Brands That Need a Makeover/Overhaul

[Spike413]

Mugler will be a very hard one to bring back into relevance with a new desigenr. Much like Gaultier, he was a one-of-a-kind who's influences, both in design and showmanship, are still very much relevant. And when the spirit, energy of such a designer is still so much a part of high fashion's collective, it'll be hard to take such a concept and try to replace it into the context of a modern collection that either, lives up to that high standard, or create something entirely different that is just as great-- let alone exceed it. I have no idea who would be ideal to take on such a task. I was never really a fan of Mugler since his menswear were more accents to his women's creations, but there's no doubt he was a giant and so far, all the ones working under his name have been completely forgettable.

I don't know if it's because Alber has exhausted his creative arsenal, or... he's just pacing himself for the right time to innovate and lead again.

As long as the label is still in demand by the consumer and doing well-- and as long as lesser designers are still ripping him off and we're still saying "looks like Lanvin", I think he can afford to ride the same template he's created. I've noticed from time to time, certain leaders of the pack will slack a little, then offer a burst of creative innovation that will have the hardened types be impressed and be praising them once again. Like I don't believe for a second that Ghesquiere's output for Vuitton is the best he can do. He's just reigning back and offering what will work for a giant tyrant like Louis Vuitton, because this time around, the clothes are also selling well alongside the bags and footwear, which I'm certain was their plan.

Alber and Ghsequiere are very much aware of how much the fashionscape has changed in the last several years, and aren't delicate flowers that can only design and nothing else.I just believe Alber and Ghesquiere are keen and smart businessmen as well as talented designers, and know how to pace themselves for the long, grueling haul.

You're definitely onto something regarding Alber and Nicholas -- not to mention pretty much all of the contemporary titans of fashion who really dominated the first decade of the 2000s (Miuccia, Tom, Hedi, Marc, John, etc.). They're all, presumably, very keen observers of everything surrounding them, in fact that's what has always made them so great. Ironically enough, considering how each of those people have shaken fashion to its core, and how very influential their best work continues to be, I think all of them currently are among the most harshly reviewed here on tFS, and the main complaint seems to be that none of them are at their peak performance level. It would make a lot of sense, in this fashion climate, that each of them have deliberately toned themselves down because what they each do best just doesn't jibe with this uber-PC, incredibly wearable, inoffensive, unassuming normcore mood that fashion is in. So why not run on, if not autopilot exactly, a lower gear than you normally would if only to sustain yourself until the moment when fashion collectively rejects everything it currently holds dear?

It may all be b.s. in the end but it sure does offer a little bit of hope, right?

 

[fashionista-ta]

My vote would have to be Burberry. It enjoyed a revival few years ago but now it is the design equivalent of Groundhog Day and is starting to hemorrhage money.

Burberry used to litter off-price department stores until Christopher Bailey and Angela Ahrendts came along and breathed new life into the brand. With Bailey's creative prowess and Ahrendts ingenuity the brand was back in grand standing. Shows were anticipated and the finances started to flourish, enabling them enter new markets - beauty and skincare - and increase their retail foot prints. The newly successful Burberry stretched their presence wide, and that came back to haunt them as it did once before. The brand got trapped in the quick sand of overexposure, losing its exclusivity.

I think the brand suffered a serious blow when they lost Ahrendts to Apple and expanded Bailey's DOR to CEO, but the corroding injury is Bailey's failure to excite, to introduce newness to his designs. The brand grew quickly and wide, and Bailey has not been able to keep up creatively. Now the company is forced to close stores across America, Australia, and in East Asia - their biggest markets with China accounting for 50% of the brand's sales. Between 2010-2014 the brand opened 20 new stores in China alone (bringing the total to 69 in the country, this number has since decreased with recent closings). In 2014 they planned 25 new stores around the world. This textbook market saturation started to eat away at their luxury image. Burberry grew to become of China's most prominent luxury brand because it was easily identified and confirmed to wealth, but as the Chinese consumers became more educated on luxury and fashion they started to reject common brands that screamed their presence. They started to neglect brands with ever-present logos and notable features like Burberry's iconic plaid (which the brand started to stop producing in an attempt to save its standing like Coach and Louis Vuitton did with their canvas pieces). These Chinese customer started to invest in brands that were the embodiment of luxury and exclusivity, like Hermes (which has 1/3rd the amount of stores in China as Burberry).
The market just does not find Burberry worth while anymore, the brand is stretched too thin and the product selection in the stores are almost the same season after season.

