TheRunwayScoop

Notes For PR Reps: How to Pitch to Fashion Bloggers

Sat, 10 May 2008 17:26:43 -0700

Last year I wrote about public relations in the fashion industry and with the growing number of fashion bloggers receiving pitches from PR people, I thought it was time to revisit the subject. Bloggers are a different "species", for lack of a better term, when it comes to the media. From my own experiences lately, I know that there are many PR people who still don't get it. That's why if you're a fashion PR rep, you should read Shannon Nelson's post, How to Pitch to Mommy Bloggers. Don't let the title fool you though. The tips and advice given can be applied to just about any type of blogger you pitch to.

Here's another article to check out...an interview with Darren Rowse of Problogger about Bloggers vs Journalists.

And if you're a new fashion blogger wanting tips on how to interact with PR, you may want to check out Coutorture's interview with Crosby of PR Couture over at Blogtalkradio.

Are Fashion Designers Out of Touch?

Thu, 08 May 2008 16:34:11 -0700

There's an interesting conversation going on about the influence that the fashion press has on people's perceptions of the industry. It started with Lesley of Fashion Tribes and has continued on Manolo's Shoe Blog.

I don't believe that designers are out of touch because some of their clothes can't be worn by "ordinary" women. I come from a philosophy that thinks fashion is indeed art. Yes, I've been known to critique some runway shows and have said that some collections are "unwearable", but that doesn't mean that the fashion isn't nice to look at. If anything these collections provide the inspiration to think outside of the box and be more innovative with our creativity.

Any thoughts?

Singleringen Seizes Opportunity

Tue, 06 May 2008 23:23:28 -0700

Everyone's talking about Mariah Carey's gargantuan engagement ring, but I'm going to go in another direction and talk about these Singelringen rings that are popping up on other celebrities' fingers. We're all familiar with engagement and wedding rings, but Singelringen is a company that saw the opportunity to create rings for single people.

Now many of you long-time readers know that I normally don't promote fashion just because it's being worn by celebrities, but since we're in superhero mode this week and Terrence Howard's face isn't plastered all over the place (However, he should be!), I thought I'd share this serene picture of him wearing a Singelringen ring..

Superheroes Influence on Fashion

Mon, 05 May 2008 23:23:17 -0700

There has been so much talk about superheroes lately...First with the opening of the movie, Iron Man, which is getting quite a bit of buzz from super hero fans; then there's the Met's Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy exhibition which will be open to the public on May 7th.

Coutorture was in the house to get up close and personal with the ensembles. Read the review and check out the gallery. It is interesting to see how superheroes have influenced big-name fashion designers. I immediately got the R2D2/"Star Wars" vibe when Nicolas Ghesquiere presented this from the Spring 2007 Balenciaga collection...

That runway show was the most memorable for me last year. An outfit like that makes me feel like I could conquer the world!

Photo Credit: Style.com

The Cure For a Creative Rut: Michaels and Fashion Magazines

Sun, 04 May 2008 15:49:25 -0700

Sometimes designers fall into a creative rut - something that I've been experiencing lately. As far as writing about fashion, well, the ball is rolling again for me and I'm excited and inspired, but those creative juices haven't aligned with the jewelry designer in me. However, that all changed when I visited Michaels yesterday...

I went in just to get some scrapbook paper, but walked out with that and then some - as is always the case when I enter any craft store! I came away with these "Heart & Soul" metal charms by Blue Moon Beads that have inspired me to take out the jewelry kit again....New collection coming soon!

I was also inspired today by a fashion magazine's photo shoot to create my own feature using my art and jewelry pieces. Check out the rest of the jewelry collection over at my Etsy shop.

What's It Like to Work at RalphLauren.com?

Fri, 02 May 2008 10:47:04 -0700

Today we have a guest post by Jamie Sanders who blogs over at The Beauty of Life. She also works at RalphLauren.com, so I asked her to share her experiences with us...

The life of a beauty blogger can be somewhat hectic! While I absolutely love writing about beauty products and spa treatments, I also work full-time as the Copywriter for RalphLauren.com to pay the bills … and continue to fuel my beauty obsession, of course! Writing for Ralph Lauren has taught me a lot about how to look for the details. And whether I'm writing about a polo shirt or about the latest Clinique lipgloss, this comes in handy!

