Jil Sander Navy

[Servo2000]

Jil Sander Navy

"Fans of Jil Sander who aren't fans of its prices, lend us your ears! Set to appear in stores in January '11, the lower-priced collection, Jil Sander Navy, will feature prices that start around $322 for a shirt to jackets and coats that will go for as high as $3,895—not exactly cheap, per se, but it sure beats the crazy-town prices from the Jil Sander proper label. The aesthetic of Navy will also have a bit more of a "dynamic attitude" (read: less anal-retentive librarian, more neat-dressing architect who wears prints!), and will rely on lightweight jerseys, knits, dresses, skirts, jeans, pants, and outerwear, along with handbags, footwear, and belts. Now we can get all the impeccability of Raf Simon's Jil Sander, but with a splash of humor? We're glad the brand's finally loosening their collar!"

[Macro]

So, it's not at subdivision price-wise... those prices are on par with mainline. Is this Raf's attempt at adding a little 'Jeremy Scott' to the label? The man's contract is almost up at Jil... are these HIS decisions?
I'm sorry, but the whole subdivision of any company leaves me torn up inside. I know that the emergence of the contemporary market has created pressure for designers in the luxury market to play ball and reach out to a growing demographic, and I know they are good decisions for business if they play out. I can't, however, shake the feeling that these decisions can contribute to the slow erosion of a marketplace once ripe with artisans, now doomed to a fate of machines and slavery, quantity and celebrity. A bit dramatic, but I think I have some support on this forum. bleh.

[Faust]

Yeah, fuck that shit. I love Ann. No diffusion lines. Hope she keeps it that way.

[jogu]

im reservin judgement till i see some fits , tho i cant say im pleased to hear this rly . i mean , i love jilsander even when theres a collection that i dont love there are always pieces in store that i want , always . its the austerity that i love bout it ; idk if more "relaxed" clothes from this line is wat id have any interest in . it sounds kinda sell outish to me and i dislike sayin that , but the idea of "now i can buy jilsander cos theres a cheaper line" is lame . jilsander is jilsander cos of the fits/austerity/unique textiles used and while i def dont agree with the pricing of much of the garments ( i dont give a shit if thse trousers are made from somethin that no one else in tha world will have cept other jilsander clients ) i dont wanna see those elements taken away in order to sell inexpensive clothes .

[Fade to Black]

fuck that shit.

basically.

[Servo2000]

Yeah, fuck that shit. I love Ann. No diffusion lines. Hope she keeps it that way.

Didn't she just start Ann Demeulemeester White? (I can't remember the actual name) but I could see this being more of an 'off runway' brand along those lines as opposed to a diffusion line.

To me the new Jil Sander has more of a 'body concious' severity to it than the older stuff did - to say its more 'relaxed' doesn't necessarily mean that it's losing that severity it just may be moving to another sort (Yohji can often be quite severe I find, for instance, although fade and others may disagree).

As always, we'll have to see the clothing, but arguing for it in concept is more me playing devil's advocate as I certainly don't have high hopes.

[Macro]

Didn't she just start Ann Demeulemeester White? (I can't remember the actual name) but I could see this being more of an 'off runway' brand along those lines as opposed to a diffusion line.

Ann Demeulemeester Carte Blanche, you mean? That's an archive line of revitalized classics. Careful, Faust may take that one personally ;)

[Faust]

Collection Blanche is not a diffusion line, as Macro correctly points out. Its quality often trumps the mainline.

[Servo2000]

That's all I'm saying (maybe I worded it poorly) - it's an 'off runway' line as opposed to diffusion. Ann chose to do it by offering archival pieces while Sander could offer new designs without sacrificing quality (rather sacrificing the cachet of the 'mainline' Jil Sander name) to reach a broader audience. Companies often sell the same thing to two different markets at two different prices and I'm suggesting that there's a broader design universe that the line can explore by offering things that fit within the brand but not necessarily on the runway.

Aa always, we'll have to see.

[Faust]

Well, this looks like the outright betrayal of the Jil Sander brand. But since she already betrayed it with +J and is not involved in it anyway, who cares.

[Fade to Black]

+J is a piece of crap, can't blame her though, folks gotta eat.

[Faust]

Cathy Horyn from NYT weighs in, asking, diplomatically, the most obvious question - who the fuck needs this?

[ProfMonnitoff]

For what it's worth, Jil Sander (mens at least) already kind of had two separate lines with Tailor Made & regular, and judging by the price point this will hardly be aimed at Barney's co-op. Those pieces in the NYT article don't really speak in favor of the line, but I'll reserve judgement until I see the stuff in person.

A lot of 'high tier' designers seem to be making second lines that aren't actually cheap at all, same with Damir Doma for example.

[Addicted]

For what it's worth, Jil Sander (mens at least) already kind of had two separate lines with Tailor Made & regular, and judging by the price point this will hardly be aimed at Barney's co-op. Those pieces in the NYT article don't really speak in favor of the line, but I'll reserve judgement until I see the stuff in person.

A lot of 'high tier' designers seem to be making second lines that aren't actually cheap at all, same with Damir Doma for example.

That's were it starts though, didn't armani start doing that decades ago?

mainline, then down to collezoni. fast forward today and you have so many damn diffusion lines that the mainline stuff isn't even viewed as "inaccessible" anymore

[MikeN]

Here we go again