Women's fashion apparel offered in Mays Landing - Press of Atlantic City

Business: Cato

Location: Consumer Square, Wrangleboro Road, Mays Landing

Owner: The Cato Corp.

Employees: 8

Phone: 609-569-9028

The Cato fashion chain has opened its opens its newest store in the Consumer Square power center in Mays Landing.

Cato is a specialty retailer of value-priced women's fashion apparel, jewelry, shoes and accessories. It aims to offer exclusive fashions in the newest styles, colors and fabrics.

The stores feature fashion styles in sizes 6 to 26 and girls' sizes 8 to 16. New styles are delivered to all stores every week.

"With exclusive styles, on-trend fashions and low prices every day, our customers can always find their statement of style while enjoying their shopping experience at Cato. We are excited about the opening of our new store in Mays Landing," John Cato, chairman, president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

Carol Allgeyer, of Mays Landing, will manage the new store. As store manager, Allgeyer's responsibilities include assisting customers in wardrobe selection and creating an easy shopping experience.

The Cato Corporation is a specialty retailer operating in three concepts - Cato, Versona and It's Fashion - with more than 1,300 stores in 32 states. The other New Jersey store is in Pennsville, and there are six Cato stores located throughout Pennsylvania. Additional information on the Cato Corp. is available at CatoFashions.com .

The Cato concept offers styles for any occasion - work or play, dressy or casual. A substantial portion of Cato's merchandise is sold under its private labels and is produced by various vendors in accordance with the company's specifications. The company offers its own credit card and layaway plan.

Charlotte, N.C.-based Cato Corp., which trades on the New York Stock Exchange, in saw a 3 percent decrease in sales to $100 million for the five weeks ended Dec. 29.

"December same-store sales results were negatively impacted by bad weather in a number of our markets early in the month," Cato said in a statement. "Excluding the impact of this weather event, the sales environment remained difficult but same-store sales were in line with our year-to-date trend."

Cato said the company has been pleased with the initial results from its ecommerce site, launched in late November.

Business editor Kevin Post

© 2014 pressofAtlanticCity.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Myrtle Snow's Best Fashion Moments From American Horror Story: Coven - New York Magazine

American Horror Story: Coven, a deep dive into the inner-sanctum of a New Orleans-based witches coven, aired its season finale this week. The season showcased the strongest, most powerful female characters of the American Horror Story series thus far (a show that has never shied away from powerful women), and one of the strongest among them was the glorious Myrtle Snow, head of the Witches Council, portrayed by a plucky Frances Conroy.

Along with telekinesis and transmutation, one of Snow's strongest powers was fashion. Clad in witchy cat-eye glasses, formal gloves, luxurious, Prada-reminiscent frocks, and a glittering cigarette holder, Snow was known to muse about her favorite designers: She talked lovingly of Chanel, disapprovingly of Halston (after he sold out to J.C. Penney, the horrors!), and delivered an inspired monologue about the history of her lord and savior, Diane Von Furstenberg: "I had a love like that once. Egon Von Furstenberg. He dumped me, but everything worked out all right in the end. You know why? Because he went on to marry the divine Diane. And without Egon's support, Diane Von Furstenberg never would have created the greatest invention of the century, the wrap dress!" Bless, Myrtle.

With her beauty looks deeply reminiscent of Grace Coddington — her red hair crimped and blown out into a frizz, with minimal makeup — Conroy based her precise speaking voice on the drawl of legendary Vogue editor Diana Vreeland. (She learned the Vreeland voice by studying The Eye Has to Travel .) And, as anyone who watched the excellent finale this week knows, her final line of the series was yelling passionately into the hot air of the desert, "Balenciaaaagaaaaaa!" It was no coincidence that the scene was shot like a fashion editorial, with Snow in a crimson gown and ink-shaded parasol, leading a pack of black-clad witches. (Surely AHS' brilliant costume designer Lou Eyrich mined some of her own looks for the series.)

As Jessica Lange's Fiona Goode put it to Snow, "Look at you, developing a sense of style when no one was paying attention." In honor of the season's dignified end, click through our slideshow for some of Myrtle Snow's best looks from the season.

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On View | Fashion's Fertile Ground for Inspiration: Gardens - New York Times (blog)

From left: Courtesy of Garden Museum; Fashion Museum, Bath and North East Somerset Council From left: Collaerts Florilegium, Antwerp, 1590; a linen single pocket, with coloured wool embroidery, early- to mid-18th century.

Seasons, colors, lighting and scale are no less important in building a good garden than they are in designing a good fashion collection. The two subjects, which have more crossover than some might realize, are explored in a show at the Garden Museum in London that opens Sunday, aptly titled “Fashion & Gardens.” “Our national obsession with gardens and landscape is the greatest contribution England has brought to the world of fashion,” says the British writer and historian Nicola Shulman, a trustee of the Garden Museum in London, who leaped at the opportunity to curate the exhibition. Through art, historical photographs, artifacts and a look back at notable runways from designers like Yves Saint Laurent and Valentino, Shulman explores the intricate relationship between the two design genres from the days of Elizabeth I up to recent runway shows.

Courtesy of Garden Museum A painting of Lettice Newdigate, aged 2, by an unknown artist.

