MILAN — Accessories seemed to be on top of many buyers’ lists, as exhibitors at trade fairs Touch, Neozone, Cloudnine, MixMilano and White offered their takes on fall 2007 trends after the ready-to-wear show schedule here last month.
Pitti Immagine, organizers of the Neozone and Cloudnine rtw and accessories fairs, added a new show and venue, Touch — a loft space featuring 45 contemporary women’s collections. The trio of shows ran from Feb. 22 to 25.
Ann Watson, vice president and fashion director for Henri Bendel, said, “We were looking for great accessories — costume jewelry and great contemporary bag lines, which are on fire in the stores right now, we are selling so much. The lines also have to have an Henri Bendel point of view and spirit.
“Our budgets for Europe have increased a bit for this season, so we managed to pick up some more lines,” she continued. “At White, we found Dusty Couture, a line of luxury down jackets, and Goti, which is a costume jewelry line. At Cloudnine, we picked up La Dolce Vita handbags with interchangeable Swarovski crystal handles, and Tataborello, a costume jewelry line of big rings and smaller beaded bracelets with ribbons.”
Similarly, Terry Ellis, a buyer for Beams, a fashion chain of 70 shops in Japan with its flagship in Harajuku, Tokyo, said, “I thought the fairs were quite well organized and offered a good range of small collections. Accessories were the best offer.
“We were looking for accessories and younger lines,” Ellis added. “We found interesting accessories, but the younger collections were difficult to buy for our stores because of the strength of the euro against the Japanese yen.”
Some said there were no clear-cut trends evident at the fairs.
Ellis noted, “Trends were very youth-focused, which was different from what we saw on the catwalks, particularly in Paris a few days later. The new brands we picked up were Nicole Brundage shoes and Bl De Jour knitwear. Nicole Brundage shoes had high heels, platform soles and a kind of grown-up glamour. Bl De Jour had light angora and cashmere knits in basic colors and good shapes that could be worn layered and would work from day to evening.”
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Pearl Stein, owner and buyer of Relish in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, said, “I visited the fairs White, Neozone, Cloudnine and Touch because I wanted to find accessories and some younger lines. But this season I found White a little weaker and I believe the collections of fairs Neozone, Cloudnine and Touch need to be revamped. It was a little disappointing.”
Vendors, meanwhile, were offering a range of accessories with shine, knits, dresses, shoes and tailored sportswear.
At Touch, Sardinian shoe designer Angelo Figus presented his comeback collection in an installation, which included cone-heeled pumps and anatomically shaped ballerinas.
Also at Touch, one-year-old brand Ellis Wallis Paper showed long-sleeved wool jersey dresses with plissé skirts and lace-like knitted angora sweaters in pale lilac and taupe. “Charlie’s Angels” and Las Vegas inspired the Capri, Italy-based label’s second collection. “It’s important for us to make feminine pieces that aren’t too trendy — that’s what attracts our buyers,” said owner and designer Elis Bacchi.
Forties-style femininity was a trend at Geen at Giò Schön. The two-year-old line channeled old-school glamour with fox-collared plum coats and tie-front black chiffon blouses.
At Neozone, contrasting casual and tailored looks dominated the 64 collections. Danish brand Noa Noa returned to the fair with a layered grunge silhouette for fall of printed chiffon silk dresses and cableknit coat-length cardigans. Nearby, Milan-based label Pupigia’s tailored outerwear included a waterproof cotton ecru trench with a waist sash that tied at the back and mother-of-pearl buttons, and a padded blue tweed and lamé tailored coat with a round collar. The coats were teamed with printed satin wrap dresses. “We want to dress women elegantly, but not blandly — our prices are in line with department stores’ own lines, but there’s more style to them,” said co-chief executive Pupigia, who goes by a single name.
