These are the stories making headlines in fashion on Monday.
Katie Grand on Love Advent’s new vision of female empowerment
In years past, Love Magazine’s annual Advent Calendar series was a visual feast of semi-naked models, but not in 2018. Post-#MeToo, Katie Grand has swapped the sexed-up videos for #movingLOVE, a collection of lo-fi clips that tell the stories of various subjects, like David Beckham and Adwoa Aboah (see above). In an interview with Business of Fashion‘s Tim Blanks, Grand elaborates on her new vision of female empowerment and why it is important to have the camera focus on the stories people shape, rather than the shapes of their bodies. {Business of Fashion}
Why the fashion industry keeps making racially insensitive mistakes
Diversity is a buzzword in fashion, but several incidents within the past few weeks prove little is being done to understand and tackle it. “When it comes to the subjects of race, ethnicity and diversity, the fashion industry’s ability to confound and enrage seems to have no bounds,” writes Robin Givhan about Prada’s racially insensitive trinkets and the racist imagery that continually pops up in the industry. “It has demonstrated a limited capacity to learn from its mistakes even as companies become more global and cosmopolitan.” {The Washington Post}
Malls aren’t dead after all
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, online shopping makes up less than 15 percent of the retail pie. This means, people are still shopping in real life and malls — which were largely pronounced dead — still have a chance of survival. The shopping meccas poised to make a comeback are the ones evolving to attract more foot traffic and younger consumers, such as Simon malls. During the Black Friday weekend, foot traffic in Simon malls was up 2 percent, compared with the same time last year, and throughout all of November, foot traffic at Simon’s malls was up between 3 and 9 percent year-over-year. {WWD}
Versace to open sustainable headquarters in Milan
Donatella Versace is putting sustainability at the center of her fashion label with new sustainable headquarters in Milan and a new concept store. The new headquarters will be housed in a rundown L-shaped building, which will be restored with solar panels and is expected to receive the LEED Gold certificate. All company functions, except for the atelier, will be moved to the new location, which will be unveiled in August. {WWD}
CFDA to launch a sustainable resource platform in January
On Jan. 14, the CFDA will launch a Guide to Sustainable Strategies that’s meant as a resource hub to help members create, meet and exceed their sustainability goals. The CFDA will also unveil the Sustainable Strategies Toolkit, which maps and frames out the sustainability priorities so brands have access to diagnostics for their use, as well as a step-by-step guide on how to create strategic blueprints. The organization plans to support the hub with a series of workshops and roundtables, and one planned workshop will focus on introducing the U.N.’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals to membership brands. {WWD}
How leading apparel retailers are learning to price smarter
According to McKinsey & Company, almost 90 percent of U.S. consumers shop from discount retailers, including off-price, outlets and dollar stores. What’s more, is that nearly two-thirds of these value consumers are buying more on sale now than they were five years ago. These shopping trends have put a strong downward pressure on prices and intensified the use of promotions. To combat this, a few apparel retailers are embracing advanced analytics and blending intuition with science to regain control and price smarter. {McKinsey & Company}
Are sneakers worth investing in?
The global sneaker resale market is valued somewhere between five and seven billion U.S. dollars. And while there’s undoubtably cash to be made, you should only invest in the goods if you are well-versed on your Yeezys — and are willing to devote some serious time and energy to copping super-hyped trainer releases. Plus, they’re a riskier asset, because they lack longevity compared to something like gold or oil. {Evening Standard}
Homepage photo: Ben Gabbe/Getty Images for Marc Jacobs
Source: Fashionista