“Gardens, like clothes, are ephemeral,” explains Shulman. She spent an entire year scouring private and public art collections across Britain in search of rare paintings and other artifacts that could throw light on the history of the interplay between the two realms. Among her finds is a portrait — on display for the first time since it was painted in 1606 — of a 2-year-old Jacobean heiress wearing a dress ornately embroidered with the pattern of a garden very similar to the one she is standing next to.

In the show, Shulman has created a timeline of the various gardening crazes that have taken the British upper classes by storm over the last four centuries. She also illustrates the positive correlation between these botanic frenzies — such as plant collecting, an expensive 17th-century hobby, or the Victorian mania for camellias — and trends in fashion prints, motifs and silhouettes. Not to be left out is the link between the quintessentially British pastime of carousing in landscaped gardens and the rise of fashionable outdoorsy clothes. Several contemporary pieces — such as a Philip Treacy orchid hat and a Valentino cape from last year’s spring couture collection that was inspired by the wrought-iron work of Italian Renaissance gardens — round out the items on display.

Catwalking, courtesy of Chris Moore A look from the Alexander McQueen Autumn-Winter 2012 collection.

The “Fashion & Gardens” exhibition also provides an occasion for the fashion set, which will be in town for the women’s Fall/Winter 2014 collections next month, to experience the Garden Museum between shows. Located in the former church of St. Mary’s near Lambeth Palace, south of the Thames, the museum is also the burial ground of John Tradescant (1570-1638), Britain’s first great gardener and plant collector. An exquisite garden on site, designed by the marchioness of Salisbury, pays homage to him. And the museum’s director, Christopher Woodward, has gone to great lengths — including swimming the Gibraltar Strait — to raise funds to turn this once-forgotten museum into a thriving center dedicated to the culture of gardens. “Gardening,” Shulman says, “just like fashion, can be an extraordinary form of art.”

“Fashion & Gardens” is on view Feb. 7 through April 27 at the Garden Museum, Lambeth Palace Rd., London SE1 7LB; gardenmuseum.org.uk.

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On View | Fashion's Fertile Ground for Inspiration: Gardens - New York Times (blog)

From left: Courtesy of Garden Museum; Fashion Museum, Bath and North East Somerset Council From left: Collaerts Florilegium, Antwerp, 1590; a linen single pocket, with coloured wool embroidery, early- to mid-18th century.

Seasons, colors, lighting and scale are no less important in building a good garden than they are in designing a good fashion collection. The two subjects, which have more crossover than some might realize, are explored in a show at the Garden Museum in London that opens Sunday, aptly titled “Fashion & Gardens.” “Our national obsession with gardens and landscape is the greatest contribution England has brought to the world of fashion,” says the British writer and historian Nicola Shulman, a trustee of the Garden Museum in London, who leaped at the opportunity to curate the exhibition. Through art, historical photographs, artifacts and a look back at notable runways from designers like Yves Saint Laurent and Valentino, Shulman explores the intricate relationship between the two design genres from the days of Elizabeth I up to recent runway shows.

Courtesy of Garden Museum A painting of Lettice Newdigate, aged 2, by an unknown artist.

“Gardens, like clothes, are ephemeral,” explains Shulman. She spent an entire year scouring private and public art collections across Britain in search of rare paintings and other artifacts that could throw light on the history of the interplay between the two realms. Among her finds is a portrait — on display for the first time since it was painted in 1606 — of a 2-year-old Jacobean heiress wearing a dress ornately embroidered with the pattern of a garden very similar to the one she is standing next to.

In the show, Shulman has created a timeline of the various gardening crazes that have taken the British upper classes by storm over the last four centuries. She also illustrates the positive correlation between these botanic frenzies — such as plant collecting, an expensive 17th-century hobby, or the Victorian mania for camellias — and trends in fashion prints, motifs and silhouettes. Not to be left out is the link between the quintessentially British pastime of carousing in landscaped gardens and the rise of fashionable outdoorsy clothes. Several contemporary pieces — such as a Philip Treacy orchid hat and a Valentino cape from last year’s spring couture collection that was inspired by the wrought-iron work of Italian Renaissance gardens — round out the items on display.

Catwalking, courtesy of Chris Moore A look from the Alexander McQueen Autumn-Winter 2012 collection.

The “Fashion & Gardens” exhibition also provides an occasion for the fashion set, which will be in town for the women’s Fall/Winter 2014 collections next month, to experience the Garden Museum between shows. Located in the former church of St. Mary’s near Lambeth Palace, south of the Thames, the museum is also the burial ground of John Tradescant (1570-1638), Britain’s first great gardener and plant collector. An exquisite garden on site, designed by the marchioness of Salisbury, pays homage to him. And the museum’s director, Christopher Woodward, has gone to great lengths — including swimming the Gibraltar Strait — to raise funds to turn this once-forgotten museum into a thriving center dedicated to the culture of gardens. “Gardening,” Shulman says, “just like fashion, can be an extraordinary form of art.”

“Fashion & Gardens” is on view Feb. 7 through April 27 at the Garden Museum, Lambeth Palace Rd., London SE1 7LB; gardenmuseum.org.uk.

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37 Fashion Moments For Kerry Washington's 37th Birthday! Happy Birthday Kerry! - PerezHilton.com

It's Kerry Washington 's birthday today!

She might pretend to save the world during the day as Olivia Pope on Scandal, but there is no denying that this A-lister is the REAL DEAL when it comes to her fresh fashionista status.

