NEW YORK — After years of putting on the glitz with their eveningwear, Mark Badgley and James Mischka are toning things down a bit with their first bridge sportswear collection.
They plan to unveil the spring 25-piece collection in their showroom on Sept. 13, the day before their 7th on Sixth runway show.
“We didn’t want this to be stripped-down office clothes,” Badgley said. “There will be soft feminine pieces and hard-edged tailored pieces. It doesn’t matter whether the woman is working, carpooling or meeting her friends at the country club for lunch. It’s for the modern customer of any age who has a strong sense for how to put herself together.”
Sportswear is not new territory for the designers. Before joining forces, Badgley worked for Donna Karan and Mischka worked for Willi Smith. Their latest venture falls under an existing licensing deal with Groupe JS International, which produces the licensed Platinum dress collection.
Neil Cole, chairman and chief executive officer of the Iconic Brand Group, Badgley Mischka’s parent company, said the move “is the next step in making Badgley Mischka a lifestyle brand” and that the timing is right. The designer label wanted to capitalize on its current ads for the first Badgley Mischka fragrance, which launches at Neiman Marcus this month and will be available in 300 doors for holiday.
Finishing touches are being put on a Badgley Mischka ad campaign, which will feature a major Hollywood celebrity, but “not the Olsen twins,” Cole said. Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen appeared in the spring ad campaign, a choice that made some outsiders wonder where the brand was headed. Cole said the new campaign will be “very different.”
Badgley Mischka’s plan has been to get the dress business up and running before adding sportswear. Jackets, pants, skirts, underpinnings, cut-and-sewn knits, sweaters and a smattering of denim will be part of the assortment. With wholesale prices in the $200 to $500 range, the sportswear should appeal to a range of women, from young urban professionals to couture customers, Mischka said. The Platinum dress collection is far-reaching, intended for prom goers to 65-year-old women, he noted.
First-year projected wholesale volume for the sportswear is $20 million, said Mitchell Hops, president of Groupe JS International. Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, Bloomingdale’s and Holt Renfrew are among the 300 stores expected to carry it. The platinum sportswear will square off with labels such as Elie Tahari, M Missoni and Ralph Lauren Black Label.
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In step with the anticipated growth, Fran Ornstein, who joined the company 18 months ago, has been promoted to executive vice president of Badgley Mischka Modern Apparel. Badgley Mischka has turned over some of its showroom space at 550 Seventh Avenue here to accommodate a few new Badgley Mischka Platinum Sportswear hires. Wendy Chivian has signed on as general manager of Badgley Mischka Platinum Sportswear, Karen Katzman has been named sales director and newly appointed design director Eduardo Natel will work under the direction of the company’s namesakes.
Badgley Mischka executives have been talking about the prospect of bridge sportswear for about a year, Badgley said, and now, “We’re aggressively going after it.”