Kimora Lee Simmons

[prixi]

Originally posted by Spike413@Sep 7 2004, 01:39 PM
Lets put it this way, I wouldn't call it tacky because she's wearing baby phat, I'd call it if that's how I felt, regardless of the label. And tacky clothes are a reflection of the individual, so even if the person isn't a tacky person, their style could very well be.

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You said it.

[MayaPapaya9]

is it just me or does there appear to be an unusual amount of bickering on tfs lately?

[PradaP]

oh.. great

Coty Reaches High With Kimora

By Julie Naughton and Pete Born

NEW YORK — After having defied conventional wisdom and resuscitated the moribund celebrity fragrance concept with hits by Jennifer Lopez and Celine Dion, Coty Inc. is now intent on acquiring a wilder edge with a hip-hop slant.

A license has been signed with the woman whom many regard as the first lady of hip-hop: Kimora Lee Simmons.

Simmons, who is president and creative director of Baby Phat, says she has ambitions of developing a multicategory beauty range with Coty. Executives, however, seem focused on developing a fragrance business, which will be marketed by Coty’s Lancaster division in department stores. First up will be a Baby Phat women’s fragrance, followed by a men’s scent under the Phat Farm name, a company established by Simmons’ husband, hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons. Phat Farm and Baby Phat were acquired by Kellwood earlier this year. While Coty did not break out numbers, industry sources estimated that the first Baby Phat scent could do as much as $25 million to $30 million at retail in its first year on counter.

The long-awaited signing of the licensing deal confirms a report that appeared in WWD on July 9. In an exclusive interview earlier this week, Simmons said, “I’ve always wanted to do beauty, and Coty is a perfect partner.” Taking a break from preparing for her runway show, to be held Saturday night, she added, “We carefully looked around the industry for our special home — like Cinderella and the glass slipper. I think this is going to be a great partnership.”

Eric Thoreux, president of Coty Beauty Americas, who helped broker the agreement, agreed, calling the deal “an important license from a Coty standpoint.”

“Hip-hop is one of the major highways of communication of the 21st century; it has become a mainstream voice,” said Thoreux. “We’re proud to have Kimora bring her expert vision to this lifestyle collection.” He added that Coty is behind the license “for the long-term. We don’t just do quick in-and-out fragrances — we build lifestyle pillars for the future, and we think this one will be a very important pillar for us going forward.” It will, at least at first, be marketed chiefly in North America, Thoreux said.

Added Tracy Young, senior marketing director for Coty Beauty in the U.S.: “We think it will be a winner — with an urban mind-set that reaches from the streets of New York City to the Mall of America [in Bloomington, Minn.].”

Simmons, who clearly does not lack for ambition — or publicity, given her recent widely reported brush with the law — said she eventually would like to do color cosmetics, skin care and perhaps hair care, in addition to a portfolio of fragrances.

She is no stranger to the beauty category. A former model who was discovered at age 13 by Karl Lagerfeld, Simmons said that her desire to create a beauty line came from having a multiethnic heritage — African-American, Asian and Indian — in a world that was “either black or white.”

Her ancestry gave her an exotic look, but made finding things such as foundation a challenge. “Without knocking other brands, when I started in the business, there were not a lot of choices for ethnic beauty,” said Simmons. “You were either black or white; there was never really a place for girls like me.”

While she acknowledges that “there are more choices now than there were” in ethnic makeup, Simmons said that she is “looking forward to helping to bring more options to the marketplace.” She complimented fellow Lancaster licensor Jennifer Lopez with helping to break some ground in the ethnic arena. “Jennifer created a wonderful platform for other women like myself — and in turn, I think her platform was aided by the hip-hop/urban platform that Russell and I have helped to build,” said Simmons.

The designer said that she is excited about the opportunity to put her own sassy take into the products that are developed using her name. While her first scent is still in the “very early” stages, she professes a passion for “classic scents, but with a younger twist. And definitely feminine and sexy.”

Personal appearances are also in Simmons’ plans for her beauty brand. “How can you sell something to people if you don’t know them?” she asked, noting that she’s learned a great deal about her customers by getting out into the market and actually speaking with them. “I put myself and my family out there — I’m a working woman, I have a husband and kids. I think customers can relate to me as well as to my product.”