Whether seXXXy, sophisticated, or pure glam, Kerry is always sure to get us to do a double-take on the red carpet.

So what other way would we celebrate her 37th stylish year on earth than with 37 lovely fashion moments??!

CLICK HERE to see the gallery, "37 Fashion Moments For Kerry Washington's 37th Birthday!"

CLICK HERE to see the gallery, "37 Fashion Moments For Kerry Washington's 37th Birthday!"

CLICK HERE to see the gallery, "37 Fashion Moments For Kerry Washington's 37th Birthday!"

CLICK HERE to see the gallery, "37 Fashion Moments For Kerry Washington's 37th Birthday!"

CLICK HERE to see the gallery, "37 Fashion Moments For Kerry Washington's 37th Birthday!"

[Image via AP Images .]

Tags: 37, birthday, fashion, fashion smashion, kerry washington, photos!, red carpet, style

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More Black Models Land Major Fashion Campaigns, Word Up! (UPDATE ... - Huffington Post

Well looky here ... more beautiful black models are making big moves by fronting major fashion brand campaigns this Spring/Summer 2014 season!

We're already pumped that Prada's got Cindy Bruna in its pack of gals, Givenchy tapped Erykah Badu, Balmain scored Rihanna and Miu Miu snagged Lupita Nyong'o.

Now there's even more brown beauties to add to the list!

First up we've got the world's reigning No. 1 model, Joan Smalls, featured in Fendi's Spring/Summer 2014 ad. Then there's Malaika Firth, who gained fame as Prada's first black model in nearly 20 years, fronting Valentino's new campaign. And last but not least, the new face for Tom Ford Beauty is 21-year-old Nigerian stunner Betty Adewole. Amazing!

UPDATE: Prabal Gurung has just revealed his first-ever advertising campaign, which features the beautiful and age-defying Liya Kebede. Check it out below...

Here's a look at those gorgeous ladies in their respective campaigns below. Do you love?

Liya Kebede for Prabal Gurung Spring/Summer 2014



Joan Smalls for Fendi Spring/Summer 2014

Malaika Firth for Valentino Spring/Summer 2014

Betty Adewole for Tom Ford Beauty Spring/Summer 2014

These gals are in good company...

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  Jourdan Dunn

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 13: Model Jourdan Dunn walks the runway at the Marchesa Fall 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at The New York Public Library on February 13, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Arun Nevader/Getty Images)

  
  


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  Nykhor Paul

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 08: A model walks the runway at the Nicole Miller Fall 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at The Studio at Lincoln Center on February 8, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week)

  
  


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  Jasmine Tookes

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 09: A model walks the runway at Herve Leger by Max Azria during Fall 2013 Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at The Theatre at Lincoln Center on February 9, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Thomas Concordia/WireImage)

  
  


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  Liya Kebede

  
  

  Ethiopian model Liya Kebede presents a creation by Tom Ford during the 2013 Autumn/Winter London Fashion Week in London on February 18, 2013. AFP PHOTO/BEN STANSALL (Photo credit should read BEN STANSALL/AFP/Getty Images)

  
  


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  Maria Borges

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 12: A model walks the runway at Naeem Khan Fall 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Fall 2013 at The Theatre at Lincoln Center in New York on February 12, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Randy Brooke/WireImage)

  
  


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  Joan Smalls

  
  

  PARIS, FRANCE - SEPTEMBER 29: Model Joan Smalls walks the runway during the Jean-Paul Gaultier Spring / Summer 2013 show as part of Paris Fashion Week on September 29, 2012 in Paris, France. (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)

  
  


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  Alek Wek

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 10: Model Alek Wek walks the runway at the Zac Posen Fall 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week on February 10, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week)

  
  


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  Sharam Diniz

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 12: A model walks the runway at the Dennis Basso Fall 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at The Stage at Lincoln Center on February 12, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week)

  
  


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  Melodie Monrose

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 11: A model walks the runway at the Reem Acra Fall 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at The Stage at Lincoln Center on February 11, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week)

  
  


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  Chanel Iman

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 03: Model Chanel Iman attends the 8th annual Keep A Child Alive Black Ball at the Hammerstein Ballroom on November 3, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)

  
  


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  Jeneil Williams

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 07: A model walks the runway at the Jen Kao spring 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at the New York Public Library - Celeste Bartos on September 7, 2012 in New York City. (Photo by Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images)

  
  


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  Sessilee Lopez

  
  

  Model Sessilee Lopez presents a creation by Manish Arora during the Spring/Summer 2013 ready-to-wear collection show on September 27, 2012 in Paris. AFP PHOTO/FRANCOIS GUILLOT (Photo credit should read FRANCOIS GUILLOT/AFP/GettyImages)

  
  


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  Ajak Deng

  
  

  Model Ajak Deng presents a creation for Christian Dior during the Spring/Summer 2012 Haute Couture collection show, on January 23, 2012 in Paris. AFP PHOTO/FRANCOIS GUILLOT (Photo credit should read FRANCOIS GUILLOT/AFP/Getty Images)

  
  


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  Naomi Campbell

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 09: Model Naomi Campbell rehearses at the Zac Posen Spring 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center on September 9, 2012 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week)

  
  


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  Selita Ebanks

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 12: Model Selita Ebanks attends the Badgley Mischka Fall 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at The Theatre at Lincoln Center on February 12, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week)

