and now.. Thakoon eyewear
- Thread starter Lena
- Start date
Whitelinen
Active Member
- Joined
- Dec 21, 2005
- Messages
- 5,760
- Reaction score
- 1
I like the brown ones too.
ultramarine
chaos reigns
- Joined
- Jan 7, 2003
- Messages
- 6,403
- Reaction score
- 2
The one on the right .. Ive seen $2 sunglasses who look like that 
Write another down for the brown/tortoise one ...
Write another down for the brown/tortoise one ...
ready to expand? Who the hell are you kidding? The only time this is the bread and butter of a company is when it is a. what you do or b.you have a name to carry you. No one outside of fashion's inner circle will know who Thakoon is and they have a VERY low interational presence in my opinion. I'm not sure I've ever seen them carried here (maybe Harvey Nic's). I really don't see how THIS is the area to expand to. I understand bags and shoes are the traditional way to expand but that is because it works. PLUS why don't they work on building a stronger mainline first? I just don't see how this is necessary on any level. OKay, maybe if he showed sunglasses on the runway and thought, I will offer these alongside the collection (a la dvf with christian louboutin and the lip print of even mouret and louboutin with the overlasted/covered platform shoes) I would understand but this to me is absolutely pointless, and ultimately the designs are boring so it doens't even save them.
side contracts like his line for Nine West and now this will help him keeping up with the expences of his own line..
sophia kokosalaki, did just the same but on the reverse ..first the sunglasses and then Nine West
this kind of collaborations are essential to keep those indie brands freestanding, so in this context, even though the sunglasses are not to 'die for', if they help him to improve his own line, i have nothing against them
sophia kokosalaki, did just the same but on the reverse ..first the sunglasses and then Nine West
this kind of collaborations are essential to keep those indie brands freestanding, so in this context, even though the sunglasses are not to 'die for', if they help him to improve his own line, i have nothing against them
Thing is,to compare Thakoon with Sophia,she had a lengthy time of growth within her collection before setting out on these kind of endeavour's. Her popularity,to me,has grown enough the last few years that it's allowed for her to break-out in new collaborations. For me,it's not just about the bags and sunglasses,it's actually allowing their mainlines to attract more attention before branching out. As Meg said,Thakoon is still really only known within the fashion community. Unlike,say,a Porenza Schouler.
To me,it just looks like an attempt at gaining profit because their label is still pretty under-the-radar worldly.
To me,it just looks like an attempt at gaining profit because their label is still pretty under-the-radar worldly.
ilovepositano
Active Member
- Joined
- Jul 11, 2005
- Messages
- 1,939
- Reaction score
- 0
i for one think it was smart and admirable for thakoon to have done glasses over bags and shoes this year. how many new bag lines have flopped in the past year? the market is so oversaturated--it's just overkill.
thakoon i think will soar in the next couple years. the quality and craftsmanship of the line is very impressive and distinguish it from most of the new york lines in my view. they also know how to source, as the pricing on the line has gotten very attractive compared to most new york lines.
thakoon i think will soar in the next couple years. the quality and craftsmanship of the line is very impressive and distinguish it from most of the new york lines in my view. they also know how to source, as the pricing on the line has gotten very attractive compared to most new york lines.
I can see why they're going for sunglasses, it's probably a much smaller investment (therefore risk) to do sunglasses versus bags, shoes, etc. I think the first pair are cute but as everyone said these sunglasses are priced very high and in the Chanel, Tom Ford, Gucci, Dior territory which is completely un-smart.
Meh. They should've become a presence before getting into accessories.
Meh. They should've become a presence before getting into accessories.
Benn98
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2014
- Messages
- 42,530
- Reaction score
- 20,570
Thakoon Doesn't Need the Fashion Industry's Approval Anymore
Mario Abad
15h
In The September Issue, the 2009 documentary following Vogue editor Anna Wintour as she puts together the magazine's biggest issue of the year, the famous editor is seen orchestrating a lucrative Target collaboration for Thakoon Panichgul, the Thai-American designer who won critical acclaim early on for his feminine collections of clean, simple lines. He was the darling of the fashion world, with a CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund prize under his belt and the support of fashion's press and gatekeepers.
Indeed, when Thakoon came up in mid-2000s New York City, it was a heyday for young designers challenging the old guards and gaining attention from the establishment — including now-current mainstays like Proenza Schouler, Derek Lam and Alexander Wang.
But his business has since gone through several phases of restructuring, as many independent designers like him have struggled to keep up with the rapid changes in the fashion industry and the rise of digital and technology.
"When I launched, it was in a system where immediately the fashion players, the media players in fashion, really got excited by it," Panichgul tells PAPER. "That was the system at the time: if you get Anna Wintour and her stamp of approval, if you get Barneys' stamp of approval, everything else just kind of falls into place, and it actually did. That was how you'd create a luxury brand."
