of sinister fog glass wall and marble sculptures of which there are more to come - maybe another over-sized wax effigy of himself - like the Paris store? Catch him talking about his new venture on ">Style.com ("I love fog.") and expect his Paris show to relocate to NYC this fall. Pic credit: Racked

And just opened on adjacent Greenwich is hip unisex streetwear haven Aloha Rag - the second outpost from Japanese owner Tatsugo Yoda after 17 years running his first store in Hawaii. "I thought it was about time to come to New York with our mix of Japanese, British and US streetwear labels. It's a cultivated group of new, up and coming or relatively underground and collectable labels such as Hysteric Glamour, Foundation Addict, Commuun, Kenji Ikeda, 3.1 Philip Lim, Surface 2 Air, Henrik Vibskov and Passarella Death Squad. We are launching our own label called Garment House Media too.  The idea behind the store was to fashion it as a gallery space with white walls, bright paintings, alcove cupboards and a generally clean, sparse feel, allowing the clothing to stand out. We think the journey from Hawaii via Japan and London is right for NYC right now."

Meanwhile hip menswear boutique Atelier is relocating soon to this stretch of Greenwich and Dries van Noten is rumoured to be circling the area for his first US store. 

Moving up town (but not much) towards Meatpacking, check out the newly extended Maison Martin Margiela store on Greenwich and Jane St - actually they've added a whole new store next door to house womenswear and menswear in separate spaces. We loved the new egg-box wall decorated jewellery gallery and walk in closet style spaces - all clad in purist Margiela white of course.  

A block down Brit menswear designer Oliver Spencer has introduced a capsule womenswear collection to his flagship on Greenwich and West 4th. Meanwhile just around the corner on Gansevoort Street, print specialist designer Trina Turk has just launched a homewares range, so her ethnographic paisley and baroque designs are now across cushions, throws and soft furnishings.

Elsewhere in the Union Square / Flatiron area, we love the new Free People store at 79 Fifth Ave. It's about time parent company Urban Outfitters made the most of its hippy dippy eco-friendly FP brand - the time is now guys! Loving the cute travelleresque just-back-from-India decor complete with patchwork fabric swatches wall hangings and button installation.  And the antique wooden cabinet cash wrap is to die for! This is one store environment you just click instantly with the brand - live the life - be free people! 

And there's a brand new True Religion store just opened opposite ABC Carpet & Home on Broadway. What with Forever 21, Diesel and American Eagle on Union Square and Rugby just around the corner on University Place this is NYU denim dorm heaven. 

Hip Scandi brand Tretorn is a welcome addition to the bottom of Spring and West  Broadway. This is healthy outdoor living with a shot of quirky Euro "I do fun sporting activities such as kayaking and tennis and rock climbing" attitude. The Swedish sports lifestyle clothing and footwear brand is back in demand due to its preppy roots and feels just right for NYC hipsters who need to not take their North Pole or Patagonia dressing so seriously. Loving the yellow and blue colouring, blocks of wood branding, perspex wall boxes full of tennis balls and swing tennis game in the middle of the store. And with a backyard barbie to launch the store last month this is ticking all the right boxes for cool healthy summer living in the city. 

Talking of hip dudes Brit menswear designer Andrew Buckler has opened a new SoHo store at 93 Grand between Mercer and Greene and brings more of his eccentric undertones and melded American rogue meets bad boy Brit designs to the area. We loved his Meatpacking store hidden away down the dimly lit stairway on Hudson (complete with impromptu piano and antler head displays) and with this long overdue new location it's time for Buckler to unleash his particularly appealing brand of hard-edged whimsy to jaded SoHo trendies. 

Meanwhile Madewell has finally hit Manhattan! After a holiday pop-up store that was circulated among the fashion industry, the J Crew owned brand has opened a New York flagship and 7th US store on Broadway and Broome. The 3000 sq ft, two storey store features the brand's covetable walk-in-wardrobe style store decor complete with denim bar and editor's picks weekly looks. CEO Millard "Mickey" Drexler said: "It's about great style, design and attitude - New Yorkers just get it." We get it and it's one of the best retail brand launches to come out of the US recently - a great mix of hipster denim clad collegiate girl meets effortless laid back fashionista. Pick up the Madewell 1937 monthly newsletter in-store to see in-store direct marketing to hipsters.

And lastly I feel I have to mention Kira Plastinina. Because she's 16 and Russian and daddy is a billionaire and her new store(s) in New York (there will be plenty more!) are the dawning of a new global teen shopping era. Believe the hype. The new Russian designer has launched her own brand while still at school and is quickly carving out a fan base who love her plastic fantastic pink lifestyle brand that's a cross between Fiorucci meets Benetton. Read her first interview in New York Magazine for more insight on her fashion career journey from ponies to t-shirts.  The first store to bow in SoHo is on that busy stretch between Houston and Prince and is a girly haven. Teens around the world will want to be fashion designers just like her and just like Paris Hilton before her. Oh actually Paris and Kira are BFFs - they met at Kira's first fashion show recently in Moscow!