  
  


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  Flaviana Matata

  
  

  Correction: This slides previously listed the model as Herieth Paul. NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 08: A model walks the runway at the Suno fall 2013 fashion show during MADE Fashion Week at Milk Studios on February 8, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Joe Kohen/Getty Images)

  
  


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  Marihenny Rivera Pasible

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 07: A model walks the runway at the Creatures of the Wind fall 2013 during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Eyebeam on February 7, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Getty Images)

  
  


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  Arlenis Sosa

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 12: Model Arlenis Sosa attends the 8th Annual New Yorkers For Children Spring Dinner Dance - 'A Fool's Fete' at Mandarin Oriental Hotel on April 12, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images)

  
  

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Times Fashion Critic Cathy Horyn to Retire - New York Times

Cathy Horyn, The New York Times’s chief fashion critic, is retiring, the paper said Friday. Ms. Horyn has been with The Times since 1998 and has been in her current position since 1999.

Ms. Horyn is leaving to spend more time with her partner, Art Ortenberg, who is sick, according to a note to the newsroom from The Times’s executive editor, Jill Abramson, and Stuart Emmrich, editor of the Styles sections.

Ms. Horyn, 57, has been recognized for her unique voice and deep knowledge of the fashion industry. Previously, she worked for Vanity Fair, The Washington Post and The Detroit News.

In their memo to the newsroom, Ms. Abramson and Mr. Emmrich called Ms. Horyn, “the pre-eminent fashion critic of her generation and who has set an almost impossible standard for those who may follow.”

Ms. Horyn would not leave the paper entirely, the memo said. She will continue to work on a book project for the Rizzoli publishing company that chronicles how The New York Times has covered fashion from the 1850s to the present.

Her partner, Mr. Ortenberg, is a former textile executive who was married to Liz Claiborne, the clothing designer who died in 2007.

Together, Mr. Ortenberg and Ms. Claiborne started the apparel business Liz Claiborne.

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NYT fashion critic Cathy Horyn will leave paper - Poynter.org

by Andrew Beaujon and Kristen Hare Published Jan. 31, 2014 11:22 am Updated Jan. 31, 2014 11:40 am

New York Times fashion critic Cathy Horyn is leaving the paper “to spend more with her partner, Art Ortenberg, who has had health problems,” Executive Editor Jill Abramson and Styles Editor Stuart Emmrich tell staffers in a memo.

Horyn has been the Times’ top fashion critic since 1999 and has bylined more than a thousand pieces, Abramson and Emmrich write. She’s also accumulated an impressive array of disses, including one from Lady Gaga, who rewrote a song to insult her.

The memo:

It is with both deep sadness over her departure and immense gratitude for the legacy she leaves behind that we announce that Cathy Horyn, the paper’s chief fashion critic since 1999, is leaving The Times. Cathy’s reasons for leaving are personal ones, to spend more with her partner, Art Ortenberg, who has had health problems, and whom she feels would benefit greatly from her increased presence at home.



How do we measure the impact that Cathy has made at The Times? Is it in the 1,123 bylined pieces she has written in the past 15 years? The promising designers she discovered, the unoriginal ones she dismissed, the talents that she celebrated in ways that illuminated their creative process for a readership that ranged from the executive offices of LVMH to the bargain shoppers at Barneys Warehouse? We do so in all of those ways to mark the work of a woman who is the preeminent fashion critic of her generation and who has set an almost impossible standard for those who may follow.

Cathy’s is a unique voice in the fashion world, one that was immediately announced by one of her very first reviews in The Times, of the couture shows in Paris in January, 1999. Here is how she led off that piece:

Just about everyone who comes to the haute couture collections knows that Nan is Nan Kempner, that Deeda is Deeda Blair and that Liliane Bettencourt, who was seated Wednesday in the front row at the Yves Saint Laurent show and wearing an orange muffler, is the richest woman in France. They may or may not know that the youngest couture customer at Givenchy is all of 8, or that Dodie Rosekrans, the San Francisco art patron and couture stalwart, recently bought a full-size guillotine covered with the Chanel logo for her home in Venice. But give them time. Paris is probably the only place on earth where the world’s rich, titled and tucked can always count on being connected, if only through clothes.

How can you not be immediately hooked? Times readers were, and have continued to be for the past 15 years. But Cathy was more than just a fashion critic. She was also a superb reporter, one who used fashion as her lens to look into broader cultural themes, most recently in her riveting A1 piece on Jackie Kennedy’s iconic pink suit, worn the day her husband was assassinated in Dallas and today shielded from public view, along with her blood-stained stockings, in a climate-controlled vault on the outskirts of Washington.

Cathy will be sorely missed by all of us in Styles and by the paper as a whole. But she is not leaving us completely: She will continue to work on a project that is dear to her heart: A book to be published by Rizzoli that chronicles how The New York Times has covered fashion from the 1850s to the first decades of the 21st century. No doubt it will be a great read.

Fondly,

Jill and Stuart

Tags: The New York Times

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LVMH Advances Most Since 2010 on Rebound in Fashion Sales Growth - Bloomberg

LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA (MC) rose the most in more than three years in Paris trading after saying growth in fashion and leather-goods sales rebounded in the fourth quarter, boosting optimism for a turnaround.

The shares advanced as much as 6.9 percent to 131 euros, the steepest intraday gain since May 10, 2010.

