Blint n° 75 - Enero 2016

ENGLISH TRANSLATION
of previous experience, but not exclusively from ones own
sector: the difference between the sectors tends from this
point of view to blend in, for the expectations of consumers
who are increasingly accustomed to the logics arising from
new technological devices: from the extension to the integration
of the experience, physical and online.
THE VARIOUS VERSIONS OF RETAIL
Once again the retail workshop sponsored by Future Concept
Lab featured the analytical forecasts of Luigi Rubinelli,
the head of Retail Watch, who focused his comments on
how traditional retail is being threatened by new players.
“Like Amazon, for example, which isn’t in the business of
retail but selling sellable products,” he was eager to point
out. “The Amazon book store in Seattle has taught everyone
what bookstores should be like in the future, how to display
products and how to construct the selection. It represents
a circularity between memory and future. The shelves are
made from wood, like in old-fashioned bookstores, and they
are not regularly dusted, but the books are displayed frontally,
with helpful reviews right below, including negative
criticisms, just like online. This means they are so confident
they don’t have to push every single item, putting the main
emphasis on service, because in the final analysis the brand
is Amazon, whereas traditional retailers have never invested
in their own brand.”
Alibaba introduced sales specifically targeting singles for
just one day and sold fully one billion four-hundred thousand
dollars worth of merchandise at the full price.
“The difference between the new players and traditional
retailers is that the former sell but without ever buying,”
explained Rubinelli. “Those retailers who still struggle with
purchases in order to ensure decent margins of profit inevitably
end up in a state of panic. Since 2008 we have been
witnessing a growing demand for services, more than for
products, and if the traditional stores cannot manage to respond
in a more effective way to this new development they
will be finished, especially those in the clothing business. In
addition to just selling products, Amazon has always added
a special emphasis on service. Indeed, it’s the service that
actually sells the product and it is also why shoppers are
willing to pay a higher price. From now on it will be the services
offered that really make the difference.”
The Coop Supermarket of the future as seen at Expo showcased
the enormous need for information on the part of
shoppers, a need that must be met. For each product there
was a display explaining the product’s story and characteristics.
The big Sephora flagship store in Paris has a robot that
explains the features of each and every one of the products
that are for sale.
“On- and offline approaches to sales have coexist in the
same store,” explained Rubinelli. “Shoppers order online
and pick up their purchases in the store at their convenience.
Even discount policies are being reevaluated. There
are those who are actually moving in the opposite direction.
For example, U2 of Unes has opted to go the way of
everyday low prices, guaranteeing highly competitive prices
throughout the entire arc of the year.”
The discount concept is drastically revolutionizing its sales
strategy, moving away from an exclusive focus on lowcost.
In a number of discount operations in Germany and
Great Britain bread is freshly baked four times a day, while
croissants are baked two times each morning.
“Whole new categories are emerging,” added Rubinelli.
“One is witnessing the emergence of discount outlets featuring
products whose expiration date is about to expire,
thereby extending their life cycle and make a significant
contribution when it comes to combating waste.”
The greatest service a store can offer in the future will be
maximum customization - and this does not entail any sort
of surcharge.
DISEÑADORES/ DESIGNERS
CHRISTIAN LACROIX
A DESIGNER CAPSULE FOR AUBADE
The French couturier imbues an iconic Aubade line with his
highly personal style
Christian Lacroix represented a turning point in the fashion
world of the Eighties. His first haute couture catwalk show,
staged on 26 July 1987, met with roaring success. His fashion
vision constituted a clear break with the cannons of taste of
the period; the great Japanese designers had been determining
the agenda with typically Japanese rigor, but Lacroix challenged
this austere Asian approach to minimalism with an exuberantly
feminine and baroque vision of fashion. The fashion house had
just been created a few months previously, founded by Lacroix
himself, along with that guru of luxury, Jean-Jacques Picart, and
the businessman, Bernard Arnault, headquartering it at a hotel
particulier at No. 75 on the fashionable Rue du Faubourg Saint-
Honoré, in the very heart of Paris. The designer has a vision of
fashion which embraces various different realms, as varied as
they are apparently distinct and distant from one another, from
art to folklore and including a passion for history. He was fond
of borrowing elements from these spheres, mixing them and
interpreting them in his own distinctive way, featuring diverse
colors and unexpected, even unorthodox materials, coming up
with stunning outfits that are both elegant and sophisticated.
A year after his first catwalk presentation saw him debuting in
Vogue America, with the cover photographed by none other
than Peter Lindbergh. Anna Wintour, the editor-in-chief of the
magazine, selected a Christian Lacroix haute couture sweater
and showed it with a pair of jeans, achieving an unforgettably
modern, scintillating image. Over the course of the Nineties this
French fashion house undertook a process of diversification in
terms of its activities which enabled it to expand its business; it
eventually changed hands and toward the end of the decade the
great Christian Lacroix actually abandoned the maison. Over the
course of his carrier he successfully tried his hand in a number
of different fields – including home linens, decorator accessories
and gift items, as well as fragrances, naturally, not to mention
various segments of clothing. He created everything from
uniforms for the AirFrance crew to bridal gowns, from dazzling
theatrical costumes for the stage and TV. Only a few fields were
left unexplored by the inquisitive, highly imaginative Lacroix. He
worked together with a number of celebrated names, embarking
on all sorts of ventures, such as taking over the creative helm
for the Emilio Pucci brand from 2002 to 2005, working for the
Spanish fast-fashion giant, Desigual, and the Kartell design brand,
going on to create custom-designed gowns for such illustrious
celebrities as the glamorous Christina Aguilera.
Having proven his unique flair in the fields of haute couture,
men’s and women’s pret-à-porter and even children’s clothing, it
was only to be expected that the versatile Lacroix would turn his
attention to the exciting field of lingerie. The first collection came
out in 2004, when the dynamic couturier was still at the helm of
the fashion house bearing his name. Today, twelve years later,
this indefatigable couturier is repeating the experience for a long
established, highly respected French foundation garment firm,
known for its unmistakable Gallic panache, Aubade, for which
he has created a delightful capsule collection for autumn-winter
2016/17, a collection that encapsulates all that is best about his
exuberant fashion vision. When it came to reinterpreting one of
their iconic lines, Idylle Parisienne, Aubade could not have found a
more perfect creative talent. His unique fashion vision combines
his signature penchant for rococo vitality with a wonderfully
modern, contemporary spirit. This fortunate encounter between
the talented Christian Lacroix and Aubade, brings together the
master’s love of art, his dazzling savoir-faire and natural gift for
haute-couture styling, in a daring kaleidoscope of colors vaguely
evocative of the rococo palette. “When designing I largely trust