British designer Hakaan cancels Paris Fashion Week show after courier company loses entire sample collection
Following a fashion designer's worst nightmare, there was a one-hour hole in the normally tight Paris Fashion Week calendar.
Representatives of London-based label Hakaan said its entire collection had been lost.
Turkish designer Hakaan Yildirim was set to present his spring/summer 2013 collection to the media yesterday afternoon, on the penultimate day of the Paris schedule.
But it has come to light that the courier company that was transporting the collection has lost all the clothes.
PR company Karla Otto sent out emails yesterday to all those with invitations saying the preview was cancelled - after it became clear that the collection had disappeared.
'The whole collection is lost,' said Karen Nitsche of Karla Otto. 'It was when they were being transported. We don't know how.'
This is not the first time a courier company has been to blame for the loss or theft of a fashion collection.
Last November, Marc Jacobs was forced to cancel his much-anticipated European press day after his entire spring/summer 2012 collection was stolen from a train bound for London from Paris.
The 46-look range was due to go on show in the capital to give British fashion editors the chance to sample next year's trendsetters.
But in an e-mail circulated to the media the company said it could no longer go ahead because of the theft.
As the pieces were effectively worthless because they were not yet in production, this led to fears that counterfeiters may be involved.
Thankfully in this instance Hakaan is re-making the show pieces for an exclusive screening later in the week to be attended by selected members of the press and fashion elite.