Fashion and leather-goods sales rose 7 percent on an organic basis in the final three months of the year. Growth accelerated from 4 percent in the first nine months of 2013, after a weaker third quarter had prompted concern that efforts to revive the Vuitton brand may not be taking hold.

The improved performance of the unit was the “main positive” in yesterday’s full-year results, Rogerio Fujimori, an analyst at Credit Suisse, said in a note. Growth at the wines & spirits division that met estimates was also a plus in light of recent disappointing figures from competitors, he said.

LVMH shares were up 6.2 percent at 130.05 euros as of 10:35 a.m. in Paris. Before today, the stock had fallen 7.6 percent this year on concern over slowing luxury-goods sales in Asia. Shares in Christian Dior SA, the company through which billionaire Bernard Arnault controls LVMH, also rose.

LVMH’s results provided comfort for investors after luxury companies such as Cie. Financiere Richemont SA, Tod’s SpA and Mulberry Group Plc reported weaker-than-estimated sales. Italian shoemaker Salvatore Ferragamo SpA (SFER) also reported revenue that met estimates yesterday as sales gained 9 percent in the fourth quarter at constant exchange rates.

‘Fine Potential’

Ferragamo shares rose as much as 7.7 percent to 23.73 euros in Milan, the steepest advance since Nov. 15.

“Uncertainty surrounds the outlook for the sector, but with an attractive business model and valuation, combined with a strong management record, we retain our buy rating” on LVMH, said Christopher Walker, an analyst at Nomura International Plc.

Each of the company’s fashion and leather-goods brands “offers fine potential,” Bernard Arnault said yesterday at a presentation in Paris. “Analysts might be more interested in the immediate future. But for us, we are looking at the 10-year to 15-year potential and I think we have reason to be confident. There may be ups and downs that could be economic or geopolitical upheavals, but we have a strong trend.”

Louis Vuitton is introducing more expensive products and opening fewer stores as LVMH’s biggest and most profitable brand seeks to move upscale amid softening demand in Europe and Asia. The transition is going to take some time, Chief Financial Officer Jean-Jacques Guiony has said.

Smaller Brands

LVMH is boosting investment in some of its smaller fashion brands and buying stakes in others as it seeks to reposition Vuitton. It’s also shuffling Vuitton’s management, appointing Delphine Arnault as executive vice president and Nicolas Ghesquiere as artistic director last year.

Profit from recurring operations climbed 2 percent to 6.02 billion euros ($8.2 billion), LVMH said yesterday, matching the median of 19 analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

Total 2013 revenue advanced to 29.15 billion euros. Analysts predicted 29.4 billion euros. Sales rose 8 percent on an organic basis, matching estimates.

“Despite an uncertain economic environment in Europe, LVMH is well-equipped to continue its growth momentum across all business groups in 2014,” the company said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Andrew Roberts in Paris at aroberts36@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Celeste Perri at cperri@bloomberg.net

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Fallon's Dana Lorenz Recaps The Fashion Fund Episode 2 - Papermag

Last week Ovation debuted its new season of its formerly online-only series The Fashion Fund, in which 10 designers compete to be named Fashion Fund Designer of the Year by Vogue and the CFDA -- an award that comes with $300,000 and a one-year mentorship from major fashion bigwigs. We asked Fallon designer Dana Lorenz, a former Fashion Fund contestant herself, to recap the series. (That's her to the left. Hi Dana!) Tune in to Papermag every Thursday for her thoughts on last night's episode.

On the second episode of The Fashion Fund we get to know a bit more about the designers and how they thrive (or buckle) under pressure. The designers have to visit the Vogue offices and present an edit of their past, present and future collections to this iconic panel and answer the toughest of questions about their businesses, all within a 15 minute time limit. By "limit" I mean WITH A TICKING TIMER that sounds off signaling the end of what only seems like 2 minutes. The judges ask all kinds of questions, but the trick is to stay calm, cool, collected, yet informed.

Rule of thumb: not too much coffee, not too much Klonopin. And be prepared!

I remember when I was at this stage of the process in 2011, a good friend (who is a major designer who will remain nameless so don't ask!) gave me a list of questions typically used and I refined all my answers and recorded them on my iPad. Every night for a week I played my voice recording before bed, and although it was excruciating to listen to my Fran Drescher-esque voice over and over, I felt like I was not only prepared to emotionally talk about my creative passions and the fantastical aspect of fashion, but also the business facts in front of the judges. Future Fashion Fund finalists: KNOW YOUR DREAM MENTOR. Doesn't everybody have a designer they aspire to be in terms of a successful business model? Tom Ford admits he wasn't "Tom Ford" until Domenico DeSole put him on the back of his white horse.

I am very curious to see what the judges have to say about the studio visits on the next episode. Will we have another Proenza Schouler or Alexander Wang in this round? Or will the judges find really good mood boards and the next big fashion director of a big company? Don't get me wrong, the latter would still be very credible, but is this type of designer "Fashion Fund worthy"? The judges are really asking themselves if a designer is bringing something into the world that is entirely new, interesting and exciting and if that business should be nurtured and cultivated. I think the judges are starting to draw a line between fashion and product in this episode and are making decisions as to which designers have what it takes to be their next star.

Highlights:

-Parabellum's details -- love original cast pieces of hardware. It's all in the details, people.

