Twiggy in iconic musical 'The Boyfriend' written by Sandy Wilson, directed by Ken Russell

'The Boy Friend' was written by my Great Uncle Sandy Wilson ( my Gran's little brother) after he had finished at Oxford University. It was a musical pastiche of the 1930s Busby Berkley musical and became an unexpected hit in London and then went onto the Royale Theatre on Broadway New York in Sept 1954. It was a hit and Julie Andrews played the role of Polly. It was her first big show. She became a huge star following this going onto do The Sound of Music and Mary Poppins. I remember as a little girl going to see the Ken Russell film version in 1971 in London with my family, it was all very exciting though Sandy did not like the musical arrangement of his classic songs and has moaned about it ever since! Twiggy won two Golden Globes for her performance. She has a wonderful voice and the world found out that she could act and tap dance! The film sets by Tony Walton were and still are fabulous bold art deco extravagances. Room in Bloomsbury is my favourite set, her cream silk dress is amazing.  It is good to recently hear Twiggy talking about the fact that it is thanks to The Boy Friend that she got her next big career break into film and singing. It enabled her to showcase her undoubted talent - good luck with your new CD called 'Romantically Yours' Twigs.....
Here she sings 'I could be Happy' my favourite song from the show.  

Copy - Schelay McCarter

Marc Jacobs @ LV & Lula Magazine - Mi Piacciono !

The S/S 2012 Louis Vuitton collection though inspired by Mia Farrow in the 1960's horror movie Rosmary's Baby  reminds me of a grown up sophisticated well healed 'Lula' Girl

Below please see an editorial fashion S/S 12 shoot  idea developed by Sara Gomes for Lula Magazine (picture researcher for Portuguese Vogue) with me on my Art Direction for Fashion course 

Lula is a UK Publication

Versace and Lanvin for H&M - Fashion Film Genius

Lanvin for H&M, a brilliant  Fashion Film to promote the new collection. It is fun quirky and totally fascinating to watch. More than all this the clothes look really great, so wearable and democratic. 


to see the full look book click here, fabulous collection
http://www.fashionologie.com/Full-Lanvin-HM-Lookbook-Complete-Prices-Full-Ad-Campaign-11776479

Versace for H&M. This is technically impressive though it  did not make me want to buy into the brand, however plenty of others did, it sold out rapidly. 

Starting on the 19th April I will be running a new course called 'Create Your own Fashion Film.'

Film combined with still photography is growing in importance as a marketing aid to reinforce a brands image and DNA particularly on the luxury high end fashion brand websites. Done well it has the effect of sucking you into the brands world. Top fashion photographers such as Mert and Marcus are increasingly offering both skills to fashion clients. We will explore why on the course. To find out more click on the link below.

/http://www.csm.arts.ac.uk/shortcourses/fashionandtextiles/eveningandweekend/fashionmarketing/createyourownfashionfilm/

The Chinese are sustaining the European Luxury market

I spotted these Chinese shoppers in Berlin last October

The Chinese and other 'new rich' nations are snapping up not just the luxury goods of the West but it would seem also the companies that make them.
The Shandong heavy industry group Welchai Group announced yesterday that it was buying 75% interest in the Makers of Luxury Yachts the Ferretti Group. 
The other hunch economics journalists are mooting with increasing confidence is that the Luxury business will shift to Asia, where there is none of the European guilt at displays of wealth. 
The other fact is that Europe can still produce top end products better than anyone else, in some cases even better than the US Hamish McRae of the Independent thinks.
I hadn't realised that thanks to an export surge to Asia, Rolls Royce sales hit an all time high last year.
This strengthens my hunch that we should be investing more in 'Brand UK' by rejuvenating the 'made in England' cache in high end fashion thus helping to kick start our own economic prospects long term!




Schelay McCarter  2012 

Original 1970s glam in the form of Jerry Hall

Jerry Hall at the height of her allure

Check out this wonderful promo film of Brian Ferry singing ' Let's stick together' with the company of perhaps 'the' most glamorous woman of the 1970s. International fashion icon Jerry is all woman, and had extraordinary charisma as can be seen from this video. The song and style epitomises the latter half of this edgy and exciting decade for sizzling Anglo American liaisons. With 'a little help from our friends' in both fashion and music the British were continuing to be in the forefront of this media. 

Aquascutum flies the quality flag by using British tailoring skills

One of Aquascutum's more successful  advertising campaigns

Well done Harold Tillman for keeping some of Aquascutum produced in the UK. Harold Tillman also owns another British heritage fashion brand Jaeger. There is no information about where Jaeger merchandise is produced. I suspect in China. 

http://www.aquascutum.co.uk/Made_In_England

'Aquascutum makes some of its outerwear in England at their Corby, Northamptonshire factory underscoring the company’s support of the British textile industry and ensuring impeccable standards are maintained'.

bravo!

I wonder where quintessentially British brand Hackett is made. Jeremy Hackett has proclaimed he owns a set of mugs that say 'Made in England' but does this declaration of intent extend to his highly successful clothing company?  I went to check and I see the label says Hackett London and then in minute writing I see Made in China! disappointing.

Pringle is another British heritage brand not made in the UK . Perhaps our government needs to give our fashion entrepreneurs some of the same incentives that the Chinese government gives to their manufacturing industry. We can't compete with the low end side of manufacturing but the high end has huge potential. If Aquascutum and Barbour can do it why can't others?  

http://fashion.telegraph.co.uk/news-features/TMG8018655/Made-in-Britain-flying-the-flag-for-UK-manufacturing.html


Check out the following brands including Barbour that successfully keep production in the UK...

