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In this week’s Style Guide, we delve into the Ivy Park sales debacle, celebrate Black magazine covers, see Jazmine Sullivan’s homage to Phyllis Hyman, and more.
When Beyoncé dropped her seventh studio album, “Renaissance,” last summer, the Beyhive began saving up their coins for what they knew was an imminent tour announcement. However, while the Hive applied foresight to their finances, it seems as though Beyoncé and Adidas may not have when it came to timing the latest Ivy Park release, Park Trail, which dropped this week online and in select stores, retailing between $30 and $500.
A 40-date worldwide tour with ticket prices skyrocketing well above $800 in an already inflated economy — where the price of eggs is causing some to consider taking up chicken farming — isn’t boding so well for Ivy Park. According to the Wall Street Journal, sales are down by 50 percent for the athleisure collaboration. In 2021, Ivy Park reportedly grossed $93 million; in 2022, the line grossed roughly $40 million.
Trouble didn’t just start with the label’s latest drop. In 2021, sales for the collaboration with Adidas fell by more than half of the German legacy sportswear brand’s projections of $250 million. It’s only been a few days since the release of Park Trail, so it may be too early to tell how well this latest collection is truly faring, even though previous drops have sold out in less time. The way consumers are adapting to inflation has continued to mystify retailers, and, as the prices of “Renaissance” tour tickets continue to rise, some members of the Beyhive may eventually elect to buy her new duds instead of dipping too far into the egg budget.
Beyoncé’s Ivy Park isn’t the only collaboration we discuss in this week’s Style Guide; in fact, her husband just announced a new partnership with Moncler and Mercedes-Benz. We also look at a few of the latest magazine covers to feature Black faces, a new Black Beauty Box, the Museum at FIT’s latest exhibition, “Fresh, Fly, and Fabulous: Fifty Years of Hip Hop Style,” and more.
The late fashion editor André Leon Talley accomplished much in his life, including cultivating a few devoted and enduring friendships. One of those fiercely loyal friends is legendary designer Diane von Furstenberg, who made headlines recently with the reveal that she helped Talley out of a sizeable bind in the months before his death in January 2022.
As previously reported by theGrio, in 2020, former Manolo Blahnik head George Malkemus claimed Talley was in arrears for the Westchester mansion he leased from Malkemus and his partner Anthony Yurgaitis by hundreds of thousands of dollars. In January 2021, Talley disputed the claim in a complaint he filed on the basis that the balance did not align with his original understanding of the deal. Talley claimed he and Malkemus had established a “gentlemen’s agreement” that after an initial payment of $120,000, the home would be his after he paid the purchase price over time.
Luckily, von Furstenberg stepped in and helped Talley pay off the balance months before he died. The matter was fully settled in 2022, after his death.
In a brief statement to Page Six in which Von Furstenberg said she wanted to respect Talley’s memory, she also declared her devotion to her dear friend.
“André was one of my dearest friends. I would have done anything for him,” she said.
When Jazmine Sullivan wore a custom corseted Christian Siriano pantsuit and coordinating wide-brimmed hat to this year’s Grammy Awards, it was a moment. In fact, the Grammy award-winning R&B singer’s look evoked the stunning looks of another songstress, the late singer Phyllis Hyman — and had many fans clamoring to cast Sullivan in a prospective Hyman biopic.
Sullivan reflects on her red carpet style in a recent interview with Refinery 29, where she discusses plus size fashion, how to dress your curves with confidence, and showing up as her most authentic self.
“There are not a lot of plus-sized women in the industry or strutting on camera, and so I know I need to show up as myself every single time,” Sullivan tells Refinery 29.
Between Jonathan Majors’ sultry Ebony cover photo shoot, Sza’s magnetic gaze from atop the New York Times Magazine, and Erykah Badu and Nia Long’s timeless beauty in Vogue and The Cut, respectively, this week’s cover stars have us feeling like we’ve been struck by Cupid’s arrow.
Jonathan Majors for Ebony magazine, shot by Keith Major.
Erykah Badu for Vogue
Nia Long for New York Magazine’s The Cut, shot by Rahim Fortune.
