Rochas to close

[MUXU]

noooo
if they do this...when will be the next time we see rochas!?
and oliver! what about him...i dont want to see him go either...unless he does his own thing else where

 

[greydove]

oh my gosh this is so crazy and sudden and sad ....his clothes are beautiful though and no doubt he'll continue his work, even if not at rochas

 

[Bluestar07]

NOOOOOOO!!!!

 

[new_dawn_fades]

gee.. first im sick and its a cold winters day..with loads of ranges due and i cant move and now this... i want to die.. if this is how fashion works then i really dont know what to say.. Poor Olivier.. i love they guy and His works.. i feel really sorry for the team too! im flabbergasted! right when i thought they were "growing" as tricot said, this happens.. im left with no hope..
i hope nothing drastic happens and hope the best for young Olivier!! big we love you from TFS! <sheds tear in disbelief>

 

[spottie]

Did P&G not "shop Rochas around"? You know, look for a buyer first before just closing down business.

 

[Marvystone]

Nooo!...I really like/d Rochas

 

[zamb]

he will be fine, he is probably the greatest designer of his generation (under 30 yrs old) and th repect he has in the industry will enable him to land somewhere . i think his greatest mistake was to have turned down the Givenchy job after McQueen had left. i think he would have been perfect (he would have also had the chance to do real Haute Couture)

Maybe he should really return to his own line, he probably has enough money now to be able to keep a small, well organized business afloat, without a backer. Also, based on his repect and goodwill in the industry i cant see why, he should have any difficulty finding one if he needed it

 

[Benzo]

I thought it's a joke, but...
There's been signs of cutting funds. Just look at his 1st and 2nd collection, u'll see.
Maybe he could be at Chloe, but Haute Couture seems to be the place he's born to be.
Reality is so harsh.

 

[kiss&tell]

I hate this. Omg. Fashion houses have closed in such a short period of time! This CANNOT be happening!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[taz]

C'est laVie

 

[city girl]

wow this is sad. i hope olivier gets another great job..i can't really imagine him for chloe though

 

[anastars]

ROCHAS CLOSES

THE fashion world is in mourning today after the shock confirmation yesterday that the house of Rochas, led to great acclaim by designer Olivier Theyskens for the past three years, is to close. A spokeswoman for Procter & Gamble, which owns the French fashion label, said yesterday 30 workers in Paris has been informed of a shutdown plan – but declined to elaborate except to say that the autumn/winter 2006-7 collection would still be delivered. Founded by Marcel Rochas in 1924, the company existed only as a fragrance house after his death in 1955. It was revived by Wella, which made the classic Rochas Femme scent, in 1990 with Peter O'Brien in the position of creative director. Since Theyskens, who won the International Award at the CFDA awards this year, took over in 2003, Rochas has become one of the most impressive collections on the ready-to-wear calendar, with the likes of Sarah Jessica Parker and Kirsten Dunst showing their support by wearing it on the red carpet in recent months. While the financial state of the company was not revealed yesterday, it is thought to have still been loss-making despite Theyskens' burgeoning success – and as a beauty company, it is unsurprising that Procter & Gamble have eventually shirked the added responsibility of a fashion empire – even one that grew 30 per cent last year. "It was one of the hottest businesses on the floor," said Julie Gilhart, fashion director of Barneys, New York. "Olivier took an unknown brand and made it one of the most desirable ones in fashion in a short amount of time." Anna Wintour, too, is sad to see Rochas go - but hopeful that the Theyskens star will continue to rise. "It's an enormous shame," she said yesterday. "Olivier is one of our brightest young talents on an international platform. He has taken enormous care to build that brand in a slow and methodical way so that the fashion customer totally understands what the Rochas signature looks are." So where will he go next? Watch this space. (July 19 2006, AM)

vogue.com

 

[Meg]

wow, I completely missed this. It is incredibly tragic that such a venerable house is ceasing fashion production.

I have the same questions as everyone else though....I mean 3 years is hardly anytime to get a fashionhouse up and running. I mean Gucci Group gave Lee McQueen and stella mccartney 3 years and they were already in the press constantly. To get a label restarted in that amount of time is a great feat. Also, why if the brand wasn't making money (which it wasn't) did they not expand sooner into their fragrances and accessories? Accessories, makeup, fragrance, these are the bread and butter of MANY houses.

Regarding what Thesken's at de la Renta. I'm with softgrey on this one. Rochas I think was quite stuffy for the first collection or two with Theskens, I mean he only started doing pants a season or two ago! It definately does have this sort of 'ornate edge' to it which is beautiful but I think the exact same thing could be achieved with de la Renta. And de la Renta was also off the radar until several years ago when he started with his now ubiquitous big dresses with pockets. It will be interesting.

Really wish I had some money at the moment. May have to head down to the shops at the end of the month and HOPE I can still catch something on sale (and IF I can fit into it).

Finally, to keep this from getting too rambly, that Rochas just does not look good on the shelf. Others may disagree with me, but i find that a hanger does it no justice. I remember seeing these dresses which were stunning on the runway, look limpid in the shop among tons of other dresses which look great on a hanger. It's interesting.

 

[Ceptuouse]

why?

 

[sarah13]

I wonder how far allong things were for the S/S 2007 shows for this September? All thoes beautiful clothes trashed Makes me very sad.

 

[luckyme]

big business seems to poison everything. maybe it's a blessing in disguise. true talent seems to find a way to carry on because it is so rare and driven by a desire to be seen no matter what.

 

[faust]

big business seems to poison everything. maybe it's a blessing in disguise. true talent seems to find a way to carry on because it is so rare and driven by a desire to be seen no matter what.

I sincerely wish that was true, but it's not always. Jurgi Persoons is one of the most talented designer I've ever seen, and he's out of business.

 

[faust]

maybe i am being bitter, but after having seen all S/S 2007 pre collections in person, I must confirm my thoughts that I find Alber Elbaz' Lanvin clothing (which is priced just as high as Rochas) much inferior in terms of construction and technique compared to Olivier's... Rochas excels in almost every aspect of the product - the fabrics are especially designed for the house and are often the most innovative on the market, the stitching is tight and the construction often reinforced from the inside for a perfect fit... if you ever have access to any of his dresses, the short cap sleeves are often reinforced from the inside with stiff gaze for them to fit correctly, some of the skirts have build-in corsets or fully-constructed underskirts - these are qualities I haven't seen in any other high-end designer collection elsewhere on the market... for sure not with Lanvin, though.

Big 2nd. I don't think Elbaz is anything special as a deisgner and Lanvin as a label that demans such prices... which is probably why most of their clothes is there to be sold on sale at Barneys.

 

[sarah13]

Is Anna wearing Rochas here?

Photo credit: Getty

 

[susie_bubble]

WTF??? I go away for three days and come back to this breaking news.....

How sad.... Meg, very good points about the expansion into the accessories and fragrance market...... I was wondering the same thing.