July 19th, 2018: a typical summer day that most of us have spent peacefully sunbathing on a beach. This was certainly not the case for the managing team of Burberry, though, who had to deal with a drastic article published by The Times: Luxury brands including Burberry burn stock worth millions. In 2017, the British brand, like many others in the luxury industry, including Louis Vuitton and Richemont, reportedly burned £28M of unsold inventory. This strategy was adopted to maintain brand image and prevent products from being sold at discounts to the “wrong people”, the paper reported. This event, despite not having led to tragic falls in revenues (-1.2% from 2017…

A timeless piece of clothing is becoming more and more of a radical idea in this era of fashion characterised by an ever increasing pace. A pace of creation, production, and consumption that is becoming more apparently harmful, yet also one that is very hard to curb as it has almost become synonymous with fashion itself.  As if to add fuel to the fire, beyond the countless collections that are being rolled out more frequently than the seasons, fast-fashion retailers have also been venturing into the world of collaborations. Collaborations are, by design, created to generate buzz. Although they are great ways for brands to leverage on each others strong…

Lisbon: the 2020 European Green Capital, the first among the Southern European countries to achieve the title. In October 2020, the city hosted the Sustainable Fashion Business conference: an event portraying the country’s role as a facilitator to a more sustainable future for the fashion industry.  The sustainable fashion conference 2020 The conference welcomed many speakers from across the globe: Manufacturers, the Portuguese Minister of the Environment, Designers such as Priya Ahluwalia, and Organizations like The Ellen MacArthur Foundation. The topics of discussion centered on how the industry could possibly move forward in sustainability, green financing schemes, textile waste and the importance of technology. The Minister José Fernandes added that the country is taking greater responsibility…

Last month, Gucci dethroned sportswear giant Nike as the world’s hottest brand according to fashion shopping platform Lyst. Initially, some people may be surprised to discover the presence of a non-luxury brand, Nike, on this list, considering the remaining top ten is packed with major luxury houses such as Prada and Balenciaga. Nike’s highly prolific marketing strategy, exclusive collaborations and its sharp focus on consumers’ needs have certainly contributed to the creation of the global powerhouse that it is today. Despite the fact that Nike is not a traditional luxury brand it has adopted certain characteristics of the luxury industry that have contributed to the strength of the brand today.…

It’s that time of the year again: we are less than two months away from Christmas, the time when people pour out into the streets of their cities, grouping in and out shopping centers, rushing around looking for the perfect gift, or simply having a relaxing walk enjoying the spirit and magic of Santa Claus’ season. However, nothing will be the same this year because of the Covid-19 pandemic, which upended people’s habits. This includes the way they shop, as well as the amount they spend. Retailers hoped that September could help them recover the lost sales, however, especially for the fashion industry, this did not happen. According to the…

We all know about the “dream factor” created by Hermès bags and accessories and we all know about the brand’s unusual distribution process; what we don’t know, on the other hand, is what makes Hermès differentiate up to a point that allows the company to exploit the scarcity factor, namely production well below demand. One peculiarity with the French public, yet family-run, brand is that it doesn’t have and, supposedly, doesn’t need a marketing department, it doesn’t monitor customers’ preferences nor competitors’ strategies. What the company does need, instead, is to be true to its 183-year-old style and to create desire for clients.  Hermès marketing strategies are usually referred to…

Low-despicable  LVMH vs Tiffany Looks like the largest luxury deal of the year has just become the most followed lawsuit. Let us recap. Remember that the luxury giant had proposed to the iconic jeweler of the robin’s egg blue box worth $16bln? Nine months later we would aspect a sweet (acquisition) announcement and yet here comes the divorce. Tiffany sued LVMH in Delaware Chancery Court last week after LVMH said it was dropping the deal… we’ll keep you updated, but it seems that for now Arnault would continue doing breakfast at Starbucks.  The Armenian beauty Minding its own business will never be trendier and yet people seem to be so…

On Tuesday 26th May, Stefano Galassi led the first online Fashion Tech Global Summit. This event was initiated by the Milano branch of the global network of industry-focused start-ups accelerators named Startupbootcamp. Its Milanese site is actually dedicated to young Tech and Fashion companies devoted to re-imagining the Fashion Industry, to make it more efficient, digital and ultimately more sustainable for the future generations. The 11 start-ups presented in this first edition were found thanks to the important Tech and Fashion experience of Stefano Galassi and his team, that scouted tech summits worldwide in search of the next players of this sector. Across the years, Startupbootcamp acquired a vast and…

Let’s be honest: these past few months have been far from easy. However, it’s important to see the silver lining in even the worst situations. We from BS4F thought that maybe you would have enjoyed reading only positive news in this weeks’ column, and this is exactly what you’ll find here. We hope you like it. Enjoy your reading! A walk down the memory (carpet) We all know that the first Monday of May has historically marked a very special place on the fashion calendar… The iconic night that inaugurates the Costume Institute of New York’s exhibition. This year, you are all invited to join Vogue in “A moment with…