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Monthly archives: February 2012

A royal baby will boost Swedish kids’ clothing

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Will Swedish fashion for kids have an upswing now that we've got a royal baby? Photo: Charlie Lee

 

I have a somewhat cool relationship with the Swedish – and Norwegian – royals (google me and see that I’ve been “slating” the style credentials of both princess Madelaine and princess Mette-Marit). But I have once met Crown Princess Victoria and must say I have a lot of respect for her; she’s extremely professional.

It can’t have escaped anyone that a royal baby has been delivered in Sweden and that her name is Estelle. She will soon be Sweden’s most fashionable baby.

This also seem to be what fashion companies are banking on. I might be harking on about Björn Borg, but this time it’s unavoidable since the company is launching a royal baby collection, in essence baby blue and pink babygros with crowns on them.

The market for upmarket baby and childrens clothes is increasingly seen as the next luxury segment to take off. Add royal babies to the mix (apart form Sweden there’s a new baby in Denmark and of course everyone is waiting for the British royals to confirm the rumours that the Duchess of Cambridge is indeed pregnant).

Sweden has at least one major kids brand and that is Polarn O. Pyret, known mainly for their stripes, and their graphic, clean, design-y look – but brands such as Acne also make clothes for children.

The most interesting scenario though is the growth of high quality clothes in the mid price sector, with a minimalist aesthetic or otherwise high design factor – mirroring the success of adult Swedish fashion brands. It might not be Marni for kids, but then again there will be a huge market for aspirational kids’ clothing (even larger than today). Among the Swedish brands that might be on everyone’s kids are Charlie Lee, by fashion veteran Lena Wallensteen, Modéerska Huset, a collection of colourful sustainable children’s wear, the ballerina flats by Mina, Mini Rodini, by Cassandra Rhodin who is a well-known fashion illustrator, and the slow clothing brand LUDD.

No matter what happens, that baby is going to be made into an aspirational fashion baby. That’s just how media work. I’m predicting a “get the royal baby look” article after her first appearance.

 

Daniel Björk - Fashion

February 24, 2012

Odd One Out?

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Odd Molly A/W 2012 (photo by Kristian Löveborg, courtesy of the ASFB)

For all the talk about “Scandinavian cool” in the fashion circles (and of course, on this blog, too) – minimalist, utilitarian, limited colour palette, not-trying-too-hard – and the international success of labels that champion said looks, such as Acne, Cheap Monday and COS, there is a flipside. Read more » >>

Sabrina Shim - Fashion

February 20, 2012

The Swedish sensibility

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The invitation to the Björn Borg show. Photo: Björn Borg

 

A lot of my time, I’m not in Sweden, but in London. And when you get to the international scene, Sweden could sometimes seem a bit… hm… peripheral. At least it used to be that way. Because these days Swedish fashion is absolutely everywhere. London Fashion Week kicks off tonight with the opening of the new Cheap Monday store on Carnaby Street, while Björn Borg, the underwear brand, is putting on a fashion show at Battersea Power Station complete with performances by Robyn and Coco Sumner. This fashion show extravaganza will be livestreamed on MTV.co.uk.

Acne is showing their women’s wear line in London since a couple of season and it is one of the hottest tickets in town – the spring collection had the critics fawning and is sure to be another hit for the brand.

A few days ago, the Guardian ran an article about how “Scandinavian brands made ‘anti-cool’ fashionable”. Because behind Acne there are a lot of Swedish brands quietly moving onto the shelves of international stores. I noticed it myself where I lived until just a week ago, Windsor. In the more fashion-forward men’s stores in the town, Swedish brands were ubiquitous. From Acne to Our Legacy and Cheap Monday. These days even and old school geeky brand such as Fjällräven has some serious fashion cred. In fact, my intern here at Bon’s London office has one and she’s studying at Central Saint Martins.

To me, the success of Swedish fashion has a lot to do with the way style has moved into our everyday life in the last decade or so. Fashion is not just for parties or for the aristocracy; it is for everyone and every time, so what used to be Sweden’s Achilles heal is now its foremost strength. Having gotten used to making the most out of dressing for the Swedish weather and paired this knowledge with the practicality of Sweden’s fashion consumers (everything needs to be able to be washed in the washing machine, it shouldn’t cost too much, it should last a few seasons), Swedish fashion designers are well equipped for this new brave fashion world where we want to look fashionable all the time – yet still be presentable, professional and practical.

True, Swedish fashion is not only about this, but I believe this to be the core. And these days, when everyone talks about brand DNA, I think we can safely say that Swedish fashion has got it nailed.

Daniel Björk - Fashion

February 16, 2012

Blog Loving

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One of the fashion-y widgets available on the Stockholm-based Bloglovin'

Last week, hot on the heels of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in Stockholm, CNN ran a story about Swedish fashion. It spoke mainly about the country’s rising export sales, due mainly to brands such as H&M, Acne, Cheap Monday, Tiger and J.Lindeberg, but it was the end of the article that piqued my interest the most.

Quoting street style photographer Yvan Rodic of The Facehunter, apparently Sweden’s blogging culture has contributed to its global success. A blogger phenomenon himself, Rodic says, “Sweden is a pioneering country when it comes to blogging. In the last decade, people from around the world have started looking at Swedish blogs for inspiration – mostly to enjoy the photos since they don’t necessarily understand the language.” Read more » >>

Sabrina Shim - Fashion

February 13, 2012

The Swede who ruled the world

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B. Åkerlund and one of Madonna's headpieces from the show. Photo: PRNewsFoto/B. Akerlund

 

It was the most anticipated performance of the year and everyone wanted to see what she would be wearing. When Madonna stepped onto the stage at the Super Bowl half-time performance in a Roman centurion’s outfit designed by the brilliant Riccardo Tisci at Givenchy it safe to say that fashionistas all over the world almost wet themselves with excitement.

But behind every superstar there is a super stylist and in this case, that stylist is Swedish – cue fireworks and celebrations. B Åkerlund has worked with the most famous pop stars of today, including Lady Gaga, Rihanna and Black Eyed Peas, but said about Madonna’s Super Bowl performance that it “was by far the biggest challenge I have ever taken on in my career, and I could not be more honoured to be a part of such an amazing and historical event. […] Nothing could ever come close to working with Madonna on this Super Bowl performance, her attention to detail and commitment to all of her projects is truly inspiring and life changing.”

It was clearly a mammoth undertaking with 500 costumes for everyone from the Material Girl herself to LMFAO, Cee-Lo Green, Nicki Minaj and M.I.A, as well as 100 drum line performers, 150 gladiators and 200 choir singers.

Originally from Stockholm B. Åkerlund left for Los Angeles when she was 14. Since then she’s clocked up an impressive roster of music videos, often in tandem with her director husband Jonas Åkerlund, as well as styling world tours for Black Eyed Peas and Robbie Williams.

She is known for over-the-top dramatic styling and dramatic outfits from the most forward-thinking of today’s designers – an aesthetic that might not seem very Swedish but that works perfectly in the world of superstar music.

And for the Super Bowl performance it fit like a glove, giving classics such as Vogue, Music and Like A Prayer a backdrop of Roman, Egyptian, ecclesiastical and high school influences. Spelled out like that I’m not sure it makes sense but on stage and on TV it sure did. Watch it on YouTube if you don’t believe me.

Daniel Björk - Fashion

February 10, 2012