-DVF's sunglasses at Vogue -- where to buy? In store? Online?

-Steven Kolb's inquiry about the "animals" in Marc Alary's work -- Steven, will there be a special-order owl pin in your future? (Owl-themed gifts -- Steven Kolb's good side.)

- Public School's anguish over their interview -- we all do what we have to do to get by, guys, and we can tell you really want this.

- Ovadia and Sons sound bytes -- twins? That accent? More air time, please!

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15 Ways 'American Horror Story: Coven' Kills It With Fashion - Huffington Post

This season of "American Horror Story" was about witches, but there was also a heavy focus on fashion.

From the very first teaser promos to Wednesday night's season finale, "Coven" was flush with fashion references and gorgeous costumes. The season itself may have had its shortcomings, but we appreciate that Ryan Murphy made a point to dress the ladies of "Coven" to the nines at every opportunity.

"Coven" revamped the look of the modern witch, giving female sorceresses some seriously supreme style:

Myrtle is the self-professed fashionista of the coven ...

... But she knows her designer history.

You probably don't want to hear her commentary on your sense of style.

Her last word at the stake was, of course, Balenciaga, the fabled fashion house, now helmed by Alexander Wang.

After all, she is a hybrid of Diana Vreeland and Grace Coddington.

"Coven" also introduced a new era of the witch hat. (Throw your old costume one out right now.)

SO MANY HATS.

And, uh, no sneakers allowed in the coven, ladies.

The voodoo queen, Marie Laveau, also had some killer style.

Fiona made sure to set the dress code straight on day one.

And all the girls got a makeover ...

... Flaunting fur coats like it's no big deal.

Hospital chic.

Funeral chic.

That's right.

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  Evan Peters as Kyle

  
  

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  Taissa Farmiga as Zoe

  
  

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  Lily Rabe as Misty

  
  

  "American Horror Story: Coven"

  
  

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How realistic mannequins are changing the fashion industry - The Week Magazine

T

he fashion world is notorious for promoting unrealistic body ideals that aren't attainable for most women, which is an especially relevant problem in the United States.

More than one-third of American adults are obese, and the average American woman wears a size 14. But you'd never guess that from visiting the average U.S. clothing store, where the vast majority of mannequins and dress forms display clothes for much smaller women. David's Bridal, for example, has used mannequins roughly equivalent to a size six in its stores since 2007.

This isn't just ethically suspect — it also might not be the best business strategy. The Wall Street Journal reports that plus-size women hold 28 percent of apparel purchasing power in the U.S., certainly not a figure to scoff at. And judging by the newest crop of mannequins hitting mass retailers this season, it appears retail stores are finally taking notice.

After American Apparel's recent publicity stunt — displaying mannequins with pubic hair in a New York City storefront — other stores are starting to come up with more realistic mannequins of their own. David's Bridal is adding a larger waist and back fat to its mannequins to more closely represent the shape of its customers. Ralph Pucci International, the company behind mannequins at department stores like Macy's and Nordstrom, also plans to offer plus-size mannequins to its clients.

While larger mannequins may not represent the "ideal" womanly form we see on runways each season, they represent a much larger percentage of customers than do their smaller-waisted counterparts. And since mannequins are supposed to indicate how clothes will fit one's body — Eric Feigenbaum, chair of the visual merchandising department at LIM College, calls them "the quintessential silent sales people" — it certainly makes sense that they should more closely represent the women who are buying the stores' merchandise.

If more retail stores — especially those with name power like David's Bridal or Macy's — catch on to the movement, fat-shaming will be one step closer to becoming a thing of the past. Indeed, chain stores like Old Navy and J.Crew sell plus-sized clothing exclusively through their websites, perpetuating the idea that shopping in store is a luxury for those who conform to an arbitrary physical ideal.

That's a large fraction of potential clientele who are being alienated. In addition to promoting social change and body acceptance, more realistic mannequins could also be a smart marketing strategy. Forty-two percent of shoppers say that the way clothing looks on a mannequin affects their purchasing decisions, so it's not a stretch to think that improving mannequin appearance will also help stores' bottom lines.

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More Black Models Land Major Fashion Campaigns, Word Up! (PHOTOS) - Huffington Post

Well looky here ... more beautiful black models are making big moves by fronting major fashion brand campaigns this Spring/Summer 2014 season!

We're already pumped that Prada's got Cindy Bruna in its pack of gals, Givenchy tapped Erykah Badu, Balmain scored Rihanna and Miu Miu snagged Lupita Nyong'o.

Now there's even more brown beauties to add to the list!

First up we've got the world's reigning No. 1 model, Joan Smalls, featured in Fendi's Spring/Summer 2014 ad. Then there's Malaika Firth, who gained fame as Prada's first black model in nearly 20 years, fronting Valentino's new campaign. And last but not least, the new face for Tom Ford Beauty is 21-year-old Nigerian stunner Betty Adewole. Amazing!

Check out these gorgeous ladies in their respective campaigns below. Do you love?

Joan Smalls for Fendi Spring/Summer 2014

Malaika Firth for Valentino Spring/Summer 2014

Betty Adewole for Tom Ford Beauty Spring/Summer 2014

These gals are in good company...

