LOS ANGELES — Does this city really need a fashion week?
Considering all the players elbowing in on the action, including Hugo Boss, Marc Jacobs, Viktor & Rolf, the City of Beverly Hills and the Italian Trade Commission, the answer seems to echo the name of the band at Tuesday’s opening party — the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
And still, questions about the true purpose of Los Angeles Fashion Week linger.
If the majority of sales already have taken place in the last five weeks in showrooms and trade shows here and in New York, why go through the expense and stress of staging a runway presentation?
“For me, it was never directly about sales, but I can’t deny that it does affect them since good press almost always equals an increase,” designer Michelle Mason said, explaining that she is returning to the runway March 19 after being away for a season because of sponsorships.
Like many of those showing at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios March 16-20, Mason wrote some 40 percent of fall business in New York last month. Of the 32 shows on the Smashbox runways, about half already have written at least 20 to 40 percent of their business at Coterie and showrooms on both coasts.
Magda Berliner, who also returns after a two-season hiatus with an installation at Smashbox Studios on March 18, said she did about 90 percent of her sales through her New York showroom, which also has an office here.
“Buyers visit both showrooms, maybe take a second look here,” said Berliner, who’s been selling her fall collection since late January.
The first runway shows actually get under way Monday with, among other events, Gen Art’s New Garde at the MOCA Geffen Contemporary downtown.
In West Hollywood, at the Pacific Design Center, Sony Computer Entertainment will host “Pret A PSP.” Although a party for Sony’s PlayStation gear, it also is highlighting accessories from Coach, Diane von Furstenberg, Heatherette, Jennifer Lopez and Marc Jacobs as well as local designers Jenni Kayne and Henry Duarte.
Fashion week is happening two weeks earlier than in previous years because of a decision by Fern Mallis, executive director of 7th on Sixth and vice president of IMG.
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“We felt it made the collections a little more newsy and relevant than to wait so long in the calendar,” said Mallis. She acknowledged that several collections already have been on view in recent weeks. Yet she and many others also point to the increasing number of buyers arriving in L.A. in search of new products and resources.
The events taking place away from Smashbox Studios, particularly those that could significantly siphon press from front rows, meant a bit of last-minute reworking of the schedule. Louis Verdad was set to close the shows Sunday night, and still will. But his presentation will take place earlier — at 5 p.m. — to allow those attending the Walk of Style gala honoring Herb Ritts and Mario Testino enough time to get to Beverly Hills.
Marc Jacobs’ opening party on March 17 for his retail campus on Melrose Place is anticipated to draw hundreds of the designer’s high-profile pals. The buzz alone knocked out any shows at Smashbox that night.
One designer, Coco Kliks, is staging a presentation nearby at Bliss, a nightclub, apparently hoping to attract a few editors en route to the Jacobs affair.
Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren are evidently less concerned. The pair will be hosts at an intimate dinner — same night, same time — at the Chateau Marmont in Hollywood to celebrate their Flowerbomb fragrance.
Double- or even triple-booked schedules are a part of life during fashion week, of course. Invitations are still coming through for last-minute presentations by fledgling designers.
Mallis is nonplussed. “We’re hoping that people in L.A. who love being in their cars have no problem going to two places in one night. In New York, we call it ‘doing a drive-by.’”
But it might be a tough call — particularly when valet lines, traffic and mobs inside the party come into consideration.
Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week and the City of Hope are teaming up for the “Rock the Runway” event Tuesday featuring the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and hosted by Cindy Crawford. It takes place at the new HD Buttercup space at the historic Helms Bakery Building near Smashbox in Culver City.
In Beverly Hills, poolside at the Beverly Hilton, Hugo Hugo Boss is staging its first runway show for its women’s and men’s fall-winter collection.
Although not affiliated with Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, having the Hugo Boss event at the Beverly Hilton was a strategic move. It’s the official hotel for the week, and 7th on Sixth is installing contemporary, accessories and denim vendors there.
Hugo Boss will mark the occasion with a blowout party for 800 guests. “We’re taking over the hotel…and transforming it into a version of an Ibizan club,” said Volker Kaechele, head designer for Hugo Hugo Boss.
The Italian Trade Commission, which has bowed during award-show weeks in recent years, also is using fashion week here to shine the light on three of its own new designers — Patrizia Shelabarger, Sonia Speciale and Ines Valentinitsch — at an afternoon show March 20 at Smashbox.
For local designers showing for the first time, the interest and activity is nerve-racking and exciting.
Newcomer Carlos Rosario, who is generating buzz for his finely tailored ready-to-wear, said he decided to launch his collection here instead of New York for practical reasons. “I came to Los Angeles — to Hollywood — from Paris to work in costume design, and my style with my collection is very theatrical and dramatic. So it means something to do it here. I also have the possibility of showing who I am without the pressure of competing against New York designers.”
Fashion Week: L.A. vs. N.Y.C.
Shows Organized by 7th on Sixth
L.A.:13
N.Y.C.: 66
Average Show Cost
L.A.:$1,500 to $10,000
N.Y.C.: $20,000 to $50,000
Year Shows Began
L.A.:2003
N.Y.C.: 1993
Sponsors
L.A.:15
N.Y.C.: 17
Average Show Length
L.A.: 17 minutes
N.Y.C.: 17 minutes
Manufacturing Employment
L.A.:61,300, apparel manufacturing
9,800, textile mills
18,000, apparel wholesale
N.Y.C.: 26,700, apparel manufacturing
5,808, textile mills
30,395, apparel wholesale