Rick Owens

[tricotineacetat]

I don't care for what motivations Charles is dressing the way he does, but to me he pulls of the clothes nicely that he wears. With a frame as tiny as the girls that are strutting their stuff on the runway, you obviously cannot wear or project yourself in regular menswear clothing and it's a natural conclusion to try certain more asexual ambiguous womenswear instead.

[christianef]

i know i just think it looks kind of spineless. i like the girly look, albeit i sometimes have odd taste:

ugly:

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/packages/images/photo/2008/01/11/0113-STREET/21265693.JPG

http://dianepernet.typepad.com/.a/6a00d8341c76e453ef010536f45470970b-500pi

awesome:

http://dianepernet.typepad.com/.a/6a00d8341c76e453ef010536fd671b970c-500pi

http://media.photobucket.com/image/michael%20tintiuc%20model%20paris%20streetstyle/mastique/androgyny.jpg

http://i.models.com/oftheminute/images/2008/08/chris1.jpg

there's better examples of guys here who do it well but i'll keep things vague.

[Faust]

Please move this discussion to tFS. This is becoming nauseating.

[Faust]

Rick is marching on

POINTS EAST: Rick Owens’ nascent retail network is getting a little bigger. With a Tokyo flagship slated to open in September, the Paris-based designer told WWD he also would open a shop in Seoul before the end of the year. Rick Owens currently counts a total of three stores: in Paris, Manhattan and London.

[philip nod]

mcdonalds baby mikeyds

[DHC]

heh..old news on SZ. I mentioned this like a year ago. ;)

Rick is marching on

POINTS EAST: Rick Owens’ nascent retail network is getting a little bigger. With a Tokyo flagship slated to open in September, the Paris-based designer told WWD he also would open a shop in Seoul before the end of the year. Rick Owens currently counts a total of three stores: in Paris, Manhattan and London.

[Fade to Black]

Why Seoul before Hong Kong? I feel HK could use an RO flagship.

[DHC]

/\ Believe it or not, S. Korea's sales of RO far exceeds that of Hong Kong. Apparently it is the strongest market for his line outside of Tokyo in all of asia. Tokyo is only stronger because of the men's collection does well there. Men do not kop RO in Seoul.

Why Seoul before Hong Kong? I feel HK could use an RO flagship.

[Faust]

Why Seoul before Hong Kong? I feel HK could use an RO flagship.

Because smaller independent designers usually open them in partnership with someone else. Clearly someone in Seoul saw an opportunity that someone in HK did not.

[Fuuma]

Makes sense, since Ann also got a store in Seoul. I think they market for more avantgarde is bigger there, and the approach to designer clothes makes it easier to sell.

Can someone explain why Korean men dress like wimpy WASP party extras from an 80s movie? (Fuuma=cultural sensitivity 0 or maybe I'm kidding )

[DHC]

/\ I don't think you're kidding. I don't know why korean men dress the way they do. theaddict would be the best one to ask as he recently spent a good bit of time there.

Good point Eternal. Though I don't know how well that Ann store is doing over there. I'd imagine pretty well. The market there is solid. I know that Dick's organization has been scouting locations for some time now. I don't know that they have a partnership with anyone in Korea, but I do know that there is a specific district just outside Seoul that they've been focused on.

[theaddict]

I heard of the RO opening already a year ago...and yes its only womens...although i have NEVER ever seen a korean lady wearing Rick anywhere in Seoul...
nevertheless, Korean men definitely lack of style, especially the older ones. There is an abvious reason why japan is so much further in these matters. Japan started to open itself to the west and all the influences that come together with it very very early before any other country in ease asia did. Korea was 20-30 years ago a completely agricultural country. The raise of the korean economic happened in the last 20 years guys. Thus our nation didnt have too much time to accomodate to the sudden wealth. Still the average income is not comparable to Germany, but its on a good way.
Style can evolve out of poorness of course, but normally it grows together with wealth. When people can start thinking about, "what should i wear" instead of "what can i eat next". Times when people had to care for food, or if it is not food, the education of their kids, have not passed long ago (hmmm this sentence structure sounds strange to me...). Still there is almost no middle class in Korea compared to Germany. There are those few super rich people who can buy any kind of fashion they like and the majority who get into debt to finance uni for their kids. I think one reason why the fake industry is so big there is that only a few people can afford Gucci and Prada, but through the change of moral values people identify with such status symbols. Its all about showing off in Korea. I met so many rich kids in the clubs ordering bottles of champagne head to toe dressed in Ed Hardy/Gucci... Same guys drive Lamborghinis and Ferraris being 20 years old. Many of them inherited money from their parents who were farmers and owned a piece of land where now skyscrapers are. I can tell you funny stories how those families try to "upgrade" their lack of intellectual status through looking for lawyers or doctors whome they can offer keys for a marriage (one key for the new clinic, one for the new car and so on)...
To get back to fashion: The other part of the population tries to be fashionable, but especially the men lack knowledge (its not accepted by parents to be too fashionable) and money. I saw so many examples of guys with skinny pants and ties trying to achieve the London shordich look, but where you could see in the first moment that the execution is just horrible since the pieces looked just cheap...
I think money is a big problem. They just have not enough money. And there is not such a big vintage market and knowledge about how to dress with vintage pieces like elsewhere.
I always say: If you are poor you have to have more taste to look stylish, if you have money its easier, but having money does not necessarily mean that you have style...of course not as we all know...
sorry i could go on for hours...loosing the red thread...

[Alarm]

Sorry to derail the current conversation
Anyone handled the new footwear yet? The elk leather boots are amazing in person, really terrific material. The 13 eyelet trainers are...what one might expect, though they are quite thick (dunno if that's a plus). Other than that, I'd have to say there's only one version of the elephant boot worth getting (reverse calf). I've handled 2 others from this season now and they're frankly quite cheap feeling (especially the felt-looking material that Barney's stocked).

Barney's non-footwear buy was pretty good. Only issue I had was the colors they chose (they stocked "chocolate" over black for a couple styles of jackets). Also, one jacket had zipper pull issues, but I'm sure that was an isolated incident.

[Faust]

I need to go to Barneys, but I can't bring myself to travel in this disgusting weather.

I don't like any RO footwear offerings. Bring back the black nubuck combat boots, Rick!!!

[tricotineacetat]

I wasn't too crazy of the 'bitter' (what you are refering to as chocolate) colourway they introduced as a seasonal colour this time, mostly because in most of the samples, it was hard to distinguish between pieces made up in darkshadow hanging next to them.