LAS VEGAS FASHION WEEK – FEBRUARY 2012 – DAY 1 MORNING

Here we are again for the bi-annual fashion extravaganza that is the Las Vegas fashion trade show week.

Fall12 is breaking here this week. I’ll be covering most of the trade shows that spread out across the city.

I got into town at 5pm last night and headed straight over to the Venetian Hotel (where I am writing at the moment) to check in to the trade shows here. The Sands Expo and Convention Center hosts:

• CurveNV – designer lingerie and swimwear
• (capsule) – contemporary, independent fashion and lifestyle brands
• Moda Las Vegas and AccessoriesTheShow – contemporary and better women’s ready-to-wear and accessories
• MRKET – better menswear
• OFFPRICE – discount and close-out clothing, accessories and footwear

I just finished walking MRKET, Moda and the Accessories shows.

MRKET
This is the biggest MRKET yet, with over 550 booths of contemporary and better men’s ready-to-wear. The show tends to more of a traditional men’s customer with some contemporary labels mixed in.

The highlights for me were:

• Barbour Steve McQueen Collection 
• Cooper Jones
• English Laundry
• Gemelli
• Hawke & Co.
• Pantherella
• Robert Graham
• Rodd & Gunn New Zealand Limited
• Vicomte A.

Giles at Robert Graham told me that the company is expanding into tailored clothing with suits, sports coats, dress shirts, ties, and accessories including Italian leather shoulder bags, belts and wallets, and cufflinks. RG is focusing on fun and lots of color for Fall.

Rod Williams, the EVP North America for New Zealand’s Rodd & Gunn told me that they are having a great show. Rodd & Gunn’s soft launch in the US for Spring opened 20 doors “without trying”, in Rod’s words. The full launch for Fall12 looks like yielding another 70-80 retailers including 3 in Japan and 6 in Canada. Their knitwear has been their best seller. Rod thinks US buyers perceive knits as a strength for a New Zealand manufacturer so they start there. He also believes that because Rodd & Gunn have a full collection and are retailers themselves (with 80 stores in Australia and New Zealand) that buyers are more comfortable that they know what they are doing now and moving forward.

Ken Haruta, independent sales representative and owner of the West Coast Trend Show, had three collections at MRKET - 34 Heritage, Report Collection and SAXX Underwear. Ken has been in the business for 30 years and is always extremely knowledgeable and helpful.  Ken was very happy with the week and said, "it turned out to be a very successful show ... stores were leaving paper (more than the past two shows) and seemed upbeat about things ...". Amen to that. Ken also had Leather Island Belts by Bill Lavin at Project which he thought "was the best show in years".

English Laundry (one of my personal favs) looked great – clean lined, street elegant and colorful.

Color is big for Fall at MRKET – brights and burnts. Plaid and check are also popular.

Moda
Moda is largely a missy and better women’s ready-to-wear show with some contemporary incorporated.

Tami Smith from T. Smith & Co. showroom in LA is doing very well with the line, Analili.

Karen Anderson of KLA Showroom is also busy with Before & Again, Bibelot, and Cullen. (After show follow up: Karen thought that the foot traffic was a bit off from August. She is confident she will pick some new accounts from the show. Karen did not like the reconfiguration of the booths that made buyers walk through the men's show before getting to Moda. Karen, who had just got back from vacation in Australia, mentioned that she worked 3 Australians accounts.)

Cashmere is doing well. Bright and burnt colors continue to be popular. There seems to be a lot of dark blue mixed in with the usual blacks and greys for Fall.

I’m heading off to Curve and capsule next.

The Curve lingerie show last night at the MGM was absolutely brilliant. Instead of just models walking around in skimpies, they had a fully choreographed show complete with chorus numbers and a superb solo piece. The opening had 12 topless dancers in Grenadier bearskin hats doing an amazing wind-up doll routine, the superb solo routine was done behind and using rubber prison cell bars, and the finale had the dancers coming out again in the featured lingerie. Between the set pieces, the featured lingerie was showcased in routines to pumping dance music. It was one of best and most innovative fashion shows that I have seen. Curve will be putting it on again in August. Don’t miss it!

Foot traffic here has been steady. It is a bit early to say whether it has been better than last show. I’ll keep you posted.

Now time for some lunch …

Paul Brindley
paul brindley consults