REVOLVING DOOR: Riccardo Tisci Exits Givenchy Is He Heading To Versace?

Image from Riccardo Tisci's Nike collaboration

In what is sure to be intriguing to fashion watchers and deeply annoying to luxury retailers, Givenchy's star designer Riccardo Tisci has chosen not to renew his contract with the storied Parisian label. While there have been rumors swirling as there often are  when it comes to a major designer's contract renewal negotiations, it is unusual for a designer who had become so comfortably ensconced, as Tisci had been, to voluntarily moved on, but that is exactly what has reportedly happened. Givenchy parent LVMH was reportedly happy to have Tisci continue on, and there was apparently no major conflicts between the designer and his corporate overlords. In fact, Tisci had succeeded to do what the rather illustrious group of designers who succeeded house namesake Hubert de Givenchy failed to accomplish: create a new fashion image for the brand that had the global appeal to vault it into the top tier of international luxury brands.

With Tisci's departure confirmed, rumors of his future moves are amplified with the top option being a move to Versace. Tisci is known to be a fan of the late Gianni Versace, and is close enough with Donatella Versace to have her as a guest model in a recent Givenchy advertising campaign. With Versace on increasingly stronger financial footing a designer with a following like Tisci's could give it a further boost as it prepares for an eventual IPO which has been repeatedly postponed. What is unusual, however, is that when Versace has supported young designers like Christopher Kane and Anthony Vaccarello, it has been under more of a mentoring-type structure which generally turned over the "younger" label Versus to an emerging talent. Were Tisci to join Versace, it's hard to imagine him being tapped as anything less than the chief creative director, a role occupied for the past nearly 20 years by Donatella Versace who stepped in after the 1997 murder of her brother, founding designer Gianni Versace. Presumably, Tisci's arrival would mean that Donatella would be stepping down from her role at the company that bears her family's name. There hasn't been much indication that she is looking to retire, but that doesn't mean that she is not aware of the value of having Tisci take over.

Of course, Tisci is currently quite accomplished enough not to have to hunt for a new employer. His success at Givenchy has been such that he may be in a position to revive the short-lived eponymous label he had launched just before he was hired by the brand. He has had enough of his own name recognition to produce two seasons of a sneaker and apparel collaboration with Nike under his own name. Whatever his choice is, we probably won't know for sure for several months at least. As his contract ended on January 31, he is presumably still under a standard non-compete agreement for at least a year if not longer, which will allow plenty of time for new rumors to present themselves.

(WWD)

MOLLY YOUNG GOES SHOPPING: More Than Goth On Madison Avenue Edition

À propos of the days before Halloween, Critical Shopper Molly Young makes an excursion to the recently opened Givenchy boutique in today's Thursday Styles. Riccardo Tisci's version of Givenchy is offering possibly the darkest, witchiest vision in luxury fashion these days, and while it is frequently described as "Goth", it has really evolved into more of a moody, baroque aesthetic with tinges of mysticism. Our shopper seems to enjoy her visit noting that the gallery-like boutique seems to welcome all,

Givenchy is also a great place to encounter beauty, no matter what your tax bracket. Looking is free, after all. The salesmen are warm and offer coffee. You can stare at $22,000 velvet dresses and silk blouses with an all-over centaur print ($4,195). You can flip through books by Marina Abramovic.

It's the sort of successful brand statement that makes sense of the fashion in-joke of using competitor Donatello Versace as this season's campaign model, and given the dodgy job security of running a Parisian couture house these days, a strong brand image is Tisci's best form of employment insurance.

Critical Shopper: Givenchy on Madison Avenue Mixes Metaphors, Beautifully By Molly Young (NYTimes)
Givenchy 747 Madison Avenue at 65th Street, Upper East Side

TRIUMPHANT RETURN: Givenchy's New Madison Avenue Boutique Is Busy With Shoppers While Its NYFW Debut Invites The Public In