But problems soon arose when Thakoon's messaging and point of view started to become muddied through the lens of department stores and different wholesale channels. "For me, it was proving to be challenging because we were so deep in the wholesale/retail model where every store had different interpretations of what the Thakoon brand is," he says. "You can go to one store where they didn't have prints at all, and then you went into another store with all prints from Thakoon. From the customer's perspective, there were different messages out there for what the Thakoon brand is."
He finally made a conscious decision to take a sabbatical two years ago, spending time reflecting on the fashion landscape and the turmoil in retailing.
"I needed two years to reflect even personally to see if I like fashion or if I don't like fashion," he admits. "So all throughout that period, I was feeling…this less is more mentality. In this day and age we have so much, and the customer has so many options, I think that really it's about boiling down the offerings that you give them."
Now, after taking some time off, Panichgul is back with a new approach. He just released a tightly edited "Classic Collection" of just 12 pieces in what will now be a direct-to-consumer business rather than a typical ready-to-wear brand showing twice a year on the runway. A series of small drops are also scheduled to be released throughout the year. But perhaps the biggest change lies in Thakoon's prices, which will range from $75–225, a far cry from his previous collections which cost considerably more, back when his line was positioned on the higher-end of the market.
"I think that luxury means different things for people these days, and in fact, people are more price-conscious than ever before," he says of his new price positioning. "I mean listen, we're not a luxury brand like Vuitton and Dior, we're not heritage in that way. I've been in the business for 10+ years. It's about me bringing my design knowledge and sensibility to practical clothes. That means that the price point has to be considered."
With this new chapter, Panichgul can finally talk directly to the customer about the message he wants to put out there, while having complete control over the story he wants to tell. He also has plans for a new store opening later this fall in New York's West Village. "I've had a lot of time to think — I'm older now and for me, I'm at a more confident place in my career and where I want to be," he says. "I know what I'm good at in design and I don't need the approval anymore."
The first 12-piece capsule of classic essentials is available now at Thakoon.com.
Paper Magazine
Mario Abad
15h
In The September Issue, the 2009 documentary following Vogue editor Anna Wintour as she puts together the magazine's biggest issue of the year, the famous editor is seen orchestrating a lucrative Target collaboration for Thakoon Panichgul, the Thai-American designer who won critical acclaim early on for his feminine collections of clean, simple lines. He was the darling of the fashion world, with a CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund prize under his belt and the support of fashion's press and gatekeepers.
Indeed, when Thakoon came up in mid-2000s New York City, it was a heyday for young designers challenging the old guards and gaining attention from the establishment — including now-current mainstays like Proenza Schouler, Derek Lam and Alexander Wang.
But his business has since gone through several phases of restructuring, as many independent designers like him have struggled to keep up with the rapid changes in the fashion industry and the rise of digital and technology.
"When I launched, it was in a system where immediately the fashion players, the media players in fashion, really got excited by it," Panichgul tells PAPER. "That was the system at the time: if you get Anna Wintour and her stamp of approval, if you get Barneys' stamp of approval, everything else just kind of falls into place, and it actually did. That was how you'd create a luxury brand."
But problems soon arose when Thakoon's messaging and point of view started to become muddied through the lens of department stores and different wholesale channels. "For me, it was proving to be challenging because we were so deep in the wholesale/retail model where every store had different interpretations of what the Thakoon brand is," he says. "You can go to one store where they didn't have prints at all, and then you went into another store with all prints from Thakoon. From the customer's perspective, there were different messages out there for what the Thakoon brand is."
He finally made a conscious decision to take a sabbatical two years ago, spending time reflecting on the fashion landscape and the turmoil in retailing.
"I needed two years to reflect even personally to see if I like fashion or if I don't like fashion," he admits. "So all throughout that period, I was feeling…this less is more mentality. In this day and age we have so much, and the customer has so many options, I think that really it's about boiling down the offerings that you give them."
Now, after taking some time off, Panichgul is back with a new approach. He just released a tightly edited "Classic Collection" of just 12 pieces in what will now be a direct-to-consumer business rather than a typical ready-to-wear brand showing twice a year on the runway. A series of small drops are also scheduled to be released throughout the year. But perhaps the biggest change lies in Thakoon's prices, which will range from $75–225, a far cry from his previous collections which cost considerably more, back when his line was positioned on the higher-end of the market.
"I think that luxury means different things for people these days, and in fact, people are more price-conscious than ever before," he says of his new price positioning. "I mean listen, we're not a luxury brand like Vuitton and Dior, we're not heritage in that way. I've been in the business for 10+ years. It's about me bringing my design knowledge and sensibility to practical clothes. That means that the price point has to be considered."
With this new chapter, Panichgul can finally talk directly to the customer about the message he wants to put out there, while having complete control over the story he wants to tell. He also has plans for a new store opening later this fall in New York's West Village. "I've had a lot of time to think — I'm older now and for me, I'm at a more confident place in my career and where I want to be," he says. "I know what I'm good at in design and I don't need the approval anymore."
The first 12-piece capsule of classic essentials is available now at Thakoon.com.
Paper Magazine
