It is becoming more and more popular for high street stores to collaborate with high fashion designers. Just two weeks ago, H&M launched their show stopping collaboration with Versace and there is also news of Topshop launching a collaboration with the top designer Mary Katrantzou for SS12.
The long awaited Versace collection was greeted with mixed reviews when it was unveiled earlier this month. After weeks of planning exactly which items would make it onto our shopping lists and anxiously worrying if we would get them, the unveiling of the collection proved to be a bit of an anticlimax. People queued from 4.45pm on the Wednesday ready for the unveiling the next morning causing the queues to be Beatlemania-esque in length. People wanted aglimpse into the glamorous luxury that Versace offers but at prices they could afford. It is no surprise that at 8.30Am, Donatella herself arrived in a chauffeur driven Maserati ready to step out onto the hot pink carpet to greet the hardcore fans that had been queuing for more than fifteen hours.
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| The first in the queue! (Guardian) |
Once shoppers got into the stores however, reactions were split into two categories. The first being completely bowled over by the collection and wanting to buy it all, whilst the second was disappointment. With shoppers allowed a ten minute shopping window in which to make their purchases and restrictions on the quantity of garments available to purchase in one transaction, the whole event caused such a storm of emotions to surge throughthe fashion world. Despite this, collections still sold out within thirty minutes of stores opening across the world which can only prove the collaboration was a success.
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| Guardian |
Personally, I am not a huge fan of the collection. Versace pride themselves on their attention to detail and the high quality of their work but by producing a collection for H&M they are compromising all of this for increased publicity and increase in profits. After speaking with various people about the collection the response is mixed. Jack Taylor, a model who has featured in Moda de la Mode Magazine, thought 'the collection was really good, especially the menswear pieces' whereas, blogger Stephanie Rumsey 'loved a few pieces when (she) saw the lookbook but after seeing the pieces in the flesh, would have to say no to the collection'. The quality and attention to detail is lacking in the H&M collection and with shoppers spending £199 on one dress, it is just not acceptable.
With all the hype surrounding the Versace collection at H&M, Topshop's latest designer collaboration with Mary Katrantzou has had to take the back seat. The collection which is set to launch in February 2012 (around the same time Versace launches their second collaboration with H&M) will feature a range of fourteen dresses based around her best selling AW11 collection.
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| Topshop.com |
The collection will combine all the classic elements of Mary Katrantzou's designs, such as her iconic cup-shaped dresses and her opulent silk prints whilst still maintaining the quality and focus on design which has brought her fame and fortune with her own line. It is her wish that she stays close to her own fashion line's aesthetics. This is fantastic news for fans of Mary's Faberge-egg like dresses and sumptuous style but who do not have £8000 to spend on one garment.
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| The Pulse |
There is only one image circulating the internet right now (pictured above), giving us a glimpse of what to expect from the collaboration. It has been confirmed that the dress in question will form part of the 14 dress collection and will retail at £350, a fraction of the price of her main collection. In addition to the collection, Topshop Oxford Circus are collaborating with WAH nails, offering customers the chance to get a Mary Katrantzou manicure to match the wonderful dresses on sale.
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| Grazia |
We can only hope that the quality of the garment will surpass anything that has been previously sold on the high street and at £350 a dress, we have high expectations.
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