On any given day, I could be submerged under 100 kids items (the little baby onesies are just too adorable), 20 pairs of high-end boots that I wish I could afford, and tons of amazing tops and dresses. But one of my favorite experiences was at our Black Label showroom when they had the Summer '08 collection rigged. It was an absolute sea of pink and white … and at first, all I could think was, "Wow, this is jarring." But the longer I stared at the pieces, the more I actually started to like them all – especially the pink-and-white striped blouse with Victorian-inspired batwing sleeves and the absolutely gorgeous pink-and-white polka-dot dress. And yes, I'm saving my pennies to be able to afford them both!

Gisele Bundchen Holding Strong at #1

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 22:39:30 -0700

Forbes published their list of World's Top-Earning Models with Gisele Bundchen still holding strong to her position at #1 banking a $35 million while Heidi Klum coming in second with $14 million. Tagging on their heels is Kate Moss with her $7.5 million earnings.

The lesson that models are learning is that in order to make money in the fashion industry these days is with partnerships, clothing licenses, and advertising sponsorships. In other words, a pretty face and a knock-out body aren't enough anymore. With models losing their spots on magazine covers, models need to have a strong sense of business as well.

Check out the full list of top earning models...

Everyone Wants to Know What's Up With Nina

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 19:41:24 -0700

Nina Garcia's name has been hitting the fashion radar the past few days. Maybe it's because of her cameo appearance in an episode of Ugly Betty. Looks like she has some pretty decent acting skills...or is that the real her?

Everyone wants to know what's up with Nina...

Fashionista has dropped a little bit of juicy gossip that's making people wonder if Harper's Bazaar is trying to recruit Nina...For all we know she just dropped by to see a friend who works there, perhaps?

Tim Gunn is just hoping that she makes it back for another season of Project Runway...

However, we find it interesting that she's going to be a judge in a contest to design birth control packaging...

Australian Fashion Week: Konstantina Mittas' Fierce Collection

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:30:03 -0700

Some Australian fashion designers are proving that "fierce" and innovative fashion are not exclusive to Christian Siriano and Nicolas Ghesquiere. Take Konstantina Mittas, for example. I was pretty blown away by some of the pieces in her spring/summer 08/09 collection. Her inspiration: crows. The pieces are part gothic, edgy, full of volume, but dare I say, almost completely unwearable. I'm curious as to how the collection will translate into pieces that could be sold in boutiques.

Read more about Australian Fashion Week over at Patty Huntington's blog...

Nancy MacDonell of Style.com is also reporting from Australia...

Fashion Trends: My Top 5 Jewelry Pieces For Men

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 17:39:51 -0700

If you're in the jewelry business, this may be the year for you. According to the L.A. Times (via Style Dash), these days men are becoming comfortable with the idea of wearing more jewelry. Bling is no longer reserved for rap stars and sports players with enough money to feed Africa :)

Browsing through some of my favorite shopping sites on the web, here are my top 5 picks for men's jewelry:

There's something about a Fleur de Lys that captures my attention. This necklace is made with sterling silver and hematite stingray leather. (Available at Shop.com )

This Edward Mirell Gray & Black Titanium Ring is very chic...

For casual wear, I think a beaded bracelet is fun. This is a Lotus Dzi Bead Bracelet (with Amazonite Beads) for Men...

This GUESS Men's Rose-Goldtone Resin-Strap Chronograph Watch is definitely an eye-catcher...

And of course, a pair of white gold diamond stud earrings will always turn heads...

Fashion Marketing 2.0

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:02:41 -0700

The other day I browsed through Teen Vogue because I was curious as to what kind of ads are being printed these days. Basically what I saw were the same ads as the regular Vogue. In a nutshell: forgettable. No, this is isn’t going to be one of those what-happened-to-creativity rants that many of you long-time readers are accustomed to. No, this time I have a tip on how companies can make the most of their advertising money. So if you’re a marketing executive, read on…

With so many people online nowadays, I believe that the future for marketing and advertising is going to be on the internet. We’re already seeing this with bloggers already claiming some share of the advertising budgets of companies such as Levi’s who advertised here at The Runway Scoop not too long ago. Then Chanel caused a stir when it invited some of the top beauty bloggers to Paris.

