The whole maintenance saga between Linda Evangelista and Gucci group boss François-Henri Pinault is the story that keeps on giving. Thankfully it all came to an end today as the pair reportedly settled their $46,000 a month child-support case outside the courts. The New York Post reports:
The exact monthly settlement was not disclosed by the source, who wished to remain anonymous. But the timing suggests Pinault has cried "uncle" on the verge of Evangelista testifying before American and European press about his and Evangelista's whirlwind 2005 romance, his reluctance to raise the resulting child, and the eventual discords over visits and money.
The settlement is interesting, especially since it comes only a day into the court proceedings. Pinault's swift change of heart has had led many to believe that the has coughed up a monthly amount similar to what the supermodel had asked for simply to avoid having her disclose intimate details about their relationship. Considering that it came out that Pinault began his relationship with now wife Selma Hayek while Evangelista was still pregnant and tried to convince her to have an abortion, it's safe to assume that there's a lot more that could have come out. Both parties will be in court tomorrow to confirm the deal.
Despite it being only recently that Linda Evangelista publicly named François-Henri Pinault has the father of her son, Augustin James, this week she was in Manhattan fighting for child support for their son. According to her lawyer, the PPR CEO has not paid anything towards the 4 year-old and Evangelista is now asking for $46,000 a month, which "would probably be the largest support order in the history of the Family Court," a judge held.
Although the judge didn't give in to the requested $7,500 vacation budget, he did agree that a full time nanny and armed chauffeurs were necessary. And In an unsurprising move, the model's lawyer made a point to compare Pinault's treatment of his son compared to the daughter he shares with wife Salma Hayek.
As Fashionologie so rightly put it, the Phoebe Philo effect is upon us. Gone are the days when people were more interested in making a point to the world by bagging an item with the biggest logo. Today the economy is making consumers seriously re-think their purchases and as Maria Grachvogel told me yesterday, customers want their wardrobes to work hard for them.
With that in mind it came to no surprise that last week, PPR CEO and chairman Francois-Henri Pinault said that bosses at the conglomerate are supporting the shift.“Our groups are moving toward fewer logos, more discreet luxury," he said on Friday. "It's a question of adapting our ranges very rapidly to this new perception of luxury, a luxury which is more subtle, more sophisticated — which is what we are doing.”
The Times' fashion editor Lisa Armstrong tackled this new seismic shift head on in the August issue of British Vogue heralding 'the cult of the restrained' as the way designers are moving and rightly so. 'Designers have finally got their heads round a much more cautious economic reality, we've finally getting clothes that make sense," she wrote.
So what does this mean for the likes of John Galliano and our avant garde designers known for fantasy and innovation? Will they follow suit now the big conglomerates are supporting a restrained luxury? Only time will tell....
Frida Giannini vehemently denied all talk of a debut couture collection back in January for Gucci but yesterday Gucci officials confirmed that the rumours were in fact true. The first ever Gucci couture dress was sported by the elegant Salma Hayek at the 'Robin Hood' premiere at the Cannes Film Festival where she was accompanied by her husband Francois-Henri Pinault.
The dress was described in a statement as a "floor length bordeaux silk georgette one shoulder gown with hip, back and shoulder drape detail [which] also features deep red crystal embroidery at the shoulder and waist."
Contrary to speculation, the collection will not show at the Paris shows in July. Instead, it will be sold by appointment only.
As we bid farewell to the end of the year and 2010 is fast approaching we thought it would only be fair to share with you some of the biggest fashion moments from 2009.
January:
Michelle Obama's inauguration day outfits, designed by Isabel Toledo (day dress suit) and Jason Wu (evening gown), caught the attention of the fashion world. Obama has since donned a number of fashion-forward outfits, which has propelled her onto a number of best-dressed lists and has helped launch the career of Jason Wu.
Want the good news or the bad news first? Let's get the bad out of the way. LVMH reported a financial decline recently, and now marketing has been cut completely from all brands but the top performers, according to Fashionologie. And PPR's profits have declined by 76 percent in the first half. Now, the good news: Tomas Maier should be happy that his brand, Bottega Veneta, saw an 8.6-percent increase. That makes BV the only label in the umbrella company to boost finances.
PPR chairman Francois-Henri Pinault gave kudos to Frida Giannini ofGucci for generally boosting PPR because of a demand for the label's handbags in China. Although Gucci is the flagship label of Gucci Group, that organisation also handles Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, Stella McCartney, Sergio Rossi and Yves Saint Laurent. Details about their monetary well being was not immediately available, but Pinault said, again, that PPR will not buy or sell any brands and will focus on trimming debt.