For a fix, they need to hire a new CEO, it is just too much for one person to manage a multi-billion dollar corporation and direct all creative facets of the brand from runway collection to packaging. Bailey will need to refocus on regenerating the buzz he culminated seasons ago with new designs or I am afraid he must be shown the door. Burberry is still a formidable fashion and business entity but with sales falling every quarter it is only a matter of time before your local Marshalls is once again brimming with that signature khaki, red, and black plaid.

I find it hard to believe that was ever the case. Perhaps I just don't spend enough time in discount stores.


I remember when Burberry was a heritage brand, not a fashion brand. In fact I still own several pieces from that era.

 

[Lola701]

I really believe that many brands should stop doing fashion.
In the sea of young designers, how many of them are just doing cool, fashionable and good clothes? For me, that's not enough to make a brand.

Christopher Kane, Preen even Mario Schwab (and etc.) are good and creative but is it enough to make a brand? I think big brands can benefit from these talents.
The American market is also too crowded. Too many brands are doing cool "american sportswear".

Mugler should stop it RTW and do only perfumes and cosmetics. Thierry Mugler is still doing costumes and he is still involved in the cosmetics. They can open a special couture department designed by him for RedCarpets, movies or even special orders.

As Spike413 said, all the major players of the 90's/00's are still there and we feel as a whole that they are not as good as they were. But their goals today are not the same as before.

I believe that most of those designers should do what Karl did: Change your team every 10 years. It gives you a new perspective and it keeps your eyes and your work fresh.

Karl from the 70 and early 80's was the Karl of Antonio Lopez/Hervé Leger. From the early 80's years to the late 90's, he worked with Gilles Dufour and Victoire de Castellane. In the late 90's, Virginie Viard and Amanda Harlech.

Armani should close most of his line and be concentrate on the mainline, the Emporio line and the Couture line.

Dolce & Gabbana had already have a makeover in 2010. Their current work is the result of that makeover. The brand is more covetable than ever, they have a new clientele and their die-hard fans are still buying their lace dresses and suits. It was a smart move as "sexy" stopped being on trend 5 years ago.

Michael Kors should do a "Dolce & Gabbana"/"Marc Jacobs" and merge the mainline with the diffusion line. A new creative direction in the ads will be welcome.

Calvin Klein is a lost brand. I really don't understand that brand. Who is buying the mainline?
They should be about cool, easy, wearable and sexy clothes and the other lines should follow that.

Everything about Burberry is so true. Their stores and products are not exciting anymore. Bailey should only be the designer.
He is not Dolce & Gabbana, Miuccia Prada or Tom Ford. He needs to be totally commited in a creative level. I mean, when you're against LVMH, KERING and all others major brands in the world, you have to do the job.

 

[fashionista-ta]

Wait, are you saying Dolce & Gabbana sets the standard that everyone else should follow?

 

[Lola701]

Wait, are you saying Dolce & Gabbana sets the standard that everyone else should follow?

As a business move yes. I don't think diffusion brands are as important now as they were in the 90's/early 00's.

For the creative part, i'm totally against that formula of doing the same collections over and over again. And for me their campaigns looks like they didn't have enough budget to hire a big photographer.

But It seems like their were followed by Valentino & Saint Laurent.

 

[D A N A]

I think it would be too harsh to say some brands should shut downink:

Brands that need a makeover desperately IMO
- Ungaro: I think with a creative genius they can take over HC fashion week
- Prada: Desperately needs freshness and life
-Hermes: Will never stop selling out of bags and shoes but in terms of fashion so BORING
- Kenzo: Does anyone even know what they are doing anymore?
-Nina Ricci: I miss the days of glamour and beautiful gowns
-Michael Kors: There seems to be a huge disconnect between what is shown at New York fashion week and what is in stores, the quality of the clothing is tragic
- Paco Rabbane: They have become so irrelevant its sad
- Dries Van Noten: I feel like they need a new direction

On a different note, I see a lot of great new designer brands coming out and like someone mentioned earlier I can imagine them taking on a larger name and doing wonders for example, Dion Lee & Cushnie et Ochs, also an oldie Narciso Rodriguez I feel has so much talent and vision and could do miracles at maybe Balenciaga?

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ Are you referring to Michael Michael Kors? Overall I like the idea of diffusion lines, but I think perhaps this one should be shut down. Some kind of quality must be maintained ...

