This year marks the 130th anniversary of Hart Schaffner Marx, but the venerable brand best known for its traditional tailored clothing isn’t showing its age — thanks to the Hart x Hart capsule designed by David Hart.
This marks the second season Hart has worked with the brand, and this time — in celebration of the milestone birthday — he set out to reinvent the power suit in a collection inspired by classic vintage cars such as Camaros and Chevelles.
“It’s about the new power stripe, the power plaid and the power check,” he said, pointing to the slim-fitting suits in traditional men’s wear patterns such as Prince of Wales, windowpanes and glen plaids.
There was also a smattering of formalwear that included a striking purple velvet smoking jacket to complement the more-conventional tuxedos.
Although the silhouettes were updated, the collection continued to boast full-canvas construction and the use of Italian merinos and cashmere blends, all executed at HSM’s owned factories in Chicago and Cleveland.

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“We were sad, too,” said Laurence Chandler, who designs Rochambeau with Joshua Cooper. Chandler was referring to their recent loss. The design team competed in the Woolmark Prize collection recently and pulled out all of the stops for their collection — collaborating with Nike, Avery Denison and more on the line. 
 
Collaboration was at the forefront of their fall collection, and they worked directly with singer, composer and visual artist Mark Mothersbaugh. “I find it so much more interesting to work with artists directly on something instead of just saying, ‘the collection was inspired by so and so,’” said Chandler.
 
The fall collection, which was rooted in New York City, a signature for the brand, and punk — a recurring theme this season. “We wanted our guy to look like he just left a Black Flag concert,” said Chandler.
 
Rochambeau’s take on punk involved color and texture. Models wore chunky corduroy trousers, tweed overalls, and mesh tops — some wore mesh face masks embellished with safety pins. The designers used coral, tangerine, teal, cobalt and navy, which was most impactful on striped and color block knits along with trench coats. The silhouette was oversized with cropped shirts and turtlenecks. Each of these items

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Australian fashion chains Marcs and David Lawrence have entered voluntary administration.
The high street chains, which are owned by Sydney-based M Webster Holdings Pty Ltd and Webster Asset Pty Ltd, collectively operate 52 freestanding stores, 11 outlet shops and 140 concessions in Australia and New Zealand.
Together the two companies employ 1,130 people who have been paid up until Jan. 30, according to administrator Rodgers Reidy.
“We intend to review the operations of the businesses and continue to trade while we market the businesses for sale,” Rodgers Reidy director Geoffrey Reidy said Thursday.
Deteriorating sales, general market conditions and poor cashflow were cited as contributing factors.
A Rodgers Reidy spokesman declined to confirm the total debt burden or comment on a report in The Australian Financial Review that the companies owe debts of close to 30 million Australian dollars or $23 million.
Founded in 1978, David Lawrence sells women’s wear only, while Marcs, established 1979, sells both women’s wear and men’s wear.
The chains join a long line of post GFC Australian fashion retail casualties and brand closures, including Lisa Ho, Pumpkin Patch, Payless Shoes, Bettina Liano, Collette Dinnigan and Easton Pearson.
The administration announcement came two days after Hennes & Mauritz published its full year report, detailing

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BARNEYS TEAMS WITH SEYMOUR: Stephanie Seymour is about to up her fashion status beyond supermodel to add lingerie entrepreneur.
Through a partnership with designer Casey Paul, the former Victoria’s Secret model will unveil the Raven & Sparrow collection at a “slumber soiree” at Barneys New York on Feb. 9. The pair took inspiration from Seymour’s personal archives and their respective mothers’ and grandmothers’ underpinnings. Working from the company’s atelier located at 336 West 37th Street, Seymour and Paul have created one-of-a-kind intricate designs such as silky lace-trimmed negligees and coordinating robes.
Having worked in fashion (particularly lingerie) for so many years, Seymour said Wednesday that she has “a unique perspective on style.” Still widely known for her Victoria’s Secret Angel-ship, she brings more knowledge to the category than the average executive. As an avid collector of vintage fashion, Seymour said she “has become very inspired by the workmanship of those historic pieces. Aware that the market was lacking in comparable quality designs, she said, “I feel that dressing for bed is a lost art form. It’s a ritual I find important in my own life.”
In terms of the actual process, she said, “Everything from fabrication to fit has been done with deliberation

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SHARE AND SHARE ALIKE: Although Farfetch remains privately owned, it’s starting to adopt the style of a publicly quoted company. On Thursday, the fashion retail platform said all employees will be offered share options in the company through a new initiative called Farfetch For All. As of Feb. 1, a total of 1,300 people, from junior staff to executives across 11 offices globally, were included in the scheme.
“We have become one of only 200 private companies globally to have achieved a valuation of over $1 billion dollars. We are very proud of our achievements and want to reward our people who have helped to bring them to fruition,” said José Neves, chief executive officer and founder of Farfetch. “We are reinforcing this message to our people and rewarding all who have participated in this journey so far, as well as hoping to attract new talent who embrace these values as we look to the future.”
The incentive plan equates to an investment of $40 million, based on the latest company valuation. Farfetch said it was the single largest investment the company has made to date. Farfetch said the group, which includes global subsidiaries, offices and the business units of the Farfetch.com, Browns,

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COPENHAGEN — In a context of mounting challenges to global free trade, Danish finance minister Kristian Jensen opened Copenhagen Fashion Week with a speech defending the globalized nature of the country’s apparel industry.
“Trade is unfairly being demonized,” Jensen said at an opening lunch on Tuesday that brought together designers and executives with buyers and press. “Trade barriers are what make people poorer, not globalization.”
Jensen pointed out the small-town seamstresses from his childhood had been replaced with a thriving design industry, while “globalization has given people all over the world the chance to participate.”
Just days after President Donald Trump’s administration removed the U.S. from the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership and prepared to do the same with the proposed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) with the European Union, the Nordic region’s biggest fashion week is shining a spotlight on a country and industry that has been transformed by globalization, and whose business leaders and center-right government show little interest in turning back.
The country of just over 5 million people exports roughly $96 billion in goods and services each year, including almost $4 billion in fashion, according to Dansk Fashion and Textile, a trade association. In contrast with other European markets like France and Italy, which have maintained significant production facilities for

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ACT TWO: Lou & Grey is making sure to keep Jasmine Cephas Jones — the actress best known for originating the roles of Maria Reynolds and Margarita “Peggy” Schuyler Van Rensselaer in Broadway musical “Hamilton” — extra busy since she took her final bow for the show in December.
The brand — a division of Ann Inc. — has tapped Jones as its latest collaborator for a collection of limited-edition tops and jewelry, the latter crafted with the help of Brooklyn-based jeweler, Winden. The sweats and T-shirts feature slogans such as “Love Will Conquer” and “Brooklyn Original.”
It was Jones’ first fashion design project.
“I honestly thought it was just going to be modeling, but after the first meeting with Lou & Grey, I realized they wanted to collaborate and base the project on who I am,” Jones explained. “After that, we just went for it. I wanted people to get a feel of who I am, so I thought music and Brooklyn was a great way to start.…We kept the comfy and cool Lou & Grey look with the addition of my inspirations and background.”
Jones cited her personal style as a mix of Sophia Loren’s and Lisa Bonet’s. “I love being comfortable

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“My hijab is NOT a symbol of my oppression.”

Italian knitter Eurojersey and textile maker Cifra have partnered on the development of a range of Hybrid Warp Knit garments for activewear.