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  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 13: Model Jourdan Dunn walks the runway at the Marchesa Fall 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at The New York Public Library on February 13, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Arun Nevader/Getty Images)

  
  


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  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 08: A model walks the runway at the Nicole Miller Fall 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at The Studio at Lincoln Center on February 8, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week)

  
  


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  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 09: A model walks the runway at Herve Leger by Max Azria during Fall 2013 Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at The Theatre at Lincoln Center on February 9, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Thomas Concordia/WireImage)

  
  


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  Ethiopian model Liya Kebede presents a creation by Tom Ford during the 2013 Autumn/Winter London Fashion Week in London on February 18, 2013. AFP PHOTO/BEN STANSALL (Photo credit should read BEN STANSALL/AFP/Getty Images)

  
  


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  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 12: A model walks the runway at Naeem Khan Fall 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Fall 2013 at The Theatre at Lincoln Center in New York on February 12, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Randy Brooke/WireImage)

  
  


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  PARIS, FRANCE - SEPTEMBER 29: Model Joan Smalls walks the runway during the Jean-Paul Gaultier Spring / Summer 2013 show as part of Paris Fashion Week on September 29, 2012 in Paris, France. (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)

  
  


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  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 10: Model Alek Wek walks the runway at the Zac Posen Fall 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week on February 10, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week)

  
  


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  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 12: A model walks the runway at the Dennis Basso Fall 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at The Stage at Lincoln Center on February 12, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week)

  
  


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  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 11: A model walks the runway at the Reem Acra Fall 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at The Stage at Lincoln Center on February 11, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week)

  
  


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  NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 03: Model Chanel Iman attends the 8th annual Keep A Child Alive Black Ball at the Hammerstein Ballroom on November 3, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)

  
  


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  NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 07: A model walks the runway at the Jen Kao spring 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at the New York Public Library - Celeste Bartos on September 7, 2012 in New York City. (Photo by Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images)

  
  


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  Model Sessilee Lopez presents a creation by Manish Arora during the Spring/Summer 2013 ready-to-wear collection show on September 27, 2012 in Paris. AFP PHOTO/FRANCOIS GUILLOT (Photo credit should read FRANCOIS GUILLOT/AFP/GettyImages)

  
  


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  Model Ajak Deng presents a creation for Christian Dior during the Spring/Summer 2012 Haute Couture collection show, on January 23, 2012 in Paris. AFP PHOTO/FRANCOIS GUILLOT (Photo credit should read FRANCOIS GUILLOT/AFP/Getty Images)

  
  


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  NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 09: Model Naomi Campbell rehearses at the Zac Posen Spring 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center on September 9, 2012 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week)

  
  


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  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 12: Model Selita Ebanks attends the Badgley Mischka Fall 2013 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at The Theatre at Lincoln Center on February 12, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week)

  
  


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  Correction: This slides previously listed the model as Herieth Paul. NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 08: A model walks the runway at the Suno fall 2013 fashion show during MADE Fashion Week at Milk Studios on February 8, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Joe Kohen/Getty Images)

  
  


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  Marihenny Rivera Pasible

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 07: A model walks the runway at the Creatures of the Wind fall 2013 during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Eyebeam on February 7, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Getty Images)

  
  


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  Arlenis Sosa

  
  

  NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 12: Model Arlenis Sosa attends the 8th Annual New Yorkers For Children Spring Dinner Dance - 'A Fool's Fete' at Mandarin Oriental Hotel on April 12, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images)

  
  

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Flink Is An Addictive Mobile Fashion Experience To Discover New Looks - TechCrunch

Meet Flink a brand new mobile app that will become the perfect time waster for fashion enthusiasts. It’s a well-designed app to browse new looks on your favorite fashion blogs in a native app. The overall experience is very addictive.

When you first open the app, you can instantly follow a selection of some well-known fashion blogs. After that, it works a lot like Frontback and Mindie. You are immersed in the picture. It fills up the entire screen.

With one swipe, you get to see another look, and another, and another. Maybe you really like what this woman is wearing. So you can swipe right to see other pictures. With one tap, you can see where this dress or this handbag come from.

But contrarily to Frontback or Mindie, it isn’t a social app — it’s a content app. Flink has made a beautiful fashion blog reader for mobile, a sort of Flipboard for fashion.

You can like and share a look, but what’s interesting is how you can get lost in the app. Every now and then, a button appears saying “3 new looks available”, you just have to tap it and you will get brand new professional pictures.

And of course, you can spend countless of hours looking for new fashion bloggers and tweaking your list of bloggers to what you really want. When you like a look, it is saved in a separate tab, so you can always go back and find it later.

Comments are public and Flink could end up creating a community of passionate fashion curators.

What about copyright? Flink has reached out to dozens of popular fashion bloggers, and they were eager to see their content in the app, except a couple of people. Flink bets on fair use to show the pictures. With each post, there is a link to the actual blog post — it works a lot like an RSS reader or a read later service in the end. If a blogger complains, the team promises to remove its content from the app. This strategy worked well for Pinterest, and there is no reason that it won’t work again.

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LVMH Provides Relief as Revenue Growth Rebounds at Fashion Unit - Bloomberg

LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA (MC), the world’s largest luxury-goods maker, said growth in fashion and leather-goods sales rebounded in the fourth quarter, boosting optimism for a turnaround at its biggest brand.

Sales at the unit, which includes Louis Vuitton and Kenzo, rose 7 percent on an organic basis in the final three months of the year. Growth accelerated from 4 percent in the first nine months of the year, having weakened in the previous quarter.