Sza for New York Times Magazine shot by Phillip Daniel Ducasse n
Jonathan Majors for Ebony magazine, shot by Keith Major.
This week, Harlem’s Fashion Row (HFR) announced the release of its new book, “Fashion in Color.” The first of three volumes, the book honors some of the world’s most remarkable and legendary designers of color who are often equally overlooked and underappreciated. Featuring the likes of Dapper Dan, Sergio Hudson, and Fe Noel, “Fashion in Color” redefines who the industry considers noteworthy through its history-rich designer profiles and custom-crafted art.
By purchasing the book, readers are not only supporting icons but also the next generation of Black designers, as 10% of all online sales will be donated to HFR’s nonprofit ICON360.
The book is currently available for pre-orders on fashionincolorbook.com and will also be available at macys.com and Amazon.
Jay-Z, Mercedes Benz, and Moncler are reinventing the wheel of fashion partnerships as we know it, as Moncler announced a shift in its five-year-old ‘Genius’ project this week. Initially created in 2018 as a hub for fashion creatives, Moncler Genius has become known for its experimentation and ingenuity. This week, the brand announced the project is “evolving from a world of fashion collaborations to a platform for co-creation across different industries,” per Vogue.
Roc Nation by Jay-Z, Alicia Keys, Pharrell Williams, and Mercedes-Benz are the program’s newest partners. By expanding into the music and automotive industries, Moncler’s “co-creation model” implies that all new products will be manufactured by all parties involved. Moncler will give a glimpse into Genius’ new collaborative model during its London Fashion Week launch, where each co-creator will be “presenting immersive experiences and performances that represent their creative visions.”
Designer Grace Wales Bonner has teamed up with Adidas to design football kits for the Jamaican Football Federation — also known as soccer uniforms, for our non-sports fans. As a part of the first collection in the federation’s four-year partnership with Adidas, Wales Bonner has designed for both the nation’s women’s and men’s teams, known as the Reggae Girlz and Reggae Boyz, respectively.
“For the collection, we set out to celebrate Jamaican style and to offer something timeless, elegant, and essential. I hope the shirts bring joy to the wearers and carry forward the everlasting beauty and uplifting spirit of the island,” said Wales Bonner, per WWD.
Inspired by her Anglo-Jamaican heritage, Wales Bonner’s designs will feature the country’s national colors of green, black and gold. The collection will include home, away, and pre-watch jerseys, plus a reversible anthem jacket. Shop the collection on adidas.com.
A new beauty box with a purpose is dropping next week. The Black Beauty Gives Back box is a limited-edition collection of full-size, bestselling self-care goodies from Black-owned and founded beauty and wellness brands, including Hyper Skin, Briogeo, Golde, KNC Beauty, and more. What’s more? According to a release, all proceeds from the box will go to Building Black Bedstuy, a nonprofit that endeavors to preserve local Black-owned businesses in the Brooklyn neighborhood. Retailing at $149, the box will be available starting Wednesday, February 15, exclusively online at Hyperskin.com.
The Museum at FIT (MFIT) is celebrating the birth of hip-hop and its influence on fashion over the last 50 years with the new exhibition “Fresh, Fly, and Fabulous: Fifty Years of Hip-Hop Style.” With over 100 garments and accessories on display, according to a release, this exhibition marks the “largest and most comprehensive” exhibition to explore the revolutionary influence of hip-hop on style. The exhibit is free and open to the public now through April 23, 2023.
In honor of Black History Month, Wednesday’s Google Doodle celebrated the late Haitian- American model and cancer survivor Mama Cax, who is widely remembered for her stylish crusade to increase inclusivity. Cax, born Cacsmy Brutus, became an amputee at the age of 14 following surviving bone and lung cancer against unlikely odds.
Cax didn’t let the loss of her right leg hold her back. She became an advocate for the body positivity movement and went on to model in campaigns for big-name brands, including Sephora, Tommy Hilfiger, and Olay. Sadly, Cax’s ascent to the fashion mainstream was cut short when she died in 2019 at 30 after reportedly suffering severe abdominal pains and blood clots in her lung.
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