Alberto Annibali's IntervieW by Myra

ALBERTO ANNIBALI

Since his childhood, Alberto Annibali was attracted to the world of fashion and the creativity involved in fine tailoring
He then decided to refine his diverse education and experience by beginning to work for major labels. After his collaboration for Ittierre S.p.a. for Versus-Gianni Versace e Gianfranco Ferrè Jeans, the high fashion phase of his career culminated with the start of a collaboration with Valentino in Rome for the men’s design studio. Additionally he worked as an independent fashion stylist .

In 2007 he created his own label and presented his first collection to the industry. The collection expresses the culmination of his experiences as he understood that it’s not only about fashion itself, but also includes a deep understanding of tailoring, fabrics, cultures and lifestyles

His experience, which has strong roots in Men’s fashion, compelled him to enter the world of Women’s fashion as a natural progression of everything he did. 

The passion for Men’s wear is transformed into a passion for the female personality and clearly expresses the love that a woman has for a man, for his world and for his style. 


The ALBERTOANNIBALI woman is a woman who travels around the world, growing through the exposure to influences from the various places she’s been, secure and proud of herself, yet passionate and fragile at the same time, in love with her man and his style, that she often uses as tool to seduce him.

Myra :  How would you describe the woman ‘’Alberto Annibali’’ ?

A.A. : She is feminine and seductive, she has personality and she does not like to be in the spotlight.

She prefers  being herself and she use fashion to feel better and to feel confident with herself.

Myra : How would you describe the ‘’Alberto Annibali’’ brand?

A.A. : It is a brand for women who use fashion to underline their personality, to seduce without being too sexy or eccentric.

Myra : Name 3 things that inspired you in your latest collection….

A.A. : Bon ton, formalwear, fluidity.

Myra : How do you see the development of the “Alberto Annibali” brand in Italy?

A.A. :I would like to develop it as something special not for everybody, not for an  high street culture, and absolutely not only for young girls, but for women who feel confident with themselves.

I am doing little steps to do  create a world where women can feel free to be.

Myra : How should a designer differentiate from others in order to be successful?

A.A. :Just being yourself and look at what your costumer really needs.

Myra : A “cool” detail from your latest collection….

A.A. :The contrats between the men’s blazer and the fluid silk dress worn together.

Myra : A “cool” detail from your fashion life….

Do not use to many colors at once which mean be faithful  to what I am  like.

Myra : Your favorite outfit…is…?

A.A. : From my spring collection is a white ruffle silk dress worn with a canvas kaki blazer.

Speaking about my self, I always wear kaki trousers a grey t-shirt and a blue  jumper.

Myra : Three adjectives for your favorite outfit…

A.A. : Easy to wear, elegant, all day long

Myra : How does a woman dress when she wants to be “different”…?

A.A. : I do not believe in dress up like a clown or in a  catwalk style.

The best is to wear a fluid dress who makes her feel feminine, sexy without look to aggressive.

Myra : Do you like shopping?

A.A. : I quite like it but I am very exigent in fact when I need to buy something for myself i just have to be really impressed by what I see.

Myra : Favorite designers…?

A.A. : I like very much Halston(the American designer himself from the 70’s) and on the opposite side one of my maestro, Gianni Versace(himself).

Valentino (himself) it is one of the great couturier ever.

Myra : Favorite brands…?

A.A. : I do like Banana Republic, very American, very easy and chic and personally I like Bottega Veneta.

Myra : The color that most inspires you in your collections?

A.A. : Definitely  all the shades of grey, pink and green.

Myra : Is there a person that you admire for his/hers style? Who is that person?

A.A. : I always liked Lauren Hutton as a  beauty and as a woman.

Myra : How does a woman transforms a day look into an evening look?

A.A. : The right accessory it is very important of course, but I believe that women before get ready for a daylook or an evening look they should think where they are  going.