Miley Cyrus and Vanity Fair: Speculation Rises

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 12:26:52 -0700

As if Miley Cyrus hasn’t received enough attention from fans of her Hanna Montana character, she’s now attracted raised eyebrows and speculation from adults for her recent spread in Vanity Fair magazine which is due out later this week.

I understand that as a teenager you want to do grown-up things and a photo shoot for Vanity Fair is indeed “all grown up”. In fact, the Cyrus clan initially didn’t have any problems with the photo. Maybe at the time of the photo shoot Miley had gotten caught up in the excitement - but I have to wonder if there was anyone at Vanity Fair who was thinking about the consequences.

Could this have been a ploy by Vanity Fair - a magazine desperate for sales and attention? Or did Disney drill it into Miley’s head that this just wasn’t cool and now she feels guilty?

Well, what’s done is done and now Miley Cyrus has to face all the gossip, jokes, and negative press. I now wonder how many teenage girls out there are going to see the magazine and decide that they, too, want to do what Miley Cyrus is doing.

Will Miley walk the Britney Spears path? Dear God, I hope not.

Annie Leibovitz, the photographer who shot the pic, issued a statement...

Fashion Industry Job Openings at Like.com

Sun, 27 Apr 2008 13:29:33 -0700

If you've always wanted to work in a fashion ecommerce environment and want to become part of a growing company, you may be interested in working for Like.com. Like.com is an online shopping search engine that helps you visually search for products on the 'net. Here are some of the key features of Like.com (taken from the site):

Likeness Search - the ability to search by image instead of text;
Like Detail - finds items that have a specific feature you like (such as a buckle, straps, bezel, etc);
Like Color - find color variants of the item you desire;
Like Celebrity - find clothing, shoes and accessories similar to those worn by your favorite celebrities;
Like Upload - the ability to upload your own photo of your favorite item and find the same or similar products, coming soon.

Right now the company is looking for team players in these key areas:

- Program Manager
- Merchant Account Manager
- Inventory Manager

- UI Designer (Java, Javascript, HTML, CSS)
- Sys Admin (Debian linux based distributed cluser, expect in perl and log analysis)
- Java Engineer (Java, spring, hibernate)
- DBA (MySQL and MS SQL)

The CEO of Like.com is Munjal Shah. Read his blog and learn more about the Mastermind behind the company.

If interested in any of the positions above, send your resume to: Azhar Khan, azhar[at]like[dot]com

P.S. Mention Monica S. Flores, Cornell Alumni 1994 as your referral and you will get a thorough review from the hiring manager!

The Fashion Scoop

Sat, 26 Apr 2008 23:09:54 -0700

The weather is warming up outside and so is all the fashion news. Here are a few tidbits to check out this weekend...

Fashionista tells us that Forever 21 continues to copy designs from the runway

Manolo The Shoeblogger also reports of copy cat designs in his post, The Shameless Steve Madden Knockoff Machine

Imran Amed of The Business of Fashion still waiting for the first luxury brand to create an online community of its most loyal brand evangelists. Now that would be really interesting to see. Would it be Tommy Hilfiger? He already has his own TV network going on!

The Luxe Chronicles wants to know if the world needs another fashion magazine.

Fur Fashion: It's About Moderation

Fri, 25 Apr 2008 22:01:10 -0700

I was reading this post about “ecological fur” and it made me rethink my beliefs and values in regards to treatment of animals…

I’m still on the fence about the whole situation. I do love animals, but at the same time I know that there are many people in the world who depend on animal fur to keep warm. In some parts of the U.S. and other countries where fur is not really a necessity perhaps yes, the killing of animals is excessive - especially killing animals that are on the brink of extinction or killing them solely for their fur.

On the other hand, think about this scenario…I believe in buying leather shoes not just because they look great, but they last much longer than all those “man-made material” shoes that get thrown into the landfill. I bet you’ll find that there are probably ten man-made material shoes for ever one pair of leather shoes in a landfill. Nice leather shoes get collected (especially if their by a big-name designer) and recycled. Shoes that break apart in one month do not.

As with anything in life I think it’s all about moderation. Excessive killing of animals is not ok. However, I do believe that some of these animals are here to serve our needs. Besides, nothing ever really “dies”. There is a Heaven for animals too ;)

Past posts of interest:

PETA Protests: Do They Work?

The Fur Scandals Continue

Photo Credit: ginieland