Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Coverage of the CDG X H&M launch from the Toronto Star reports that the first person in line arrived at 20:30h the night before and that only 70 people queued at the Bloor Street location. Might we rethink our game plan next time, to line up at the Bloor Street location. Given that it seems I am willing to stand in line for over 4h at Eaton Centre, why not increase our chances at the Bloor Street location in future years.

See below for the article. FYI, I'm still looking for KitKat's interview with Fashion Television.

November 14, 2008

`Hands off, I saw it first!' Mayhem erupts at H&M

By Derick Chetty
Star Stylist

It had the makings of a midnight madness sale – swarms of aggressive shoppers ravaging clothing racks, grabbing armfuls of merchandise.

But this time the highly coveted clothing was created by one of the world's most admired designers – Rei Kawakubo for Comme des Garçons.

Yesterday morning, despite pouring rain, 210 people lined up at the H&M store at the Eaton Centre – some for more than 12 hours and some from as far away as Guelph – hotly anticipating the possibility of owning something from the Comme des Garçons collection for H&M.

Another 70 shoppers mobbed H&M's Bloor St. store, the only other Toronto location carrying the line. Similar scenes played out at the company's stores around the world this week.

The avant-garde Japanese designer would have shuddered to see this mob grabbing so indiscriminately at her polka-dot shirts, deconstructed jackets and dropped-crotch pants.

The collection was the latest limited-edition collaboration between the Swedish mega retailer and a famous designer. Past collaborations included Karl Lagerfeld, Stella McCartney and Roberto Cavalli.

While those designers are somewhat household names, Comme des Garçons is more a fashion insider label, revered for its intellect and influence. Kawakubo is often credited with being one of the first to introduce a predominant use of black, asymmetrical hems and frays seams when she first launched the label in Paris in the early 1980s.

When the doors opened, the crowd, bursting with excitement, crashed past H&M's lone security guard and made a mad dash straight to the racks – positioned front and centre.

Some shoppers were bewildered. Which rack first? Others just went on a wild grabbing spree – descending ravenously. Throughout the ordeal, customers were reminded they could only buy two items of any one design.

"It was complete madness," said jewellery designer Jane Apor. "There were actual moments when you were scared because people were grabbing everything and everyone."

Some came with a strategy. Like Peter Friesen, head designer for Toronto retailer Preloved, who came for the polka-dot shirts. When he arrived at 7 a.m. to join the line, he peered through the glass doors, scoping his plan of attack.

But what prompted such a response?

"It's the idea of something so avant garde, that is so accessible to the masses," he said. "You would think of H&M as disposable clothing but some of these pieces will be collector's items. Besides, the real thing is so expensive."

One of the first people in line, a young woman who arrived at 8:30 the night before, only wanted to get the ruffled coat dress. There were only two. She got one.

"I was completely surprised by the response to this Comme collection, because it's less popular in the mind's eye than the previous collections by Lagerfeld or Stella McCartney," Apor said. "But for me the value was the experience. What H&M has created here is a unique experience."

She bought just three items. "It's almost like a souvenir that says I was there. Like those T-shirts that would say, `I was there and I survived the Comme des Garçons madness.'"

posted by missdior at 9:47 AM

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