New Signing
CAA Fashion has signed Carlos Nazario, who styled Lizzo and Naomi Campbell for the October and November issues of Vogue, becoming the first Black stylist to style a cover for the magazine in its 100-plus-year history, according to the agency.
Hollywood’s new fashion player with a mission to change the industry has been on a signing spree this year, adding Claudia Schiffer, Alessandra Ambrosio, Elsa Hosk, Winnie Harlow, Indya Moore, Kate Upton, Leomie Anderson, Dilone, Duckie Thot, Jillian Mercado, Lourdes Leon and more.
Nazario is the first stylist the agency has signed. CAA will represent him for commercial endorsements, business building, film/TV, literature, speaking and books, while Art Partner continues to represent him for fashion editorial and commercial work.
Nazario got his start at Love magazine, and subsequently assisted stylist Joe McKenna for six years before striking out on his own. He is now global fashion director of I-D Magazine, and this month was named a contributing editor at Vogue. His clients include Adidas, Calvin Klein, Helmut Lang, Hugo Boss, Hood By Air, Kenzo, Lanvin, Nike and Proenza Schouler.
CAA Fashion is headed by Christian Carino, who is looking to elevate fashion talent to the realm of Hollywood talent in pay and personal brand-building and create more opportunity for them in the entertainment space.
He is offering a more generous commission structure based on the 10 percent Hollywood standard and proactive business development outside of fashion. He’s also wrapping in a message of diversity and self-empowerment for these activist times.
“We started with the idea that we could leverage our influence as an agency to make things better for women in the fashion business who have been historically underrepresented and undervalued. But we realized we also had an opportunity to celebrate all races, genders, LGBTQ and even those with disabilities,” Carino told WWD. “This isn’t a celebration of inclusion for the sake of [it], it’s with an eye on making everyone the powerful business people they deserve to be.” — BOOTH MOORE
A scientific committee spearheaded by Giancarlo Comi, director of the Experimental Neurology Institute at the San Raffaele Hospital in Milan, and including researchers, physicians, psychologists, linguists and curators is coordinating the activities. Fondazione Prada described the project as “open” in that it promotes the dialogue among members of different disciplines.
Marking the debut of the project, which runs through November 2022, a digital conference called “Culture and Consciousness” will be held virtually Nov. 9 to 13 comprising five daily panel discussions flanked by digital content, including video interviews and podcasts.
In 2021, the Fondazione Prada complex in Milan will host the second chapter of the project, an international conference accompanied by an on-site exhibition that will delve into the research about the regular and pathologic aging of the human brain to highlight the progress made by global studies.
In 2022, to coincide with the
Art Biennale in Venice, Italy, the Fondazione Prada’s Ca’ Corner della Regina palazzo will house an exhibit curated by Udo Kittelmann that is meant to translate the findings of the previous two chapters into a IRL showcase.
“The most important brainiacs in the world said they will attend,” Prada said back in February.
To be sure, the list of involved personalities spans across multiple disciplines and includes neuroscientist Mavi SanchezVives; neurobiologist Jean-Pierre Changeux; neurolinguistics expert Andrea Moro, and cognitive psychologist Stanislas Dehaene, among others.
Although the Fondazione Prada is a separate entity from the fashion group, the project sits on the same wavelength of the Prada Group’s most recent strengthened commitment to scientific research and its involvement in exploring the role of science in contemporary society.
As reported, last April the company revealed it was financially supporting the “Proteggimi [protect me]” project of the San Raffaele Hospital in Milan, which investigates the disparity in the impact of COVID-19 on men and women, researching why it predominantly affects men and the role played by male sex hormones in this imbalance. — MARTINO CARRERA and moving us forward with better products to be able to have a more sustainable business.” — ALEXA TIETJEN
Avenue is the third Alo Yoga in the New York area, and the eighth store total. The brand was founded in L.A. by DeGeorge and Danny Harris in 2007 and has racked up sales in the neighborhood of $200 million.
While fashion retail has taken a hit, activewear, whether worn for fitness or work-from-home comfort, seems to be pandemicproof, with a number of new players entering the market in recent months, including Madewell, H&M’s Cos and Aerie, competing with category giants Adidas, Nike and Lululemon, and up-and-comers Fabletics, Outdoor Voices and Alo Yoga.
Alo has stood out with its L.A. vibe and fashionable “studio to street” moto leggings, cropped sherpa jackets and slit bras that have been worn by Gigi Hadid, Taylor Swift, Kaia Gerber, Chrissy Teigen, Lady Gaga and more. The brand also sells men’s yogawear. “We are the future, our demographic is edgier, younger and a lot of them are digitally inclined,” Harris told WWD in a recent interview.
During the pandemic the brand has been expanding its online platform Alo Moves, offering more fitness, meditation and pilates classes virtually. In July it opened a store in San Diego, and in September, it launched fine jewelry with a capsule collection by L.A. designer Logan Hollowell inspired by mindfulness.
While the brand will pursue more brick-and-mortar openings, it will do so cautiously. “We’ll continue to open some stores with studios and some without. We don’t believe this is forever,” Harris said of the pandemic effect on retail. An Upper East Side location is planned for December.
In Flatiron, the store will have a working yoga studio as soon as the city allows it to open. Meanwhile, Sutra will be open for lunch Wednesday through Sunday, noon to 6 p. m. Breakfast, dinner and organic bar service will begin at a later date. — B.M.