“The key fashion & leather goods division seems to have seen a fairly sharp rebound,” said Rahul Sharma, managing director of Neev Capital, an advisory firm in London that follows the luxury industry. “I’m surprised as it takes a lot to move the needle at this division.”

Louis Vuitton is introducing more expensive products and opening fewer stores as LVMH’s biggest and most profitable brand seeks to move upscale amid softening demand in Europe and Asia. The transition is going to take some time, Chief Financial Officer Jean-Jacques Guiony has said. Industry sales, which rose at the weakest pace in four years in 2013, according to Bain & Co., could remain under pressure for at least another six months, suitmaker Ermenegildo Zegna SpA has predicted.

LVMH said profit from recurring operations rose 2 percent to 6.02 billion euros ($8.2 billion) in 2013, matching the median of 19 analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

“Despite an uncertain economic environment in Europe, LVMH is well-equipped to continue its growth momentum across all business groups in 2014,” the company said in a statement.

Total 2013 revenue advanced to 29.15 billion euros, LVMH said. Analysts predicted 29.4 billion euros. Sales rose 8 percent on an organic basis, matching estimates.

Competitor Salvatore Ferragamo SpA (SFER) also reported revenue that met estimates today as sales gained 9 percent in the fourth quarter, and 11 percent in the year, at constant exchange rates.

LVMH is boosting investment in some of its smaller fashion brands and buying stakes in others to help offset slowing growth at Vuitton. It’s also shuffling Vuitton’s management, appointing Delphine Arnault as executive vice president and Nicolas Ghesquiere as artistic director last year.

The perfumes and cosmetics unit also saw an improvement in the fourth quarter, according to Sharma. Organic sales at the division rose 10 percent, with growth accelerating from 5 percent in the first nine months of the year.

Revenue growth also accelerated at the watches and jewelry division, though slowed to 4 percent at the wines & spirits unit, which includes brands such as Dom Perignon champagne.

LVMH fell 0.7 percent to 122.5 euros in Paris trading today. The results were released after markets closed.

To contact the reporter on this story: Andrew Roberts in Paris at aroberts36@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Celeste Perri at cperri@bloomberg.net

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Fashion Funnies | When They Were Kids - The Business of Fashion

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Teen finds fashion success at Pa. Farm Show - The State

SAYRE, Pa. — Most people buy their clothes at a store and wear them without a thought as to how they were made.

For Katherine Porter of South Waverly, however, the construction of a garment is an art form, one she's honed since childhood.

And it's a hobby in which she has found success. For the past three years, the Sayre High School senior has wowed judges at the Pennsylvania Farm Show with her skills. Earlier this month, judges awarded Porter the Youth and 4-H Best of Show prize at the annual farm show's Fashions with a Flair competition for the third consecutive year.

Porter's turquoise lace dress and matching jacket took the top prize at this year's show, which featured 21 exhibitors modeling 52 individual designs.

"It was quite a privilege to receive (Best in Show) for a third time," Porter said.

In designing the winning outfit, Porter wanted to achieve a specific goal this year. She wanted to submit a formal dress that utilized couture techniques, using detailed, hand-stitched embellishments to add to the garment's artistry.

Porter said adding details to the lace dress took "countless" hours.

"It involved a lot of hand-stitching," she said. "People take for granted how long it takes to make your clothes."

The dress features a full skirt and, as presented at the farm show, was topped with a fully lined linen jacket with cap sleeves and a Peter Pan collar. The outfit, which Porter also modeled at the show, also featured a handmade grosgrain ribbon belt with a bow in the center.

Porter designs each outfit based on her own tastes, also taking inspiration from eye-catching designs online, in magazines and in person.

She also keeps in mind what the judges look for. Judges examine each design and score it based on overall appearance, use of accessories, modeling presentations, design, style and color, construction and fit and level of difficulty. As a veteran of competitions, she enters her designs with confidence, she said.

"When I create a garment, I try to make sure all the elements the judges are looking for are the best they can be," Porter said.

The garments get use beyond their competition time — Porter said she wears a lot of her own creations in her everyday life, receiving compliments from passersby. She hasn't grown much in the past four years, she said, and the outfits are "custom-fit to me."

Porter, the daughter of Dr. Burdett and Cynthia Porter, is a member of Sayre's Navigators 4-H Club under the leadership of Linda Elsbree. She began sewing with 4-H at the age of 8 as a way to honor a family tradition. Porter's grandmother and mother also participated in 4-H sewing as children.

"The tradition was passed on to me," she said.

Porter began to enter her designs into competitions in her second year of sewing. In addition to competing at the farm show, she also participates each year at the 4-H's regional fashion revue and, a few years ago, participated in the state fashion revue. She also has taught modeling to younger 4-H participants, as modeling the garment is part of the competition.

The regional and state revues are typically held in the summer, Porter said. She plans to design one more outfit to enter into this summer's regional competition, the final stitch in her competition career.

In between enjoying her final year on the Sayre High School swim team and participating in other hobbies, including running, Porter is preparing to enter college in the fall. She'll attend Ursinus College, near Philadelphia.

Porter hasn't chosen her major yet, but doesn't plan to pursue fashion design as a career path. However, she says she'll continue to maintain sewing as a hobby.

Sewing "allows me to let out my creative side," Porter said.

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