It has taken nearly two years for the folks at Givenchy to transform the space at the corner of Madison Avenue and 65th Street into it's new flagship store (pictured above), and in that time, the space's former resident, Valentino has renovated a new multi-level store on Fifth Avenue as well as created a slightly smaller store on Madison, and Alexander McQueen has taken over the space next door which was also part of Valentino's boutique. 
Why it took Givenchy so long to get what is a sleek but not architecturally complex store open remains a mystery, but who can ever fully explain Manhattan construction delays? In the time since the store was announced, the Givenchy brand, which was just hitting its stride as a revived Haute Couture maison, has grown in stature almost exponentially. That is probably why on a muggy Monday afternoon on the last day of August, while most of the other stores in New York City were enduring the week-before-Labor-Day doldrums, the new Givenchy store was hopping with customers —and not "just looking" customers, but serious, buying customers.
Clearly, there is some pent-up demand for the Riccardo Tisci designed version of Givenchy that has been anticipating the arrival of the new boutique. The store is cleanly designed with a graphic black and white interior that sets of Tisci's often dark and graphic collections. Inspired by an art gallery (which is, frankly not a novel idea for a designer boutique in this day and age) the store's notable focal point is a group of high counters for accessories in the center of the store, neatly arrayed with handbags with their breathtaking prices noted beside them on the plank. The arrangement oddly recalls the original Helmut Lang boutique in SoHo which greeted visitors with similarly blocky displays, but these days, highlighting profit-making accessories is nothing novel. Apparel is relegated to the sides, and the men's line, another area of strong growth, is in the mezzanine upstairs in the back and set off by white glass-tiled walls.
The store is getting off to a strong start, and despite the fact that Barneys appears to carry about three times as much Givenchy merchandise a few blocks away, there remains a clear desire among some shoppers to buy in designers' own stores.
To celebrate the long awaited store, Tisci will take the unusual step of debuting the Spring 2016 Givenchy collection during New York Fashion Week on September 11th. While not unprecedented for a Parisian house to show in New York —Nicolas Ghesquière showed his Fall 2003 Balenciaga collection here to help promote the label's first U.S. boutique in Chelsea— it is a pretty rare occurrence that, this year, will help fill the void left by the unexpected departure of the Donna Karan Collection from the schedule. Creating even more excitement, the house announced today that it will distribute hundreds of tickets to the show to the public, another unusual move that is likely to set off just a touch of Wonka-like frenzy to get in as the date approaches. If it seems like Givenchy is hijacking New York Fashion Week, then you can feel confident that this is probably a one-time thing, but this season's fragmented Fashion Week can probably use the extra excitement as it tests out a new arrangement that spreads official shows between Moynihan Station in midtown and Skylight Clarkson Square in western SoHo.

COLLABORATION ANTICIPATION: Nike X Riccardo Tisci Launches Tomorrow With A SoHo Pop-Up

One of the more intriguing designer collaborations of the season hits a few select stores stores tomorrow. As far as we can tell, Nike X Riccardo Tisci will be available only at the Nike Sportswear store on Mercer Street in SoHo and Dover Street Market in New York, except for a special pop-up store at 151 Wooster Street devoted to the line that will be open through the weekend. The R.T. Air Force 1 capsule collection will be released in two batches with the white versions arriving tomorrow, and the black and brown styles set to deliver in April or May. 

Tisci spoke to The Cut about his first major design foray under his own name since joining Givenchy. “I know what it’s like to be frustrated, to not have money to buy something that you love,” he says, “The most important thing for me before we signed the contract was to sit down and say, Okay, they have to be design shoes, but they have to be reachable for everybody.” The line will range from $240 to $340 for his special boot variation on the classic Nike Air Force 1 sneaker style that Tisci has been wearing faithfully for 15 years. It is a premium price to be sure, but a bit lower than some of Nike's other collaborations, and certainly more affordable than the designer sneakers that have deluged boutiques in recent seasons. Tisci names painter Frida Kahlo as the sort of woman he would like to see wearing the collaborations, and as for celebrities still alive, he lists Björk, Courtney Love, Madonna and Rihanna, who has already worn them to the Givenchy Fall runway show earlier this month. Will there be more collaborations with Nike going forward? Tisci doesn't say no, but doesn't confirm anything either, so expect more lines tomorrow in SoHo and Murray Hill for what may be a one-off team-up that is likely to have collectors acting fast.

Q&A: Riccardo Tisci on His Nike Collaboration, Wanting to Fit in, and More (The Cut)
R.T. Air Force 1 Pop-Up store: March 21 - 23 at 151 Wooster Street between Prince & Houston Streets, SoHo
Previously:
Have A Look At Riccardo Tisci's New Nike Collaboration

 

COLLABORATION ANTICIPATION: Have A Look At Riccardo Tisci's New Nike Collaboration

Late last week, we got our first good look at at least a bit of Givenchy designer Riccardo Tisci's collaboration with Nike. There's a glimpse of the sneakers in the February issue of Vogue, which the designer showed on his Instagram account last week on Joan Smalls who was slung over his shoulder wearing the Nike X RT AF1 Hi Boots which will retail for $225. Those are the ones in the middle of the picture above which make a soer of hybrid sneaker/boot. For those looking for more conventional footwear, there appear to be a regular hi and lo version of the sneaker which seems to be a basic Nike Air Force 1 in black and white with some colorful extra detailing. While there are other aspects to the collaboration, it's the sneakers that everyone has had their eyes out for, and the good news is both that they will fairly wearable and not over-designed as some collaborations can be (have a look at some more details below), and also that they will be relatively low-priced as designer sneakers go. If the big ones are $225, then the hi-top and lo versions will likely be well under $200. Pricey, yes, but not compared to Lanvin or Prada sneakers. There will be more previews of the rest of the line coming, to be sure, so stay tuned. 

