American Apparel: Still Sexy, Still Selling
American Apparel CEO and creepy ad campaign mastermind Dov Charney reveals the secrets to his success, even as other retailers fates go from bad to worse: a young, adaptive clientele, seasonless clothes in a rainbow of colors, and lotsa latex.
Much has been made of the future First Lady’s Seventh Avenue savior potential, but what of the fashion influence of her hubbie? Listen up, ballers: In an Obama regime, high-tops will most definitely be in.
If it weren’t for their stellar (read: questionable) dating histories, we’d pass off this bit of goss as mere hearsay. But when it comes to love, Kate Hudson and A-Rod have a tendency to look in all the wrong places, which is why this sounds so right.
The best sartorial service available at next week’s inauguration has to be the “Ralph Lauren Bow Tie Butler,” who will be on hand at the designer’s Mandarin Oriental pop-up shop. Perhaps we’ll go for Le Smoking after all.
Gianfranco Ferré’s new creative directors, Tommaso Aquilano and Roberto Rimondi, have added menswear to their designing duties. The duo, who started 6267 together, will debut their first men’s collection for the label in Milan this Sunday.
Beckhams. Birkin. Bling. Duh.—Alison Baenen
Photo: Courtesy of American Apparel
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There are plenty of giant department stores already in Los Angeles. For their new boutique, In Residence, co-owners Rachel Salzman and Tracey Moulton (above) preferred to think small. “We didn’t want to be just another retail outlet for brands that already have a million other outlets for their voice,” Salzman explains. “We wanted to be a unique destination.” And by setting up shop in a still relatively retail-free neighborhood and stocking labels under-represented in L.A., they’re doing just that.In Residence sits on a stretch of Sawtelle Boulevard that includes nurseries, authentic Japanese groceries, and a well-trafficked restaurant row. (The neighborhood, just steps from the fabled—and often standstill—405 Freeway, is historically Japanese-American.) “We have a lot in common with the area as a brand,” Salzman says. “There’s this amazing foot traffic, and all the people that eat and hang out there are the people we want shopping in our store. There’s just no store there right now for them to shop at.” Now on offer for them? Electric Feathers’ silk dresses and jumpers (last seen at the Surf Lodge in Montauk over the summer), swing coats from H. Fredriksson, Boyy’s unstructured totes (a favorite of Alexa Chung), and the duo’s own budget-friendly house line. At present, the tightly edited In Residence label consists of the girls’ four favorite pieces, including the perfect crewneck tee and an addictively soft, vintage-inspired sweatshirt, starting at just $28.In Residence, 2051 Sawtelle Blvd., L.A., (310) 312-2049, www.weareinresidence.com.


Business of Fashion previews Industrie’s list of the 50 fashion folks it considers the most influential creative forces working in the industry today. A controversial sampling? Yes. But of course, that’s exactly what such lists are for. [BOF]Karl Lagerfeld. Coming to Macy’s. Repeat: Karl Lagerfeld. Coming to Macy’s. With a new one-off capsule collection. In 2011. All we can think: total world domination? [WWD]Fashion’s favorite transgendered model, Lea T.—confidante and assistant of Givenchy’s Riccardo Tisci, and frequent Givenchy runway and campaign star—will be appearing on Oprah, according to reports. On any other day, this might be the most unlikely revelation of the news cycle, but today, well, see above. [”>Hint Mag]And speaking of world domination, the ladies of Sex and the City are apparently game for a third film. We don’t know whether to be awed or horrified. [Vogue U.K.]