One can not go on a party dress up like a singer in a music video, or wear a miniskirt  and very high heels for a business meeting.

Myra : Your favorite thing from your ‘’dress room’’?

A.A. : Oh god I don’t want to sounds boring but can I say my grey t.shirts?

I have at least 30 different styles, different shades and fabric but all grey!

Myra : Your passion is….

A.A. : Feel myself passionate. Without I would not be myself.

Myra : Is a recognizable look important in the fashion world?

A.A. : Right now I if a woman wear  skinny trousers and a padded shoulder blazer could be very 2011.

But to be sincere  there is not a proper “fashion look”.

I mean, every woman want to look different  from another, and for this reason there are many different looks.

Back in the days the look was one, total black.  

Myra : Do you think that fashion blogs are important?

A.A. : Oh yes they are very important, they are the new way to communicate fashion, opinions, and some of them they are very interesting.

I read some of  them everyday.

Myra : What is a must have for a fashion blog?

A.A. : Personally I believe they have to talk about people and not just about themselves( I like this I like that I ‘ve done this etc.)

Myra : Describe the Italian Customer…

A.A. : The north Italian costumer is very trendy, minimal and exclusive, very Milano style.

From Rome, Florence to the rest of south Italy, it is more about personal style, quality but for a fair price( if it is not labeled)

But please I do not want to look generalist!

We are basically very different from town to town.

Myra : 3 things that defines the ‘’Italian fashion world’’.

A.A. : Design, Manufacturing, Everlasting

Postolache Myra

SPRING-SUMMER 2011

FALL-WINTER 2010/2011

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Fashion Merchandising Strategies

1. Customers are multi-brand loyal. Listen to what the costumer wants and have to give it to them. If they think you’re listening to their needs and their wants; they’ll come to you first because you are meeting their needs. It’s all about THEM.

2. Remain consistent. The product is the same start to finish, don’t substitute a cheaper alternative to save a few dollars; you compromise the perceived quality the customer whats to pay for. Compromise that and loose the customer.

3. Don’t assume that the brand or retailer controls the market. Reality check, the birth of Web 2.0 and the increasing popularity of social communities, blogs and retail news breaking tools like Twitter, we’ve actually lost control. Customers can say what they like and don’t like a retailer or brand instantly. Fashion bloggers break trends (and create them) faster than traditional media. Consumers control the market more and more. Don’t turn an deaf ear or attempt to control it, you’ll achieve lack luster results. Instead, figure out how to leverage the individuals’ work and efforts. Build a relationship with them as you would your customer, it’ll do nothing but build your brand.

To read the Birnbaum’s Women’s Wear Daily interview, click below.

Rethinking the Merchandise Formula

Women’s Wear Daily, 04/28/2008, by Ross Tucker

Long-term survival might depend on brands and retailers rethinking the fundamentals of their relationships with consumers.

Manufacturing veteran, consultant and author David Birnbaum believes there are two distinct philosophies companies apply when they consider consumers. The recession is amplifying the failures of one of those approaches — the one that is unfortunately being followed by the majority of the industry, he said.

According to Birnbaum, two explanations are offered when products aren’t selling. The first is that the consumer isn’t buying what a brand or retailer is selling. The second is that brands and retailers aren’t selling what the consumer is buying. Birnbaum contends that 95 percent of the industry falls into the “they’re not buying what we’re selling” category — and the results aren’t promising.

The mind-set, said Birnbaum, leads to a predictable pattern. Companies, believing customers simply aren’t buying what they sell, look to outlast the recession and count on recouping sales when business picks up. Managing through the downturn means reducing orders, followed by further reductions, followed by markdowns. As that is going on, management seeks to improve margins by negotiating harder with suppliers and reducing other overhead.

The overall assumption being made in this circumstance is that the brand or retailer controls the market, that it knows what customers want. Getting consumers to pay more for less quality or value is inherent in this stance, according to Birnbaum.

