NEW YORK — Tocca wants to project a more singular and consistent voice.
The company has made some strategic moves for the future, which could see an expansion into categories such as footwear, as well as a return to lingerie, linens and freestanding boutiques.
To better serve its plans, Edoardo Mantelli, Tocca’s chairman, will now also assume the role of creative director. In this new post, he will make sure there is consistency and continuity between Tocca’s ready-to-wear, beauty, accessories and children’s divisions.
Tocca also tapped Samantha Sung as design director for ready-to-wear. Sung replaced Ellis Krueger, who left in March for Sigrid Olsen, where he is design director.
“We were looking for some freshness for Tocca,” Gordon Finkelstein, president, said. “We were looking to make a design shift. The contemporary field has gotten very crowded and very homogenous in a way, so it was really about the details, and focusing on the product and elevating it.”
Sung reports to Mantelli, and will work with Muriel Favaro, Tocca’s design director for accessories, who joined the label earlier this year.
Since joining the company in May, Sung, 33, has quietly been putting together the spring collection, which will be unveiled to the press on Sept. 9. A native of Seoul, she moved to New York at 21 to study at Parsons School of Design. After graduating from Parsons, she worked at Ralph Lauren as a senior designer for four years, then moved to Milan for three years to take a job as design director for Piazza Sempione. Before joining Tocca, she was a design director at Cerruti, focusing on its women’s collection.
When asked what she aims to bring to Tocca, Sung said: “I can contribute my designer-level experience. Even if the price point in contemporary is lower than in designer, I still believe we can bring a designer element to the collection.”
As for her inspirations, Sung said, “I own thousands of books and I get much of my inspiration from them. I look at fashion and art books, even craft books. I get much inspiration from books about India and Mexico. I also collect vintage textiles.”
Related Articles
You May Also Like
This complements Tocca’s philosophy, which Mantelli said is based on “sensuality, not sexuality.” While the lion’s share of pieces continue to be in dresses, for spring the collection also includes tops, boleros and coats.
The spring collection is very “pirate-y,” Mantelli said, with inspirations ranging from Tahiti to “Mutiny on the Bounty,” the film version starring Marlon Brando. Sung said her specialty is in intricate detail and for spring the Tocca collection includes extensive embroidery, pleating and ruching. Some dresses and jackets have drawstring rope details.
“Overall you will see more volume and detail, and all of that will be reflected in the price,” Finkelstein said.
Typically, the wholesale prices for dresses was between $110 and $140. These will probably increase on average by about 30 percent for spring, said Finkelstein.
Tocca is sold in approximately 225 doors, including Saks Fifth Avenue, Scoop and Fred Segal. Industry sources estimate Tocca’s wholesale volume in the region of $15 million. Finkelstein said he anticipates the distribution to grow with several upscale specialty stores.
“The matrix is going to shift a little bit, and part of that will come because of the price point,” he said. “And along with the design shift, there will also be a slight change in the customer base.”
Finkelstein cofounded the company with Mantelli in 1994, and Tocca eventually added such categories as home, lingerie, beauty and accessories. The company decided in 2001 to focus on ready-to-wear, accessories and beauty, dropping lingerie and home. Last year, Tocca entered the children’s market with Tocca Bambini, which is now sold in specialty stores such as Bergdorf Goodman, Yoya and Calypso.
Finkelstein and Mantelli said they are hoping to reintroduce lingerie and linens, and to add shoes in the near future. There are also plans to launch a Tocca fragrance next spring.
“The beginning of this strategic shift was to have design directors in the various areas and to have one strong vision, one person to unite them and keep them focused in the same direction,” Finkelstein said. “First, we want to reposition the ready-to-wear to a certain extent. Once the shift is working and in place, we feel it will open up opportunities in other categories.”
That could even include more freestanding stores. Tocca once had boutiques in cities such as New York, Tokyo and London, but except for the Tokyo unit, closed them several years ago. “There is a very strong possibility of stores,” Finkelstein said. “In five years’ time, I could see potentially 10 Tocca stores.”