While a definite time frame for the Baby Phat scent launch has not been established, Bob Cankes, president of Lancaster North America, said that he’s “looking at fall of 2005.” Cankes added that he probably will distribute the scent in 1,700 to 1,800 doors. His initial thinking involves a three-pronged promotional attack — a significant amount of advertising, grassroots guerrilla marketing and “substantial” in-store support. He said the critical factor for the launch is also the biggest challenge facing department stores such as Macy’s and Filene’s: How to reach kids in the streets and get them to go into the mall. While the marketing plan has not even been broached, Cankes said the promotional tactics will probably be similar to those used to sell the JLo fragrances. One trick that Coty employed was to put Scent Seal samples in 1.5 million copies of one of Lopez’s CDs.

Thoreux added that TV advertising and national print advertising also are planned.

Although Coty declined to comment, industry sources speculated that the licensing deal is worth at least $2 million in royalty guarantees for the first five years of the pact. Coty tends to pay less up-front so it can invest heavily in building the brand.

Bob Skinner, president and chief operating officer of Kellwood, strongly praised the Coty deal, saying it will be a vital tool in “explaining the essence of the brand.”

When asked about international expansion, Coty’s Thoreux hinted that those possibilities hinge at least partly on how widely Kellwood distributes the fashion brands. Skinner said the brand has a sizable presence in Japan and the U.K. and less of a foothold in the rest of Europe. The company is primed for growth, however; Skinner added that the brand’s Phat Farm Diva sneakers, which hit counters a month ago, have “taken off” with an initial sell-through of 20 percent.

someone make her go away!!!

[Theory]

Correct and if you do decide to wear such a brand, you better stay off the beloved Fifth Avenue or the sacred Madison Ave where only real designs and talent are allowed....otherwise you are contributing to the destruction of fashion itself, the allure of the avenue and the invasion by the unfashionable.

Originally posted by onehotgrrl@Sep 6 2004, 12:03 AM
I guess they would think you are a tasteless, tacky ('cause its used to describe everything unfashionable) urban clothes wearer.

Thats not my opinion though, I believe people should be able to wear what they please so long as it makes them happy.

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[Love4Armani]

ive seen some of her clothes, and i must say, why do people give massive and free advertising for her. i mean, she charges "mad" money for her clothes (like jLo) and then she makes you advertise for her, for FREE.

[Frostelized]

I have to meet her to form an opinion about her.

I saw her on Oprah and she didn't seem that bad.

[princess_tess]

Oh god i have learnt to hate this woman... she is horribly tacky...!!

[jenimmacto]

Originally posted by onehotgrrl@Sep 5 2004, 04:43 AM
When her husband controlled the company- he couldn't get it off the ground.

She walked into one of the meetings and said she had some ideas. So he turned it over to her- and she made it into a $30 million dollar company.

How many near-billionaire husbands have wives who can help them make money as opposed to just spending it? Not many I'm sure.

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simmons sold baby phat, and kimora with it as a design director or whatever she is. why, i ask?

i don't believe baby phat is profitable. russel simmons is a good enough businessman to know when to hang on to a good thing and when to let a dog go.

checking out the baby phat website, there doesn't seem to be enough focus in accessories or realism in the pricepoints for outerwear . . . on the flipside, the stuff seems to be so cheaply made that a few customers paying full price could make up for all the stuff they have to send to TJ Maxx every week . . .

continuing that point, when i have been bargain-hunting for PDC jeans at TJ's, i noticed that they seem to stock all of the "expensive" Baby Phat stuff, like the leather and fur jackets . . . implying that it doesn't sell well at full retail in macy's or wherever . . . which doesn't bode well for the brand's attempts to upgrade their image with all the kimora stuff . . .

on the upside, i'm impressed with the availability of plus-size and children's clothing on the site, this speaks to actually being in touch with the urban market.

kimora herself . . .whatever

[*DrAma*]

I love her clothing line. BaByPhat wear is HOT. I can't wait to go Babyphat clothes shopping u think the stuff is cheaply made? why do you say that? The stuff seems a little more pricey then lets say TJ Maxx or Marshalls.

[*DrAma*]

the clothing looks like quality to me....

[Urban Stylin]

as much as we have our own opinions and all many pple actually like baby phat>>and they look good in it

[ingenue]

she has all these lines on her neck... like flab on the neck. im, watching life & style w her as a co host. eeww i dont like her...too vain

[Hana_N]

Does anyone have pictures of her when she was young and modelling for Chanel and such? I've searched but couldn't find anything.

[Heroin_Chic]

Originally Posted by FunkyDiva

2)Smoking weed in the Hamptons, that is tacky, she should do coke like
the rest of them

Indeed!

[marlasinger]