Givenchy’s Front Row, Plus Kim Kardashian’s Auction Buy – WWD

STRAIGHT SHOTS: Givenchy’s new face Taeyang, announced on Tuesday, made the trip to Paris for his first front row as a brand ambassador.

“I’m really grateful and honored to be part of Givenchy, for so many years it inspired me a lot,” he said. He last attended a Givenchy show in 2014.

The Big Bang member just switched record labels and released a new single “Vibe,” with BTS’s Jimin, last Friday. “I’m happy I can start this new chapter in my life with Givenchy as well,” he added.

The K-pop pioneer has always been known to experiment with his looks, and said it was almost impossible to define his style. “I could say hip-hop and rock ‘n’ roll is always the root, and definitely heavily musically influenced,” he said after a few seconds of reflection.

It was a short trip to Paris, as he’s heading back to work. “We are planning a lot, there’s an upcoming single, another one soon, and after that an album,” he said.

J Balvin called Givenchy designer Matthew M. Williams “a ninja.” The reggaeton superstar has become a front-row regular. “I like the tech vibe and I love what he does.”

Though Balvin himself was wearing a bit of biker leather, he said black has been suiting him well lately.

“Lately I’ve just been wearing black, but as long as I feel good with what I do and feel comfortable with who I am, it just lets me express myself, and the hair basically speaks for me.”

That hair was his signature rainbow buzz cut with a new addition: the left side was covered in crystals.

Guests were offered some beverages with health benefits meant to stave off cold symptoms as they headed to their seats. The tiny bottles made the day for Bloody Osiris.

“He has ginger shots here, that’s like a real Harlem thing. I go to the juice bar every morning so to see a Givenchy ginger shot here, that’s fire to me, that’s real dope,” said the stylist.

“I’m holistic,” he added. “I run or work out, go to the juice bar to get my jucies and my vitamins, and I read every morning. That’s my morning ritual right now, and I want to get into yoga and mediation.”

Osiris has slowly been building his own Murd333r.FM brand with steady drops of bucket hats and bright puffers, and will soon be expanding into cell phones. “I just wanted to try something different, I’ve never seen it done from a streetwear brand,” he said.

The longtime Givenchy fan said working with Williams allows him to always “turn the wheel” on new looks. For Wednesday’s show, Osiris wore a shredded camo suit, spiderweb knit vest and hoodie that trailed whisps of thread — a look that was slightly toned down from last season’s “Big Bird” faux-feathered, fluorescent jacket that was practically ready for flight. “It’s like if the bird got shaved,” he joked.

Tyga arrived late and didn’t make it in time for the runway, but entered the tent in the courtyard of École Militaire after the last looks to greet Williams backstage. — RHONDA RICHFORD

IN REALITY: Kim Kardashian outbid several other bidders in a Sotheby’s London auction Wednesday night to buy a cross-shaped pendant worn by the late Princess Diana as a necklace.

The reality star, serial entrepreneur and mother of four outbid three other competitive bidders in the final five minutes of Wednesday night’s “Royal and Noble” sale at Sotheby’s London. The final gavel for the amethyst cross went down at 163,800 pounds, or $197,453, more than doubling its pre-auction estimate. The “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” star was not in the house, but a representative did her bidding for her, according to Sotheby’s London. Weighing in at 5.25 carats, the cross-shaped pendant features square-cut amethysts and circular-cut diamonds.

Designed in a fleurée style with flowery details, the pendant was created in the 1920s by court jewelers Garrard. In October 1987, “Princess Di” brought it to the forefront by wearing it with a Catherine Walker dress to a charity gala for the nonprofit Birthright, which works for the protection of human rights during pregnancy and childbirth. The glittery purple gemstone was a loaner that belonged to the former group chief executive officer of Asprey & Garrard, the late Naim Attallah CBE. After purchasing it from Garrard in the ’80s, he let the stylish royal wear it on occasion through the years.

Touting the news of its sale, Sotheby’s London claimed that the former Diana Spencer was the only person to ever sport it and it was being shown publicly again for the first time.

Kardashian appears to have a hankering for keepsakes of style icons, having notoriously crash-dieted to don the shimmery nude-colored slip of a dress worn by Marilyn Monroe in 1962, when she seductively sang “Happy Birthday” to President John F. Kennedy at Madison Square Garden. That was a loaner, too, borrowed from the Ripley’s Believe It Or Not! Museum.

While jewels worn by Princess Diana seldom come up for auction, an amethyst-colored strapless Victor Edelstein-designed dress that she sported for a royal portrait in 1991 will soon be on view at Sotheby’s New York outpost. The frock, which she wore for that Mario Testino photo shoot, will be on view in Sotheby’s Masters Week and it will be sold in “The One” live auction on Jan. 27. The presale estimate is between $80,000 and $120,000. — ROSEMARY FEITELBERG

RETAIL COMEBACK: HBC is reviving Zellers in a big way.

