Rag & Bone Planning Global Expansion
Rag & Bone is investing in key people to allow for international growth. The brand has appointed Johanna Murphy as global chief marketing officer. She previously worked at Kate Spade & Co and Ivanka Trump. Tim Briggs, previously at Burberry, joined the company last month as vice president for merchandising. Helen Costello, hailing from Bottega Veneta, was hired as international managing director. “Relatively speaking, we’ve had a good amount of success in the last decade. We’ve learned the business [and now the] big question is how do we grow our business internationally,” said David Neville, Rag & Bone’s co-managing partner. Key growth areas for Rag & Bone are e-commerce, and stores in the Middle East and Europe. The company is actively working on opening a second London location. There are currently 20 stores in the US, with the most recent opening in Chicago in April.
Dov Charney Fighting Back Again
Dov Charney, disgraced founder of American Apparel, is hitting back at the company he started. He’s back in court with a new defamation lawsuit against the brand. Charney is suing the now struggling company and former board member David Danziger for defamation among other complaints. Danziger resigned from the board earlier in June. His seat has since been filled by current CEO Paula Schneider. According to the complaint, Charney is seeking at least $30 million in damages in addition to hundreds of millions in lost profits, benefits and income. Yikes!
Alexander McQueen Aims to Be Worth $500M Plus
Alexander McQueen plans become a 500 million euro brand in three to four years. By opening additional stores in Asia and growing its leather goods category, the company will double in size. The target goal was revealed with investors late last week. In a statement, luxury analyst Rogerio Fujimori said the brand “seems to have found the right balance between artistic creativity and commerciality, with its creative director Sarah Burton being central to successfully bridging the brand’s creative vision with a stronger commercial approach in recent years.”
– Claire Mykrantz
Source: WWD
Image: WWD via Rag & Bone
