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Zendaya, new ambassador for Lancôme, Ralph Lauren unveils Ralph’s café, Paul Andrew appointed Creative Director at Salvatore Ferragamo and the other news of the day
Press review
Zendaya, new ambassador for Lancôme
On Friday, February 22nd, Lancôme announced on its Instagram account that it had recruited the American singer and actress Zendaya to become its new global ambassador.
Actress, singer, dancer, producer, and even budding creator: Zendaya, at only 22 years old, is an artist with many skills. Today, she adds a new piece at her career by becoming Lancôme’s new global ambassador, joining the closed club of muses, including Julia Roberts.
While Lancôme has revealed the identity of its new ambassador, it has not specified whether the young woman will lend her features to make-up, perfumery or the luxury brand’s care.
“I am very honored to represent a brand like Lancôme and to join an incredible group of iconic women,” she said.
On the covers of the biggest magazines or on the red carpets, the new icon boldly imposes its resolutely singular and modern style. Solicited by the biggest companies for exclusive collaborations, Zendaya is undoubtedly an ambassador of choice for Lancôme.
Ralph Lauren unveils Ralph’s café
Ralph Lauren‘s star shop, located at 173 boulevard Saint-Germain in Paris, which has its own terrace restaurant: Ralph’s, opened its coffee shop on Friday, February 22nd: Ralph’s Café.
Already tested in Tokyo, Hong Kong and New York via a Coffee Truck concept inside the Rockefeller Center, the Ralph Lauren café is now located on the ground floor of the 6th arrondissement boutique until the end of Paris Fashion Week on March 5.
Customers will be able to try Ralph’s Coffee, an organic coffee, hot chocolates and teas, and a selection of delicacies, “the designer’s favourites“: brownies, muffins, cookies, popcorn, yoghurt parfait and five-storey chocolate cake.
For the decor, Ralph Lauren wanted a “warm and comfortable” atmosphere, offering benches, marble round tables, bistro-style chairs and counter tops, the waiters dressed in jeans, white Oxford shirt, knit necktie and apron with the company logo.
Increasingly present in the catering segment, Ralph Lauren owns, in addition to its ephemeral coffees, three other restaurants, in Paris, London (Ralph’s Coffee & bar), New York (Polo Bar) and Chicago (RL Grill). Developments that can also be found in other brands, such as Armani or more recently at Maison Kitsuné.
Paul Andrew appointed Creative Director at Salvatore Ferragamo
The Italian luxury house Salvatore Ferragamo announced on February 21 the appointment of Paul Andrew as Artistic Director, who joined the company in September 2016. The Britishman was first in charge of the women’s footwear division before being appointed Director of Women’s Collections in October 2017. From now on “all the design functions of the brand will be grouped under his responsibility“.
Paul Andrew will be responsible for all design functions at Ferragamo. He will head Guillaume Meilland who will continue to play his role as Artistic Director of men’s ready-to-wear. He will also assume the position of Studio Director in charge of coordinating the development of all product categories.
The Salvatore Ferragamo group, with 4,000 employees and 672 points of sale, is facing a brand positioning problem, with sales down over the past two years. The group’s turnover fell by 3.4% in 2018 after an already difficult 2017. Shoes still represent the core business of the Florentine company, with 41.2% of its sales, but these fell by 5.9% in 2018. In 2017, the company’s net profit fell by 42.4% and its turnover by 3.1%.
Salvatore Ferragamo has been reorganising since 2016 in an attempt to redress the situation. The company is thus seeking to strengthen its position in product categories where it is weaker, while consolidating its position in footwear.
Barbara Bui launches a menswear collection
Barbara Bui imagines her first men’s collection. It will be sold in stores and on the high-end brand’s website in September 2019, just in time for next fall. Composed of 25 pieces, it offers coats, duffle coats, knitwear, jackets and rangers at prices ranging from 350 to 2,700 euros.
The brand, which has three of its own boutiques in Paris and three franchises (two in Russia and one in Ukraine), had already presented men’s pieces in the past, with a few silhouettes scratched off during its fashion shows without being marketed.
This time, the designer explains: “Our Barbara Bui boutiques and our sales site will present men and women, as the issue of gender separation becomes more and more obsolete. The two lines man and woman will answer each other in this way to form a single collection.” As for the 250 distributors of the brand, they will only be able to offer the new line from spring-summer 2020.
While Barbara Bui had a complicated 2017, with a 27% decline in sales, she posted a 2.8% increase in sales in the first half of 2018, ending June 30, with sales rising to €6.5 million, boosted by the retail activity of Parisian stores, which jumped 16% during the period.
The Lutetia Brasserie reopening
After four years of complete renovation and the opening last summer, the luxury hotel Le Lutetia in Paris on the Left Bank, recently opened its much awaited Lutetia Brasserie, which is none other than the first Parisian restaurant of Gérald Passedat, three-star chef at Michelin du Petit Nice in Marseille. He imported from the south of France his Mediterranean style, focused on fish.
Seafood has always been an important part of the Parisian brewery experience, and Chef Passedat has taken it to the next level with a new Sea Bar concept. Sitting in the bar – inspired by the Japanese Kaiseki counters and the Grand Central Oyster Bar in New York – guests can enjoy fresh seafood such as oysters with a condiment made with aloe vera, cucumber and horseradish, grilled sardines or candied lobster.
The brewery has been redesigned to regain its original 1910 configuration: a two-storey space with hand-painted columns. There is also a private dining room and outdoor tables on the terrace. Lutetia is part of The Set Hotels group (controlled by the Israeli group Alrov) whose portfolio also includes Hotel Café Royal in London and Conservatorium in Amsterdam.
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