HBC announced Wednesday that it will launch 25 Zellers shops, ranging from 8,000 to 10,000 square feet, inside Hudson’s Bay department stores across Canada.

Simultaneous with the openings, set to begin sometime this spring, the Zellers.ca e-commerce website will launch for Canadians. It’s possible HBC sets up more than 25 outposts at its other Hudson’s Bay locations later in the year and into 2024. Last year, the company tested two Zeller pop-ups in two Hudson’s Bay stores.

The company stated, “Customers will be greeted with a thoughtful selection of design-led products across home decor, toys, baby, apparel and products for pets, housed within Zellers’ signature red and white,” logo.

Zellers, a value-oriented discounter, first opened in 1931 and became a major retail player in Canada. HBC acquired Zellers in 1978. At its peak Zellers had more than 300 freestanding stores in the ’90s.

But the business later floundered, running up against Walmart’s expansion into Canada among other competitors. HBC, unable to turn around Zellers, focused on its other retail assets, and in 2011 sold many of the leases to Target in a $1.83 billion deal, while retaining 64 locations. However, the deal foreshadowed the eventual demise of the Zellers business.

Target converted many of the Zellers sites to Target stores, but some operational and pricing misfires and a failure to win over Canadian shoppers resulted in the liquidation of the Target locations in Canada. Not too long after that HBC decided to liquidate the remaining Zellers sites, but retained ownership of the brand name. 

The Zellers shops should not cannibalize business from the the Hudson’s Bay department stores, considering Zellers merchandise is value-oriented, while Hudson’s Bay is more upscale and fashion-oriented.

Among the 25 locations, Zellers shops will be inside Hudson Bay department stores in downtown Vancouver, Rideau Center in Ottawa, Erin Mills in Mississauga, Sunridge Mall in Calgary and Carrefou de l’Estrie in Sherbrooke.

Last week, Sophia Hwang-Judiesch became president of The Bay and Hudson’s Bay, succeeding Iain Nairn, who is retiring.

HBC operates the 84 Hudson’s Bay stores and Thebay.com, which is an online marketplace. The stores and the e-commerce operation are separate companies. Founded in 1670, HBC is North America’s oldest company. The HBC portfolio also includes Saks Fifth Avenue and Saks Off 5th. — DAVID MOIN

HAUTE HOSTS: Slated for May 1, the 2023 Met Gala will be cohosted by “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” star Michaela Cole, Penélope Cruz, the now-retired tennis pro Roger Federer, pop star Dua Lipa and Anna Wintour. Just as this unofficial welcome committee represents entertainment, sports, music and media, the guest list will indubitably be packed with clickbait-worthy guests.

Describing the annual affair as an all-eyes-on-us occasion isn’t an exaggeration. Last year, the #MetGala hashtag received more than 9.4 billion impressions during the arrivals, and #MetGala2022 racked up 1.3 billion impressions, according to Brandwatch.

Formally known as The Costume Benefit Ball, the celebrity-studded sit-down dinner isn’t just a worldwide media bonanza for red-carpet arrivals. It is the chief source of annual funding for the fashion-focused department’s exhibitions, acquisitions and capital improvements — and doubles as the curtain raiser for the opening of the spring exhibition.

In line with the upcoming exhibition “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty” in May, guests are advised to dress “In honor of Karl.” Expect plenty of Lagerfeld-designed looks from Chanel, Fendi and the designer’s signature label. In addition to the spring exhibition, the dress code is also fitting, given that it and this year’s benefit are made possible by Chanel. Major support is also being provided by Fendi. And Karl Lagerfeld is providing additional funding along with Condé Nast.

Spanning Lagerfeld’s career from the ’50s to his final collection in 2019, the exhibition will showcase about 150 designs from Chanel, Chloé, Fendi and his namesake label Karl Lagerfeld, as well as from his time at Balmain and Patou. Lagerfeld died in February 2019.

Attendee attire isn’t the only analysis that The Met Gala generates.

New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee for an undisclosed matter, which some media speculated was due to her attending The Met Gala. Another New York political figure, Rep. Carolyn Maloney, who was not reelected last year, is also under investigation for how she came to attend one Met Gala after initially being crossed off the list. Maloney has denied any wrongdoing. The Met has made a practice of inviting select community leaders and politicians to attend the gala each year. Individual tickets are $35,000 and tables cost $200,000. After the Office of Congressional Ethics announced it had extended its investigation into Ocasio-Cortez, a spokesperson for The Met said inviting select officeholders to the event would continue. The investigation is reportedly expected to be finalized this month. — R.F.

HIGHER CAUSE: Alberta Ferretti has launched a project to help support efforts to safeguard the glaciers. 

The brand has teamed with Skyway Monte Bianco, the cable car that links the city of Courmayeur, Italy, in the Aosta Valley region with the south side of the mountain, to develop a limited-edition capsule collection.