Accessories fair Cloudnine presented some carryover trends from summer, including patent forest green and ice white leather totes found at Vive La Difference’s stand. Over at Melissa Agnoletti, an ornate gold fabric was incorporated into a bag’s handle made from the new generation of Plexiglas. The bag, which is reversible, came in washed goat leather and a laminated tweed textile. “Using new technology is important, especially in the accessories-soaked market — you have to offer something new,” said Agnoletti.
Meanwhile, back in the hands of its founder, Massimiliano Bizzi, after being run by Pitti Immagine, rtw show White sported a slick new interior design. Some of the 163 exhibitors complained it was hard to distinguish garments’ colors in the new black-and-mirrored halls, but most were happy with Bizzi’s new concept for the show, which was held at Superstudio Più on Via Tortona Feb. 22 to 25. It attracted 8,000 visitors.
“The new design is very beautiful, but I think people find it hard to navigate,” said Giada Forte, designer of label forte forte. The Vicenza-based brand’s fall collection featured washed satin ivory dresses, long cashmere knits and crepe viscose and wool jersey straight-legged pants, which Forte designed because “everyone’s doing dresses.”
To break into the U.S. market, Forte said she was trying to hook up with a showroom in New York.
Niche luxury accessories line Aristolasia recently opened a showroom in New York’s Bryant Park to support its growing American distribution. New bags for fall included small evening handled pouches crafted from silver water snake leather, and the same design in black rubber and suede. “The rubber designs sell for 400 euros, and are the entry-level prices we needed to round out the collection,” said Fabio Renzetti, co-ceo of Aristolasia.
Sought out by buyers for its on-trend shoe line, L’Autre Chose offered a more robust rtw collection that featured high-waisted wool pants and roomy mohair coats to pair with its lace-up sage green boots and taupe moccasin-front pumps.
Jersey fall looks were shown by many brands at White: Lola Parker had crushed cashmere jersey tops, io e Meg presented jersey wool A-line minidresses and d-cln added a beige plissé silk insert to the front of a gray viscose jersey dress.
Meanwhile, niche fashion and accessories fair MixMilano held its third edition nearby in Milan’s trendy Navigli district on Via Pestalozzi Feb. 23 to 25. The ultraniche fair showcased 33 exhibitors, including nascent Turkish brand Mai, which brought its first collection to the fair. Brand manager Idil Deniz Türkman said in addition to contacting new Italian buyers at the fair, she had spent a few days searching for a Milan showroom for the line. A short camel wool cape coat and a black-and-white washed-silk tunic dress were her most ordered garments, she said. Wholesale prices run from 20 euros, or $26 at current exchange, to 400 euros, or $524, for a washed-leather jacket.
At MixMilano for the second time, Helsinki, Finland-based shoe designer Minna Parikka brought a collection inspired by fetish shoes from the Thirties and Forties. Magenta suede ankle boots and red patent leather tie-up pumps were among the hot styles for fall.
Milan-based brand Andie D used MixMilano as a platform to show potential buyers the revamped style of its 10-year-old line, under the design direction of Norwegian designer Siri Willoch. A balloon-sleeved felted wool coat with a sash epitomized Andie D’s new look, said Chiara Siano, commercial director of Donisia, which owns the brand. “It’s cleaner, more feminine and we have used beautiful, quality textiles,” she added.
Brooklyn, N.Y.-based designer Ilse Eriksson brought her fall collection for her line, Mel en Stel, to MixMilano for the second time. Eriksson said her A-line short dresses made from wool fabric sourced in Mexico had mixed reactions. “Buyers have loved the style of the dresses, but they are worried the fabrics are too hot with the warmer winters Europe is having,” she said.
MILAN TRENDS
Mini A-line tank dresses.
Bell- and kimono-sleeved coats.
Long-length cashmere, silk and angora cardigan and tunic knits.
Cape coats in felted wool.
Peplum jackets.
Chiffon silk tea-length dresses.
Tweed trilby hats with feather and patent leather trims.
Red, violet and sage green platform-heel booties.
Silver and black pleated leather bags.