Previously:
Collaboration Anticipation: Riccardo Tisci Reclaims His Brand For Nike Collaboration

COLLABORATION ANTICIPATION: Riccardo Tisci Reclaims His Brand For Nike Collaboration

It's hard to imagine that he doesn't have enough to do in his day job, but Givenchy creative director Riccardo Tisci (pictured at left) will also be launching his own collaboration line with Nike this year under his own name rather than the couture house he has been so successfully linked to. So far, we have few other details about the line, which is to be called NIKE RT. Presumably, it will include sneakers, but other apparel items are also expected. We shouldn't have to wait too long for more details, however, as it is to be available this Spring in stores and at Nike.com.

It is rare that Nike collaborates with a non-athlete, and even rarer that it does so with an actual fashion designer. Tisci had his own collection briefly before being tapped to design Givenchy, after which he closed it to focus on his new job. This is the first instance we can think of where he has designed anything beyond an occasional one-off, special item outside the Givenchy label since then. “I couldn’t bring them technology, instead I brought my style, what people like me for and what the young generation follows me for,” Tisci tells Style.com. “It’s strong without being loud,” he says of the look of the upcoming collection, which is hinted at in the video below. Considering the following Tisci has built through his signature mix of high fashion and streetwear style, and the support he has gotten from celebrities like Kanye West, we can safely expect some crazy lines when this collaboration is released. Stay tuned. There's definitely more news to come.

Exclusive: Nike and Riccardo Tisci Announce Collaboration (Style.com)

FLAGSHIP FRENZY Givenchy's Upcoming New York Store Location Is Revealed

It was announced a few weeks ago that as part of Givenchy's retail expansion, a New York store was in the works, and now we know that it will be on Madison Avenue —right next to one of its former designers. The New York Post tells us that the burgeoning Parisian Couture label will set up shop at Madison Avenue and 65th Street. As you can see form the dated Google Maps image above (on which we couldn't help but superimpose a Givenchy logo) that location comprises the half of the former Valentino boutique that Alexander McQueen didn't take over. Like the McQueen store, the Givenchy boutique will also absorb the apartment above the retail space to create a two-level store, making a more impressive statement for its first New York boutique since 2007, and the first under current creative director Riccardo Tisci. There's no word on on a projected opening date, but we wouldn't expect to see anything materialize before the Fall of 2014 at the earliest.

Givenchy returning to Madison Avenue (NYPost)
Previously:
Flagship Forecast: New York Is Getting America's First Givenchy Boutique Since 2007

FLAGSHIP FORECAST: New York Is Getting America's First Givenchy Boutique Since 2007

Considering the profusion of designer flagship boutiques in Manhattan, it's hard to imagine that there is a single prominent international brand that has never set up shop here, but there is one holdout that is finally ready to make its grand entrance. Even in the Audrey Hepburn-fueled heyday of its namesake designer, Givenchy has never bothered to open up a boutique in New York*, let alone anywhere else in the United States, but CEO Sebastian Suhl says that's about to change. Next year he will dramatically increase the label's retail footprint by opening 26 boutiques including three U.S. stores. According to WWD, Suhl is "zeroing in" on three locations. Shops at Wynn in Las Vegas and Miami's burgeoning Design District will join an unspecified "uptown Manhattan location" (almost certainly somewhere on Madison Avenue) in expanding Givenchy's network of stores.

Unfortunately, Givenchy's upcoming New York flagship will probably not look like the super-sleek image above which is a rendering of an upcoming store in Seoul, Korea. It's nearly impossible to find real estate in the neighborhood where the store is likely to be that would allow an entirely new building like that to be erected. The design demonstrates, however, that after of period of inconsistency for the brand due to an ever-changing series of designers, the label has finally hit a groove under current Creative Director Riccardo Tisci. Givenchy now has enough traction to propel itself to the level of more commercially established fellow LVMH-owned luxury labels like Céline and Fendi. We will all have our ears open for the store's official announcement, so stay tuned until then.

* We forgot that there used to be a Givenchy boutique at 710 Madison Avenue until 2007, but at that point the label had become so irrelevant that anyone could have been forgiven for forgetting that it existed.

Givenchy Looks to Capitalize on Momentum (WWD)