Editors' Top Reads: News from Dior, Maison Margiela, Represent and more...

Here are some of this week’s news and features highlights handpicked by TheIndustry.fashion team.

Mulberry has ‘neglected to connect’ with UK shoppers, says CEO, as it plans expansion at home

Mulberry has been fending off the attentions of a certain Mike Ashley and his mighty Frasers Group of late. One of the reasons I have been pleased to see Mulberry fend off its advances to this point is because I really wanted to see what new CEO Andrea Baldo had in store for the brand. Formerly of Ganni, Baldo immediately felt like good news for a brand that has sadly lost its way somewhat in recent years and, crucially, seems to have lost the connection with its home market.

Like Burberry, Mulberry seemed to have decided China was more important than its home market and the way to growth was to jack up prices. The problem with all of that, of course, is that it was the Britishness that the Asian consumers bought into in the first place and it turns out they too have a limit when it comes to how much they are willing to spend (as the luxury industry as a whole has found out to its cost).

Baldo has great pedigree and is accessible coming from the wildly successful Ganni (prior roles took in Coccinelle, Diesel and Marni) and knows how to build a brand across all channels and territories. In his first major strategic announcement this week, he has put Mulberry's home market at the heart of his plans with a plan to expand outside of London into other key cities across the UK, a return to wholesale and outlets and a renewed emphasis on its British roots. He also plans to keep pricing in the realm of the real world.

All of that might sound obvious, but it apparently wasn't so obvious to those who went before him, who seemed to be scared away from the home market due to tough market conditions. But as Baldo says: "With the right product, distribution and communication, we are able to take advantage (of the UK market) no matter where the economic conditions are.” I think he's right and he's the right person to make it happen.

Lauretta Roberts, Co-founder, CEO and Editor-in-Chief.

Kim Jones exits Dior as rumours of Jonathan Anderson taking helm mount

As we wait on the edge of our seats to finally find out if Jonathan Anderson is taking the top spot at Dior, Kim Jones, who has held the role of Artistic Director of Dior Menswear for seven years, has announced he's exiting the storied Parisian house.

After Proenza Schouler duo Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez signed their deals with LVMH to take over at Loewe earlier this month, speculation grew that Jonathan Anderson was lined up to take over at Dior. But questions over him wanting to share the top spot with Jones began to arise. With Jones now leaving Dior, dare I say it's almost certain that Anderson is waiting in the wings.

Jones, who is considered to be one of the preeminent design talents globally in menswear, blending streetwear influences with tailoring, is yet to announce where he's off to next.

Despite anticipation building for Dior's Creative Director announcement, Jones's exit seems surprising after announcing he was relinquishing his role as Artistic Director of Womenswear and Couture at Fendi to "concentrate fully" on his position as artistic director of menswear at Dior just three months ago.

Maybe, just maybe, we'll get the announcement of who will be Maria Grazia Chiuri and Kim Jones' replacement next week. Stay tuned.

Chloé Burney, Senior News & Features Writer.

Glenn Martens named Maison Margiela Creative Director

All the rumours are true! Well, this one was at least. If you haven’t heard, Glenn Martens is taking over at Margiela, as the brand ushers in a new era after the departure of John Galliano in December.

Galliano reigned for a decade at the French luxury house founded by the elusive Martin Margiela, so Martens has been served a true opportunity to make his mark on the iconic label. From the most basic perspective, Martens will surely be doing his best duck-to-water impression considering the similarity in aesthetic values that underpin Margiela and the now-shuttered Y/Project, where he served as Creative Director until last September.

"I have worked with Glenn for years, I have witnessed his talent, and I know what he is capable of," Renzo Rosso, Chairman of holding company OTB Group, said in a statement. "After Martin, who gave life to the Maison and its unique Artisanal line, and John, who made it the most cutting-edge couture house in the world, I am proud to have a third couturier at its helm. Glenn, who studied at Antwerp’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts like Martin, has already shown his prowess and his vision in couture."

Katie Ross, Content & Events Executive.

Represent to launch womenswear headed up by former Topshop designer

Luxury British streetwear brand Represent, co-founded by brothers George and Mike Heaton in 2011 printing t-shirts out of their dad’s shed in Bolton, can’t seem to put a foot wrong at the moment. The business just seems to go from strength to strength.

That’s why you’d have to bet on the brand’s first dedicated womenswear collection – launching at an exclusive pop-up in Selfridges on 12 February – being another winner in Represent’s growing product offer.

The brothers have not been in any rush to launch womenswear. In fact, it has apparently been two years in the making as they wanted to get it “just right”, and bringing in former Topshop designer Toni Purdie to head up design could prove another masterstroke.

The debut women’s collection takes the established codes laid out by Represent menswear across the last decade – clean lines, considered design, and bold graphics – and gives it a feminine spin.

There are slouchy, oversized hoodies that no longer need to be ‘borrowed from the boys’, on-trend barrel-leg jeans and a 100% silk spaghetti-strapped slip dress with an all-over abstract print depicting rows of runners - a subtle nod to the roots of Represent.

The Selfridges womenswear pop-up could be the start of something big for the boys from Bolton, yet again.

Tom Bottemly, Contributing Editor.

NEXT boss uses his Lordship to table NI amendments

This is why we need more business people in politics. Sadly, we are so sorely lacking any real world business experience among the current crop of ministers (and despite what her embellished CV might have us believe, the Chancellor) that is actually quite terrifying. Surely in future we are going to have to make sure that Chancellors meet a minimum requirement of business experience and maybe pass some sort of exam before they are allowed to let rip on our economy?

Anyway, in the absence of that, we are where we are and Rachel Reeves seems steadfast in her plan to impose the ruinous NIC hikes on businesses. It has now landed on the shoulders of NEXT chief Simon Wolfson to call for some feathering of the measures with a proposed amendment to enable "a phased introduction of the reductions to the secondary threshold" of National Insurance.

In the Autumn Budget, the Government increased the rate of National Insurance paid by employers from April and also reduced the threshold that employers start paying from £9,100 to £5,000. This is set to hit the retail sector.

Wolfson is using his position in the House of Lords to seek a phasing in of these measures rather than a blanket introduction that puts thousands of jobs at risk all at once. This is not the first time I have found myself wishing Wolfson ran the country and not just NEXT.

So jaded and despondent am I at this point that I doubt Reeves will listen (if she had any humility and sense, she would). She seems to think her disastrous Budget is behind us now and she can distract us all with grandiose infrastructure projects that will deliver growth (or not) long after she's left office and long after many of us have retired or died. I'm not going to question the rights or wrongs of a third runway at Heathrow, but frankly I'd rather she just reintroduced tax-free shopping now so that Heathrow, other airports and our entire economy would see some benefit now. But if she doesn't listen to Lord Wolfson then I doubt she will listen to me.

Lauretta Roberts, Co-founder, CEO and Editor-in-Chief.