“The underlying assumption is that the consumer’s a moron,” said Birnbaum. “I have to tell you that the average American may not be the smartest person to walk the face of the earth, but when it comes to buying — bunch of Nobel Prize winners.”

Birnbaum believes evidence of the failure of this approach is prevalent within the industry and in other areas. Car companies like General Motors and Chrysler took this approach and are struggling to stay alive. Birnbaum pointed to Gap Inc. and Liz Claiborne Inc. as examples from within the industry.

Birnbaum noted that Gap’s same-store sales have declined 48 out of the last 50 months.

“Underlying Gap’s strategy is the belief that they want to sell everybody in the world a Gap garment,” he said. “There is an alternate strategy, which is…rather than selling everybody in the world a Gap garment or the Gap look, find out who the Gap customer is and give them what they want, which is how Zara works or an H&M works.”

Birnbaum emphasized that in the case of Gap and Claiborne, declines were occurring before the recession hit. The reason, Birnbaum believes, is that consumers have been spending less on apparel for a number of years. Birnbaum said the rate of U.S. garment imports started slowing around 1997 and that a decline in import figures was likely to have occurred by the end of 2008 regardless of the global economic turmoil.

“We are fighting a reduced market with more suppliers,” he said.

Companies like Zara, H&M, Topshop and American Apparel are gaining ground in the current environment because they are focused on providing what their particular customer wants. The retailers are proving that offering greater value doesn’t mean having to present a higher quality or more expensive product. A Zara garment may fall apart in three months, but Birnbaum contends customers don’t purchase items there expecting them to last that long.

“What makes Zara great is design integrity,” he said. “The garment in the store actually looks like the sample and the sample actually looked like the sketch. So you really have something that looks like fashion, not some hodgepodge, lowest common denominator design. For the consumer at Zara, that’s quality.”

Fashion Strategies

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VALENTINO - tHe LaSt EmPeRoR

Ellis M. Goodman, author of Bear Any Burden:, has written a powerful, insightful review of the recently release documentary on Valentino.

For 45 years, Valentino created fantastic Haute Couture gowns for the most glamorous and famous women in the world. He tells us that his fascination with the 1930’s and 40’s American screen goddesses inspired him to create beautifully designed hand-stitched gowns, using the most luxurious materials draped around long-legged models, who showed off “the collection” to perfection.

Apart from watching Valentino’s incredible lifestyle with his lavish homes in France and Italy and his giant yacht sailing around the Mediterranean, we also see “behind the scenes” that Valentino is an extremely talented and creative individual, who shrewdly positioned himself at the top end of the market and maintained a reputation as one of the leading designers in the world for many decades.

It was also interesting to learn of his personal partnership with Giancarlo Giammetti, with whom he shared his life and his business relationship since 1960.Clearly, it was Mr. Giammetti who had the business acumen to build Valentino’s fashion empire, ultimately valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars. As the movie progressed, we learned that the Haute Couture end of the business was not the profit earner.However, it created the brand on which the rest of the business empire was founded, and resulted in vast licensing fees and income from everything from accessories to perfume.

In 1998, an Italian business conglomerate bought 25% of the Valentino business, and subsequently built that position into a controlling interest. In 2007, those interests were bought by another conglomerate which owns many of the internationally known-fashion brand names.

We see Valentino’s extraordinary three-day extravaganza commemorating his 45th anniversary in fashion, attended by most of the world’s rich and famous – celebrities and stars galore – at a black-tie ball at the Villa Borghese and at the Temple of Venus overlooking the Coliseum in Rome. This celebration proved to be timely, because two months after the sale of his empire and the execution of his final Couture show, he officially retired.What timing!

Given the major global recession, which has included major declines in sales of the leading fashion brands, the new owners of the Valentino Empire must be feeling very sorry for themselves.

However, Valentino and his partner, Giancarlo, can sail off into the sunset, immaculately dressed, coiffured and tanned and probably laughing all the way to the bank.

