bridget foley

Business

Fashion Editors, Anti-Defamation League Rush to Galliano's Defense After 'Hasidic Outfit' Fall-Out

There's much to be said about John Galliano and his return to fashion. Fashion industry leaders, like Anna Wintour and Oscar de la Renta are all for it (it was Wintour, after all, who asked de la Renta to host Galliano in his studio). A select few members of New York's Jewish community quoted in yesterday's reactionary New York Post story, are against it. But whatever camp you fall into, there's certainly a lot to discuss--and that's precisely what top fashion writers like WWD's Bridget Foley, the International Herald Tribune's Suzy Menkes and the New York Times's Eric Wilson have done today.

Style

A Conversation About Why Bridget Foley's Michelle Obama Rant Is Outrageous

We look forward to Bridget Foley's WWD op-eds, mostly because it's one of the few times the industry trade offers up a real opinion. (It wasn't always so stale: read John Fairchild's Chic Savages to learn all about WWD's heyday in the 1970s.) But this morning, the Fashionista team was collectively turned off by "Fashion Pound Puppies," in which Foley lambastes Michelle Obama for requesting designers create inaugural outfits for her on-spec. "How does Michelle Obama get a pass on the ridiculousness surrounding her inaugural wardrobe selections?" she says. "The whole thing would be merely silly and undignified if it weren’t so disrespectful of the time and resources of others, some of whom have little of both at their disposal." We were so annoyed by her presumptions, in fact, that Leah and I spent like 15 minutes talking about it over Gchat:

Business

Now There's a Backlash Against the Ralph Lauren 'Made in China' Olympic Uniform Backlash

Last week Ralph Lauren upset politicians across the country when it came to light that the Olympic opening ceremony uniforms donated by the brand were made in China; at the apex of the outrage was Senator Harry Reid, who declared that they should be burned. There's been a cooling off period over the weekend with writers coming out to defend Ralph Lauren and also uncovering many other brands who are providing Olympic gear that isn't manufactured in the country whose athletes will be wearing it.

Business

The Latest in the Jil Sander Saga: Was Raf Simons Fired?

In today's WWD, Bridget Foley has a thoughtful piece about the mismanagement of Raf Simons' ousting from Jil Sander. In it, she says that Simons was "unceremoniously dumped" from Jil Sander, making a point to clarify that he didn't just "leave" of his own volition. When news broke abruptly this past week that this would be Simons' last collection for Jil Sander (and a spectacular one at that), and that Jil Sander would be returning to her namesake label, it was assumed that Simons was leaving to fill that vacant spot at Dior, or, as Anna Dello Russo told us, that he might be focusing on his own label, because that's what he wanted to do--not because he was fired. But maybe he was.