Raf Simons Spring 2010
Raf Simons Spring 2010

PARIS, Jan 15, 2010 / FW/ — This is the typical GOOD news, BAD news scenario. GOOD NEWS is that Raf Simons is the winner of the Wallpaper Design Awards 2010 for Best new men’s fashion collection.

Currently the Creative Director of Jil Sander, Raf Simons made his name in fashion under his namesake label with his revolutionary take on menswear and his innovative designs of the coat.

Simons is scheduled to unveil his Menswear Spring 2010 collection in Paris on Saturday, January 23rd.

Menswear label Smalto has appointed Système D headed by Jean-Luc DUPONT to handle its press activities. The collaboration between Smalto and Système D begins immediately and starts with the Fall 2010 menswear collections show in Paris.

For those who had been watching the trailer of Sex & the City 2 on YouTube, Sarah Jessica Parker wearing a white Halston Heritage is a familiar sight. Breaking news to her fans is that the petite actress has signed on at Halston Heritage, a lower-priced collection than its more famous and high street sister, Halston collection.

Sarah Jessica Parker is expected provide creative input for the line and to play a key role in the design process for Halston Heritage.

Smalto
Smalto

Meanwhile, this February, during New York Fashion Week, London-based designer Marios Schwab will debut his first collection for Halston collection.

Speaking of New York, the Gotham boutiques of Yohji Yamamoto in Grand Street and Gansevoort quietly shuttered its doors. As announced last October, the Japanese label filed for bankruptcy in Tokyo.

Yohji Yamamoto is also conspicuously absent from the Paris Menswear catwalk schedule though you can make an appointment to see the Menswear Fall 2010 collection from January 22 – 28, 2010 at its Rue Saint Martin showroom in Paris’ third arrondisement.

Italian fashion house Mariella Burani has also fallen victim to the recession. According to the Italian financial dailies, “Milanese prosecutors have filed a bankruptcy request against Burani Designer Holding (BDH), the company that indirectly controls the debt-laden Mariella Burani Fashion Group.”

Signs of trouble at the Mariella Burani Fashion Group emerged in August 2009 when its parent company Mariella Burani Family Holding (MBFH) reported a net loss of 142 million euros, approximately $206 million. Earlier this month, the financial dailies reported that talks between the banks and MBFH failed on how to roll over the company’s debts totaling 500 million euros.