A movie built around beautiful women, exquisitely designed clothing, and an imperial lifestyle which will probably never return, is just the sort of escapism that we need in this day and age.

BY MACALA WRIGHT

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FashioN MarketING

Le Fashion Week sono il gateway per entrare nel fashion system?

Uno dei Must nei marketing planning di ogni maison è e resta la presentazione della propria collezione. Se questo poi avviene sulla passerella di una della fashion week delle capitali della moda, il più sembra essere fatto. E' così che la macchina delle "settimane della moda" prolifera ed approda, già da qualche anno, anche in Russia. Un racconto e qualche riflessione sulla prossima (?!) capitale della moda che strizza l'occhio all'Europa.

Le fashion weeks si moltiplicano in giro per il mondo. E raggiungono, soprattutto, i nuovi mercati del lusso e della moda come la Russia ad esempio.
E’ terminata da poco la Russian Fashion Week, appuntamento in “voga” a partire dai tempi piu recenti del rilancio dell’economia russa, che ha visto sfilare le collezioni primavera-estate 2010 dei più importanti designer nazionali e internazionali. La Rfw continua la sua espansione presentando, insieme a designer affermati e stilisti stranieri, nuovi e promettenti nomi del mondo della moda. Nella sezione eventi dedicata alla moda internazionale, si fa strada e lustro l’“Italian Day”, molto atteso dal pubblico locale, insieme alle sfilate di giovani ma promettenti designer degli Stati Uniti, Spagna e Malesia. Questa edizione è stata anche l’occasione per inaugurare il Museo Russo della Moda, il primo museo di moda nel Paese. L’inizio della sua attività espositiva è previsto solo a partire dal 2010, ma gli ospiti della Rfw hanno avuto l’occasione di vedere una parte della ricca collezione del museo che comprende circa 30.000 pezzi.

Nel programma delle sfilate dei designer russi, troviamo nomi come Arngoldt, Arsenicum, Anastasia Z, Anna Direchina, Buryukov, GS di Sabina Gorelik, Daina by Chistova & Endourova, Dasha Gauser, Evelyn, Fresh Art, Hayam Hanukaev, Elena
Karnauhova, M. Rimer, Masha Kravtsova, Narciss, KO by Sultana Frantsuzova, O.K.M, St. Bessarion, SV2, Tegin, Vassa, Viva Vox, Egor Zaitsev, Elena Suprun, Lyudmila Norsoyan, Modny dom Buton, Parfenova, Masha Sharoeva, Olga Brovkina, Yulia Nikolaeva e Julia Sarkisova.
Ad aprire la manifestazione, la sfilata del maestro della moda russa Slava Zaitsev con una collezione prêt-à-porter de luxe intitolata “Nonostante…”. Nonostante cosa? Nonostante fa riferimento alla crisi mondiale, infatti lo stilista ha dichiarato per questa collazione di aver selezionato soluzioni più semplici, più facili e lontane dal concetto del lusso “puro”. I tessuti sono quasi tutti made in Russia, più familiari alla maggior parte della popolazione, mentre le forme sono semplici, con la predominanza di una silhouette lineare.

Il network risulta essere una strategia largamente diffusa non solo nel corporate business ma anche nel settore degli event show come questi. Infatti l’Rfw ha stretto una collaborazione con la Malaysia International Fashion Week facendo sfilare nel suo calendario uno dei designer più in voga della Malesia, Sonny San, mentre il famoso brand di moda spagnola Agatha Ruiz de la Prada ha sfilato ques’anno per la seconda volta consolidando il legame tra la moda russa e quella latino-europea.
Network e collaborazioni strategiche sono dunque una strada percorsa con successo per creare un collegamento tra i circuiti della moda piu in voga ed affermati dichiarando la propria vicinanza alle capitali della moda internazionalmente più quotate come Parigi, Milano, Londra e NY.

Ilaria Milano

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