Hospitality Design - December 2014 - 79

Foreign policy experts see Japan and
China edging close to war over the disputed
Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands, but Japanese
designers staged several shows in the
Chinese capital-notably, a loving ode to UK
eccentricity at Dresscamp, with sleeveless
oversized cricket sweaters baring the
message 'Master' in bold letters for men and
Jane Austen-goes-to-space gowns for girls.
Street style is alive and well in China,
particularly at V-Pull, which held a show on a
runway crowded with mock food and antique
stalls. The selection of graphic flower power
patchwork jeans, power pop blazers, and acid
rave party print cocktails had lots of kick. It
all climaxed with a Chinese Comanche gal

2

brilliant fur and fashion designer from
Rome, in which LVMH just invested. He
shows great potential. And I revere Sacai-
the most interesting new women's designer
this decade. For men, Boris Bidjan Saberi,
who is from the Rick Owens school of
gothic style but with more street credibility
and wearability.

good for a tipple but once you have drunk
good Bordeaux or Burgundy they all seem
rather lightweight. I still prefer the heavy
stuff from great labels. They cost a lot more
but when you wear cashmere suits from
Ferré, a Dries runway shirt, or an Armani
Beckham jacket, you are in a different
fashion clubhouse.

What are some of the challenges
and opportunities facing the fashion
industry in the upcoming year?

Are there any new technologies or tools
that are changing the fashion world?

In Italy, to find a new generation
of designers; in America to find
more avant-garde talent and less
merchandiser designers; for the BRICs,

3

in a tribal eagle feather headdress driving a
huge Harley-Davidson down the runway. The
ultimate symbol of macho Americana meets
the party hearty mood of today's Chinese
youth quake.

Which designer is exciting you the most
right now?
For women, Jonathan Anderson. His
sculptural clothes in his own label [J.W.
Anderson] are sensational, and his
rebranding and teasing of Madrid house
Loewe is highly impressive. For men,
Alessandro Sartori-he's a mega-designer,
brilliant avant-garde tailor, fabulous
reinventor of men's boots, and the man
who has made Berluti the best men's
couture collection anywhere.

Is there an up-and-coming designer
who you have your eye on?
For women I like Marco de Vincenzo, a

All the athletic performance fabrics will
go on to have a huge effect, especially if
they manage to marry these ideas with
natural fabrics-that meeting point is
the future of materials. Photoshop: One

4
to find a true champion. It's crazy that none
of those emerging countries has found a
great global talent that makes people go,
'Wow!' One day, for sure, but I still have
not met one. For opportunities, there has
never been a better time to be a designer.
People buy more clothes than ever, and 5
the media is permanently ravenous for
new stars.

It's interesting how an increasing
number of runway fashion brands are
now creating more ready-to-wear
collections for the masses via large
retailers. What do you think of that
movement?

'Masstige'-mass and prestige-fashion
is fine. I have bought H&M stuff from
Karl Lagerfeld, Lanvin, Viktor & Rolf, and
Maison Martin Margiela. I still wear some
of this-Karl's shirt and my Lanvin tuxedo.
But ultimately, they are like Beaujolais;

5

cannot exaggerate the importance of this in
modern printing. It has completely rewritten
patterns, camouflages, and florals, and will
continue to do so.

How do you feel about fashion
designers entering the hospitality
realm-for instance, Tommy Hilfiger
buying the Raleigh in South Beach?

I love the idea. Few people have greater
imaginations when it comes to their own
homes than designers. Take John Rocha
and his hotel in Dublin-the Morrison has
one of the greatest lobby bars on the planet.
Or Armani's spa in his Dubai hotel in the
world's tallest building. It's a fantastic
all-black spa and a wonderfully cool way
to detox. I am off to Miami this month for
Art Basel and will stay in the Raleigh.
I cannot wait!

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Hospitality Design - December 2014

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