The capsule includes two sweaters crafted from recycled cashmere and featuring the statement “Save the Glacier.” Available in black or white versions, each knit retails for 495 euros at Alberta Ferretti boutiques and online store. In addition, the capsule hit the shelves of a selection of retailers and of the Skyway Monte Bianco shops. A portion of the sales will be donated to support environmental projects aimed at safeguarding the glaciers. 

To promote the initiative the company has released a dedicated ad campaign and a video showing the snowy peaks and a panoramic view of the mountain.  

Ferretti has developed eco-minded capsule collections before. In 2019, she presented the “Love Me” fully sustainable capsule of recycled cashmere pulls, T-shirts and denim miniskirts developed with Eco-Age and Livia Firth. The range was presented as part of her brand’s resort 2020 collection, which was shown during Monte Carlo Fashion Week. On that occasion, the designer also received the Ethical and Sustainable Award from the Chambre Monégasque de la Mode. — ANDREA ONATE

CHAIRISH-ED ARTWORKS: The Chairish Art Gallery is setting up its inaugural brick-and-mortar retail experience within Bergdorf Goodman.

Chairish, a leading luxury online marketplace for home furnishings and art, will feature a special collection of more than 300 original artworks to purchase exclusively at Bergdorf’s for a limited time.

From Thursday through April 10, Chairish will present exclusive pieces from 30 original artists in a series of imaginative vignettes across five connected, themed rooms including: Pop Art, The Fashion Editor’s Apartment, American Craft, The Winter Conservatory and Ode to New York. The event coincides with Chairish’s 10th anniversary.

The Chairish Art Gallery, which is open daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., is located on the seventh floor of Bergdorf’s.

“There is no better partner for Chairish’s first shop than Bergdorf Goodman, the most magical and iconic department store in the world,” said Anna Brockway, president and cofounder of Chairish. “We look forward to welcoming design and art lovers to discover some of Chairish’s most coveted artists in The Chairish Art Gallery.”

Andrew Mandell, vice president and divisional merchandise manager at Bergdorf’s, added, “The creatively curated galleries exemplify what makes Chairish such a wonderful destination for design and provide a platform for artists and designers to be seen by visitors from around the world.”

The in-person experience starts with The Pop Art room, which features artwork by Ron Giusti. The Fashion Editor’s Apartment highlights curated pieces inspired by the glamorous and highly personal spaces of America’s legendary female editors. There are vibrant, figurative works from Rebecca Jack alongside fashion illustrations from Manuel Santelices, as well as paintings from Sean Kratzert and Flore and Anne-Louise Ewen.

The Ode to New York room celebrates the Big Apple with a cozy, sophisticated space inspired by a nightcap at one of the city’s cocktail and piano lounges, with pieces from New York illustrators Happy Menocal and Tug Rice.

Other artists featured in the various vignettes include Bridgehampton artist Bill Tansey, London-based artist Venetia Syms and photographer Claiborne Swanson Frank, as well as works such as Paige Dorsey’s ceramic snake mirror and paper flowers from designer Livia Cetti’s The Green Vase. — LISA LOCKWOOD

REWILDING AND RECHILDING: A new year calls for new sustainable initiatives at Stella McCartney.

The British designer is focusing on the concept of rewilding and rechilding, motifs that inspired her pre-spring 2023 collection, featuring brightly colored birds on a short black dress and a menagerie of hare, hedgehogs and baby deer on a boxy-sleeve shirt and miniskirt combo.

The prints on the pieces are of the species in need of protection or reintroduction, such as the hedgehogs and the extinct Eurasian lynx.

Sticking to the theme, Christabel Reed, cofounder of the climate action platform EcoResolution and the systems change platform Advaya, hosted a panel talk on rewilding at the Stella McCartney store on Old Bond Street with rewilding experts Ben Goldsmith and Derek Gow; author, activist and environmentalist Mya-Rose Craig, also known as Birdgirl, and Hans Schutten from Wetlands International.

Rechilding is inspired by psychotherapy, using fashion to return people to a more childlike state — the idea is to help expand lifespans. Rewilding is about restoring natural lands and ecosystems by removing human intervention and reintroducing species that people have either pushed out or made extinct.

In the U.K., more than half of all species are in decline and 15 are facing extinction — globally 70 percent of animal populations have disappeared since the 1970s.

“Don’t be tribal in your voting, vote for the candidate who takes this really seriously,” Goldsmith said about practices which can help with rewilding.

“Be really mindful how you spend your money, every pound you spend has some kind of impact without being sort of hair shirted about it,” Goldsmith added.

Craig went on to discuss biodiversity in the U.K., which is at an all-time low. 

“Rewilding is incredibly important in terms of just trying to keep hold of the bits of biodiversity that we still have left,” she said. — HIKMAT MOHAMMED