OUT OU OF STYLE
Top names bail on NY Fashion Week
When New York Fashion Week kicked off Thursday, more than a half-dozen boldface designers will be noticeably absent — and off showing their togs someplace else. Tommy Hilfiger, who loaded 50 models onto his private jet for a show in LA Wednesday, cited the need to stage a “disruptive” event in Venice Beach, where Lady Gaga was among the notables and Fergie performed. “LA is so full of pop stars, sports stars and influencers,” Hilfiger told The Post, noting that the Grammy Awards are happening there this week end. “I wanted to be in the eye of that hurricane.”
Bolstering the case that New York has lost its “eye of the hurricane” status in fashion, Tom Ford, Rebecca Minkoff and Rachel Zoe are likewise taking their shows to LA this time.
Meanwhile, Vera Wang, Proenza Schouler and Rodarte are among this season’s defectors to Paris.
For the past 24 years, New York Fashion Week has been an elite event for industry insiders, celebrities and other VIPs who go to be seen as much as to see.
But the NewYork shows are undergoing a midlife crisis now, rocked by big shifts in howconsumers shop and ququestions about how accessible the sh showsOne of shouldthe biggestbe to consumers.changes started laslast season, when a number of desigsigners showed see-now, buy-now colcollections.
“AAt the end of the day, everything is a financial decision,” said Fashion WeWeek founder Fern Mallis. “The indudustry is in flux, and business is not fabfabulous for everyone, so maybe thethere are more changes this season.”
SSteven Kolb, the head of the Councilcil of Fashion Designers of America, the nonprofit that controls the officiacial calendar for New York Fashion WeWeek, admitted that “a period of experimentation” has slammed the Big Apple’s semi-annual shows.
Nevertheless, Kolb insists the highprofile defections are “coincidental,” adding that “for every designer who leaves, a new one comes in.”
However, this time, at least, the numbers don’t quite bear that out.
There are 142 shows on the official calendar in February compared with 153 last September, according to the CFDA.
The last day of the show, Feb. 16, is typically capped by blockbuster shows, including Marc Jacobs, Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein.
This year, it has just one big name, Marc Jacobs; the other two fashion houses moved to other days.
“Eight days has always been too long for editors and buyers to be away from the office,” said Kolb. “We have tried to condense the shows into a tighter period. It’s intentional on our part.”
The defections might be making that easier, too.
This time last year, Hilfiger took over the Park Avenue Armory and transformed it into a giant cruise ship. In September, a Hilfiger show commandeered the South Street Seaport, creating a carnival atmosphere replete with a 40-foot ferris wheel.
“We are thinking about taking our show on the road in the future,” Hilfiger said.