 

[D A N A]

No, I do actually mean the main line, I have been in their boutique in London and Dubai, its not luxe and what is shown on the runway is never in stores and what is available in stores quality wise is similar to maybe Zara women's when its supposed to be a luxury brand.

 

[fashionista-ta]

I'll have to take a look next time I'm near the boutique here. Having the runway stuff in stores is a merchandising decision ... if it doesn't sell or isn't right for that market, then it makes perfect sense. Seeing runway in stores is really more the exception than the rule. Dries produces everything, so it's the rare line where (if you can find it) you can see runway in stores without question.

 

[adrienpegon]

Jil Sander needs a new creative director as soon as possible. Rodolfo Paglialunga is obviously talented, but he doesn't have that deep sense of minimalism or details Jil and Raf had. His collections are nice, but this is not Jil Sander, this is not strong enough to appeal the "fashion lover" customer, and in the meantime not minimalist or fakely simple enough to appeal the typical Jil lover. When I went to the store Avenue Montaigne in Paris, I talked with the manager and he recognized Rodolfo's appointment had quickly an impact on sales ( mostly in Europe ), because the customers they always had stopped shopping there, they were disappointed by the collections and missed the old Jil. The clothes are no longer timeless but seasonal, Paglialunga is following too hard current trends, while Jil and Raf's approaches were to produce pieces you could wear even 10 years later. Even if sales are increasing in Asia and especially in China, the brand is losing its prestige. Jil Sander is now a boring, faux minimalist fashion house producing contextless and lame clothes ( and god knows how much I loved Jil Sander ).
They should hire someone like Christophe Lemaire real quick, someone who truly understand what minimalism and sober aesthetic mean.

 

[mariemaud]

speaking only for my taste i'd like to see new designers for Balmain - Saint Laurent - Balenciaga - Dior (can't wait to see what's next) - Gucci - Valentino - MqQueen

John Galliano should close

and more of Olivier Theyskens -Pilati

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ Agree with the designers you'd like to see more of. Even more than new designers, I'd like to see Valentino get a new photographer!

 

[rosiecheeks]

I really don't understand why Alexander McQueen is still running with his name as a masthead. It just doesn't make any sense to me.

 

[mariemaud]

I think it would be too harsh to say some brands should shut downink:

Brands that need a makeover desperately IMO
- Ungaro: I think with a creative genius they can take over HC fashion week
- Prada: Desperately needs freshness and life
-Hermes: Will never stop selling out of bags and shoes but in terms of fashion so BORING
- Kenzo: Does anyone even know what they are doing anymore?
-Nina Ricci: I miss the days of glamour and beautiful gowns
-Michael Kors: There seems to be a huge disconnect between what is shown at New York fashion week and what is in stores, the quality of the clothing is tragic
- Paco Rabbane: They have become so irrelevant its sad
- Dries Van Noten: I feel like they need a new direction

On a different note, I see a lot of great new designer brands coming out and like someone mentioned earlier I can imagine them taking on a larger name and doing wonders for example, Dion Lee & Cushnie et Ochs, also an oldie Narciso Rodriguez I feel has so much talent and vision and could do miracles at maybe Balenciaga?

i agree for prada, same and same over again

 

[D A N A]

Did anyone mention Zuhair Murad here? This man needs an identity.

 

[squilliam]

Did anyone mention Zuhair Murad here? This man needs an identity.

Yes, he should stick with only one or two main designers to copy!

 

[SandraJH]

I really don't understand why Alexander McQueen is still running with his name as a masthead. It just doesn't make any sense to me.

? So do Chanel, Dior, Balenciaga, Givenchy, Oscar de la Renta, Louis Vuitton, Burberry, etc., etc also not make any sense to you?

 

[SandraJH]

Did anyone mention Zuhair Murad here? This man needs an identity.

He has a solid brand identity. It's very similar to other Lebanese designers, yes, but it sells and is well represented on red carpets. No, it's not innovative, but at this point in time it doesn't seem like many labels are interested in innovation.

 

[Karl Boucher]

Prada needs a makeover. Miuccia is on autopilot for a while.

 

[Deleted member 141309]

Balmain, Prada, D&G, Ferragamo, Lanvin (again), Marc Jacobs - are all in desperate need of a makeover. Especially with things like Gucci, Balenciaga and etc. happening now. Balmain’s change was not enough.