Barbour

A fourth-generation family-owned British brand, Barbour continues to manufacture its core waxed-cotton garments in a factory in South Shields, Tyne and Wear, although other products are made elsewhere. Following the same trajectory as Hunter boots, Barbour favourites such as Beaufort, Bedale and Border are no longer just the preserve of the county set. Having hopped on to the must-have list of festival-heading hipsters, the brand is basking in its cool status with more products aimed at a fashion-savvy clientele. The International, based on a motorcycle-jacket design from the archives, has ignited a following among city-dwelling, style-conscious men. As with Ewan McGregor and the model David Gandy, who both wear the International, the preferred colour is black. Bedale navy wax barbour, £179, Barbour (barbourbymail.co.uk ).

John Smedley

Based in Matlock, Derbyshire, the fine-gauge knitwear specialist John Smedley has operated as a family-owned business for more than 225 years. Best known for its Sea Island cotton and New Zealand merino wool, the company boasts that 99.6 per cent of the 430,000 items that it produces each year are made in Britain. 'We are the oldest continuous manufacturer of clothing in the UK,' says the creative director, Dawne Stubbs, adding that because of this, John Smedley has over time nurtured a skilled workforce. But bringing manufacturing back to Britain will not be easy, she warns: sourcing buttons and threads locally often constitutes a challenge, and rebuilding a skilled workforce is even harder. Grey merino wool crewneck and red merino wool roundneck, £122 each, John Smedley ( johnsmedley.com ).

Sunspel

A lesser-known heritage name, Sunspel made its name in men's underwear (it introduced boxer shorts to Britain in 1947) and opened its first store in Shoreditch in May. 'There has always been a strong element of innovation at Sunspel,' says Nicholas Brooke, who together with Dominic Hazlehurst has breathed new life into the brand since buying it in 2005. Although he has made changes, his commitment to Sunspel's factory in Long Eaton, Derbyshire, where it has operated since 1937, is unwavering. 'Men do appear to react more positively to the heritage that comes with making in the UK.' White T-shirt, £36, and blue and white stripe T-shirt, £38, both Sunspel (020-7739 9729; sunspel.com ).

by Schelay McCarter

Ethics focus on British luxury fashion Brands - Mulberry & Burberry

I really like everything about Christopher Bailey's design leadership at Burberry and Mulberry's brilliant rise in fashion status however British high end luxury brands such as Burberry can afford to bring back 'some' or maybe all of their manufacturing into the UK. 
'Made in the UK' carries huge cache for Far Eastern, South American and Asian customers. There is a Burberry trench coat factory in Castleford West Yorkshire apparently that  has recently doubled is it's productivity due to demand but this is a drop in the ocean on overall Burberry garment output volume wise.  The UK needs to rebuild it's manufacturing base again if it is to pull itself out of the down turn long term.  
Quality is not always guaranteed by shifting to Chinese factories. Burberry has taken a quality hit because of this in my opinion. A huge mistake was made closing down the Welsh factory. Mulberry has a factory in Bath but there has been some controversy over the fact that Turkey ( the home of the counterfeit brand in the 1990s ) has been used for some of the collection in the past. Mulberry is way ahead of many other British brands by having some of it's manufacturing here in the UK at least.

Agreed that these brands are having to compete with fashion giants such as the LVMH and PPR group however their Britishness is being diluted by their manufacturing choices. 

Also customers paying top dollar expect quality and with that there should be good after care service. Good design should last more than one season. 

The throw away mentality of pre recession times will become a thing of the past. Barbour still offers a repair service. Attitudes need to change to reflect the times we are now living in. 
Our British heritage is the last of the family silver we have left to capitalise on frankly and we are in a perfect position now with the luxury goods market high margins to make the most of it. A Burberry trench coat costs £2,395.00, and this is perceived as a good price by far Eastern and South American visitors to our Island.

The British Luxury goods market is defying the down turn and is expected to grow by 57% in the next 5 years making it worth 9.4 billion by 2015.


Saving Skills
British heritage Luxury goods companies in particular Burberry are making huge profits - some of this money could be channelled into investing in skill development  and apprenticeships encouraging manufacturing and production back in the UK for the long term. Mulberry and Burberry are in a unique position to be able to lead by example. 


Check out the 'Out of Exile' brand where all the production is done in Kent.  http://www.outofxile.co.uk/OOX_Autumn_2011/About_Out_of_Xile.html

Who is to blame historically : In part accountants who look at the bottom line and put pressure on businesses to go for higher short term profits. 

Brand integrity is key for business success. Customers are no longer interested in the superficial - when they buy into a brand they are buying other elements that make up the DNA of their aspirations and that in todays world is seeing that the short termism of greed and profligacy is eradicated. People will increasingly seek to make statements with their purchase choices.

John Lewis has shown an astute understanding of this trend as evidenced by it's buoyant Christmas profits. It is a company where the employees are all partners and have a share in the profits when times are good. The CEO is paid well but nothing astronomically more than the shop floor sales person and no where near that of other retail sector CEOs. John Lewis has no problem attracting the very best candidates for top jobs.

The brilliant advertising campaign sums up the new mood - it struck a chord over Christmas. 

Greed and self service is not derigueur - doing the right thing is. Those who do will win. 


What do you think - ? 


by Schelay McCarter