"Although Lacroix was adored by fashion editors and celebrity A-list customers for his extravagant, fairytale clothes, couture is notorius for loss-making activity" says an article in The Telegraph UK. The article goes on to say that those who do indulge in it need to have a "solid backing of ready-to-wear lines and more importantly, accessories and perfumes that the general public can afford."
It all just makes good business sense. I know that some of us, as I've pointed out before, are sad to see the fall of the great Lacroix but in mourning the end of Lacroix as we know it it is important that this serves as a lesson for other fashion designers. South African designers, specifically, could learn lots from what I think should become a case study in all respectable fashion education institutions in our country and across the world; art is seldom easy to make a living out of.
I find that with many local designers, a hyped name seems to define success but of what use is it when all that recognition does not translate to cash in the till at the end of the day? What use is it to have celebrities don your creations if the general public, which are- whether or not one is willing to accept- the real consumers of fashion, cannot access the brand due to astronomical prices and an exclusivity that only becomes the source of a brand's downfall?
I've mentioned this before and I'm glad that today an icon such as Christian Lacroix has become a victim of something that could have been avoided and, on the bright side, will now serve as a lesson for those who look(ed) up to him.
It all just makes good business sense. I know that some of us, as I've pointed out before, are sad to see the fall of the great Lacroix but in mourning the end of Lacroix as we know it it is important that this serves as a lesson for other fashion designers. South African designers, specifically, could learn lots from what I think should become a case study in all respectable fashion education institutions in our country and across the world; art is seldom easy to make a living out of.
I find that with many local designers, a hyped name seems to define success but of what use is it when all that recognition does not translate to cash in the till at the end of the day? What use is it to have celebrities don your creations if the general public, which are- whether or not one is willing to accept- the real consumers of fashion, cannot access the brand due to astronomical prices and an exclusivity that only becomes the source of a brand's downfall?
I've mentioned this before and I'm glad that today an icon such as Christian Lacroix has become a victim of something that could have been avoided and, on the bright side, will now serve as a lesson for those who look(ed) up to him.
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