节俭时尚风

After a hectic[忙碌的] week of fittings, photo shoots and fashion shows, New York Fashion Week is over. But for designers, the challenge goes on how to get consumers shopping in the biggest economic downturn[萧条] since the Great Depression. Anna Wintour, editor-in-chief of American Vogue, said the recession[经济衰退] has caused designers to become more focused. But focused doesn’t mean boring.

Wintour: We are looking for things that are very special, and not, not that looks like what you already have or already exist, I think. Every store that I talked to has that in the back of his or her mind when they revisit the collections and it’s certainly what we are looking for at Vogue.

Many designers are putting more focus on their affordable lines, like Christian Siriano注1. He showed his 2010 spring collection at the tents注2, but said his real bread and butter[主要收入来源] comes from his collaboration[合作] with mass retailers. He recently launched a line of accessories available at Payless, a discount shoe store chain. One of the more innovative approaches to tackling[应付] the recession may have come from Norma Kamali注3. Giving new meaning to the democratization[民主化] of fashion, she staged her show on a New York City street. Like many designers, she now uses Twitter and YouTube. But her company has gone further with its own free iPhone application. Instead of

having to wait until the clothes hit the store in spring, consumers were able to order them with the application as soon as her show was over.

Kamali: I want to open a door, and maybe a whole bunch of other people will come through the door with me and help find new solutions to the way we do business in the fashion industry.

Kamali is not optimistic about the future of the economy. But there is some positive data indicating that shoppers are hitting the stores again. Retail sales rose 2.7% in August, more than analysts had expected.

经过一整个星期热火朝天的试装搭配,摄影和时装表演,纽约时装周降下了帷幕。但是对于设计师来说,革命尚未成功――如何在继大萧条以来最严重的经济低迷时期勾起顾客的消费欲望?《VOGUE》美国版主编安娜・温托认为,经济衰退让设计师的焦点更为集中,但是聚焦不意味着单调。

温托:我们正在寻找一些非常特别的东西,不是类似你已经拥有或者已经存在的东西。和我交谈过的服装店负责人在重新观看作品系列的时候都有这样的想法,这正是我们在《VOGUE》里寻找的东西。

许多设计师将更多的心思放在价格亲民的服装系列上,如克里斯琴・西里亚诺――他在布莱恩特公园的白色帐篷里举行的第十届纽约时装周上展示了其2010春季系列作品,但是他说自己真正的收入来自与大型零售商的合作。最近他在连锁折扣鞋店――玮伦鞋业推出了一系列配饰。应对经济危机另一个更具创意的举措来自诺玛・卡玛利。她把自己的时装表演搬上纽约街头,重新定义了时尚的民主化。像许多设计师一样,她现在也使用Twitter和Youtube网站(进行宣传)。她的公司采取了更先进的做法,拥有自己品牌的免费iPhone应用软件。消费者可以通过这个软件在卡玛利的时装表演结束后立刻订购,而不需要为服装春季上市而苦苦等待。

卡玛利:我想打开这么一扇门,希望更多人会和我一起通过这扇门找到做时尚生意的

新方法。

卡玛利对经济前景发展并不乐观。但是有些积极的数据显示,顾客又开始光顾商场了。今年八月,美国零售业销售总额增长了2.7%,超过了分析家的预测。

注1:克里斯琴・西利亚诺,1985年11月18日出生,美国时装设计师,因在美国真人秀节目《天桥骄子》(Project Runway)第四季中获胜而成名,是目前为止该节目最年轻的赢家。他曾与多家著名企业合作,如彪马、LG电子、维多利亚的秘密等等,也曾为众多名人设计礼服,其中包括时尚代言人“贝嫂”和PR主持人名模海蒂・克拉姆(Heidi Klum)。

注2:这里指的是位于纽约市曼哈顿区布莱恩特公园里的白色帐篷。自1993年起,纽约时装周的时装表演便在这些大型帐篷中进行,只有受邀的名人和媒体可以进入。2010年,纽约时装周将移师同区的丹姆罗斯公园。

注3:诺玛・卡玛利,著名时装设计师,主要活跃在美国纽约市。其设计广受欢迎,其中最著名的有羽绒服(据说灵感来自睡袋)、高跟运动鞋等,上世纪80年代,其设计的毛线裙装曾在服装界轰动一时。