A concession for the recession

I have finally found a piece on the internet discussing the upcoming Uniqlo menswear tailoring range – a concept which even devoid of detail has had me salivating for weeks.

If jackets, waistcoats, shirts and formal trousers “in a palette of both formal darks and ice-cream lights” do in fact appear at the “incredibly affordable” prices reported in the article, I predict all manner of stylish chaos will erupt at the new concession Uniqlo are opening soon in Selfridges to launch the range (said to on 23 February, but the Uniqlo site has it down as 21 February).

My hope is that this will signal a breakout for Uniqlo’s fantastic clothing to a wider audience – but it is also possible to detect in the launch a more fundamental retailing shift? Traditionally, Selfridges have prided themselves on stocking some of the most expensive fashion items known to man (the Topman concession being a rare exception), so it is at the very least unusual for them to be giving over so much space to such a resolutely inexpensive label.

Perhaps (and we can only hope) the downturn is beginning to prompt department stores into re-assessing where the bulk of their business lies and focusing more on providing quality products at affordable prices. I guess only time will tell…

Best fit forward

The web has been buzzing this week with rumours that brand du jour Uniqlo is preparing to enter the vanguard of designer collaborations by hooking up with Steven Alan (best known in the US for his sharper-than-a-knife but pricey collections).

I first spotted it in this New York Magazine article, and then later came across a Telegraph piece extolling the virtues of a new tailored menswear collection Uniqlo has planned for Spring 2009. I can’t work out whether these two revelations are linked, especially as the brand’s press department are keeping very quiet about the Steven Alan rumours – but we can sure as hell hope that we will have something very special to look forward to over the next few months.

Simple Simon

One of the main reasons I started this blog was to formulate a solution to the inherent problem with being a dedicated follower of fashion: your outfits quickly turn into things you wouldn’t even want to wash the car in.

The route to avoiding this happening is simple – as in, keeping it simple. Choosing a great array of basics is a sure-fire way of retaining year-in, year-out style, something that was recognised in a recent Indepedent Weekend Magazine article.

I guess a life without logos might be difficult to imagine if you’ve walked down the high street recently, but “stealth luxury” or not, my view is that there are some great affordable options out there to be snapped up. The article mentions a favourite of mine, Uniqlo, whose merino wool sweaters (like the one pictured below) are selling like hot-cakes.

Photo: Richard

Does the same apply to jeans? Well I suppose they have always been free of obvious branding (the Levi’s Red Tab and Diesel pocket patch have certainly wormed their way into our consciousness, but they’re hardly in Henley’s league), but H&M have adopted a rather subtle way of branding-without-branding by introducing the “&” sign to their denim collection.

Photo: Richard

Understatement – now that’s never gone out of fashion.