Julie Gilhart

>> Julie Gilhart, who exited her long-held Barneys fashion director role last November, is joining Amazon.com as consultant to the company's fashion group, which includes Amazon Clothing Store, Endless and MyHabit. She is expected — in a role similar to her responsibilities at Barneys — to help shape the group's fashion point of view and the assortment of designer brands. “Her ability to identify fashion trends, support emerging designers and work with established brands will help us provide excitement and new talent for Amazon’s growing fashion businesses,” said Maria Renz, CEO of MyHabit and Endless, and VP of shoes and jewelry at Amazon. [WWD]

• Dressing now with then: mixing your vintage pieces with modern flair — Vogue Daily
• Derek Lam launches a diffusion line, 10 Crosby — Fashionista
• This is what happens when jeans, leggings, and underpants mix —Jezebel
• Carla Bruni confirmed pregnant — Fashionologie
• Stars turn out in style for Oprah's farewell taping — People StyleWatch
• Net-A-Porter spills its Summer bag — Purse Blog
• Kate Moss on Kate Middleton — Vogue UK
• Would you invest $40 million in Kim Kardashian? — Refinery29
• Julie Gilhart stresses the importance of good lingerie — The Cut

>> There's been plenty of speculation on who might replace Julie Gilhart as Barneys's new fashion director — Virginia Smith and Sarah Rutson's names were both mentioned, and most recently, Taylor Tomasi Hill was fingered as a possibility.

Although the first two have said they're not taking the job — Tomasi Hill has not commented thus far — Barneys has not addressed any of the rumors, until this evening, when the retailer released the following statement: "As announced by Barneys New York on November 29th, the search for a new fashion director was launched by Daniella Vitale, chief merchant and executive vice president, who joined the company on December 1st. Contrary to recent speculative reports, no employment offer has been made as of this date to any person for the fashion director position."

>> Earlier today, it was thought that Lane Crawford's fashion director Sarah Rutson and Vogue's Virginia Smith were in the running to succeed Julie Gilhart as Barneys fashion director; however, it was also rumored that Smith turned down the job. Smith has now confirmed that she has no intention of leaving Vogue. As for Rutson, she declined to comment on whether she is a candidate. [WWD]

>> Another Gucci alum is joining Barneys — Charlotte Blechman, who was VP of public relations at Gucci from 2004 through 2009, has been named SVP of marketing and communications at the retailer. She joins Barneys CEO Mark Lee, a former Gucci CEO, and former Gucci North America president Daniella Vitale, who was named Barneys chief merchant and EVP on Monday, right after Barneys veterans Julie Gilhart and Judy Collinson were dismissed without warning, Cathy Horyn reports.

Barneys is expected to go more mainstream under its new management — whereas Collinson and Gilhart were "not afraid to go against the grain," according to Maria Borromeo, a one-time Barneys buying assistant who is now CEO of Thakoon, Cathy Horyn points out: "Increasing Barneys’ profitability was a prime objective in hiring [Lee]. The recession forced retailers to become leaner and more competitive, in particular with online sales, and that urgency will be critical to Barneys’ cool."

>> Mark Lee, who joined Barneys as CEO in September, has implemented his first management change — he's named Daniella Vitale, who he worked with at Gucci, as chief merchant and EVP overseeing all of women's and Barneys.com.

Vitale, who was president of the Americas at Gucci, succeeds Barneys veteran Judy Collinson, who was EVP and general merchandise manager of women’s at Barneys. The retailer said that Collinson, as well as SVP and women's fashion director Julie Gilhart, have both left the company to pursue other opportunities.

Thank you, Julie Gilhart, for giving us the opportunity to shop efficiently and early for our fall wardrobe!

Next Wednesday, April 21, Gilhart and Barneys will host a one-day trunk show event on the Co-op floor of the Barneys Madison flagship. From 2 p.m. until 8 p.m. the shopping day will feature designer appearances, special limited-edition items, and of course early fall shopping.

“The Co-op customer runs a little faster and dances to a different beat, so we are reinventing the trunk show concept for them,” said Gilhart, Barneys senior vice president and fashion director.

A.L.C., 3.1 Phillip Lim, Rag & Bone, Shipley & Halmos, Alexander Wang, Helmut Lang, Richard Chai-LOVE, Vena Cava, VPL, and Wayne are participating, so brush up on these fall shows and place orders early to guarantee key pieces make it into your wardrobe.

Source: Getty

>> In the latest edition of Style.com's "Future of Fashion" series, Julie Gilhart maintains that live fashion shows are still a must — "If the Rodarte girls didn’t have a fashion show, would you be able to get the essence of that collection?" — but says that the runway collections should be edited down in size, as they are becoming less and less aligned with what is actually sold in the stores:

"The runway collections actually come late in the season, and the reality of the way American retail is set up, things go on sale not that long after the runway pieces come in. So there should be less pieces in the runway, and our buys shouldn’t be weighted in the runway. They should be weighted into the pre-collections, so you have longer to sell, and you can put a mix together and it looks like a more edited exclusive product in the store. Balenciaga is one of my favorite shows to go to because Nicolas [Ghesquiere] only does 35 exits, which is really small for a show, but you can almost memorize those 35 exits. They’re put on Style.com, they’re shot in every single magazine, they’re everywhere — so by the time they come in the store, I don’t know if I so want the whole runway exit thing. Maybe I want a piece of it, but the bulk of what we’re going to sell in a collection like Balenciaga is going to come in before those runway pieces come in."

One "top" designer is "burned out" from turning out so many collections »

Christie's is partnering with fashion industry leaders for an inaugural green auction, celebrating the 40th anniversary of Earth Day this April 22. PPR chairman François-Henri Pinault, Anna Zegna, Vivienne Westwood, Lauren Bush, Maggie Rizer, and Julie Gilhart make up the event's honorary committee and have been calling on the fashion industry to support "A Bid to Save the Earth."

The auction block will include a private lunch with Vera Wang; Giorgio Armani evening dresses and two tickets to Vanity Fair’s Oscar party; his and her bespoke suits from Stella McCartney, and private fitting with the designer; Girard-Perregaux watches; Valextra luggage; Harry Winston jewelry; and David LaChapelle photography (above). Oceana, Conservation International, the Central Park Conservancy, and the National Resources Defense Council will benefit.

Source: David LaChapelle