Editors' Top Reads: News from Giorgio Armani, Cefinn, TikTok and more...
Here are some of this week’s news and features highlights handpicked by TheIndustry.fashion team.
Samantha Cameron shutters her Cefinn fashion brand citing market turbulence
Samantha Cameron announced the closure of her fashion brand Cefinn this week. While the reasons cited were familiar enough (international trade challenges, trauma in wholesale, cost of living etc), the timing was curious. The brand, which she founded in 2017, opened a flagship store on the store just three months ago.
One would have thought before the store opened that it was clear that Cefinn was going to be unable to achieve the scale and deliver the profit that Cameron and her investors wanted.
Anyway, it's a shame, not least for the employees and I do tip my hat to Cameron for creating a business that achieved sales of £4 million, that is not easy. However, I do wonder whether it was a proposition that was really that scalable (without huge investment, anyway). There are brands selling the Cefinn aesthetic for far cheaper prices (e.g. LK Bennett and Hobbs) and at this point in time, I imagine consumers found the cost hard to justify.
Lauretta Roberts, Co-founder, CEO and Editor-in-Chief.
Armani heirs instructed to sell majority stake under late designer’s will
The late Giorgio Armani’s will has this week revealed plans for his heirs to sell a majority stake in his fashion house, giving priority to giants such as LVMH, L’Oréal or EssilorLuxottica. An initial public offering has been named as an alternative path.
Giorgio Armani was one of Italy’s last great independent fashion houses. Armani was the sole major shareholder in the business he co-founded in 1975 with his late partner Sergio Galeotti. Fiercely protective of its independence, he maintained tight creative and managerial control until his final days, even overseeing his July couture show remotely while under doctor’s orders.
Armani’s death at 91 already marked the end of an era, but the details of his succession plan could reshape the global luxury landscape. A sale or flotation would not only determine the future of the Armani brand but also signal that even the long-defiant designer knew that fashion houses may need to align with global power players to survive in today’s challenging luxury market.
Chloé Burney, Senior News & Features Writer.
TikTok Shop poised for 'record' Black Friday as it reveals top fashion trends for golden quarter
TikTok Shop is predicting its biggest-ever sales day this Black Friday, following a year of triple-digit growth as more brands and retailers flock to the social platform.
As part of this, TikTok Shop is hoping to reshape the Black Friday shopping experience through even more live shopping sessions and shoppable videos, enabling real-time interaction between buyers and sellers.
At an event attended by TheIndustry.fashion this week, TikTok Shop unveiled the key trends expected to dominate this year’s all-important golden quarter. Broghan Smith, Head of Fashion at TikTok Shop UK also offered exclusive insights, highlighting the app's evolving influence during the peak shopping season.
Sophie Smith, News Editor & Senior Writer.
Show Report: The word from Moda x Pure at Autumn FairShow Report: The word from Moda x Pure at Autumn Fair
It was a bit of an eye opener visiting the Moda x Pure at Autumn Fair show this week, and not just because of the vast array of product on show at the NEC Birmingham or the fact that plenty of buyers still actually place orders at trade fairs (very evident from what I saw).
What really got my attention, having spoken to several exhibitors, was the new avenue for potential fashion business growth through garden centres. It was Goose Island Director Karl Hutchings who first brought it up, having seen buyers at the show from Dorset-based five-strong garden centre chain, Haskins, and also from the Blue Diamond Group, which has 45 garden centres across the UK and is a big stockist of Goose Island.
Looking at the Haskins website, it even has a clothing and fashion section, listing brands including Ashwood Leather and Lighthouse – also both included in my show report - as well as Barbour, Seasalt, Brakeburn, Radley, Weird Fish and more.
What Hutchings also said was that most garden centres – which cater to his brand’s demographic of “ladies who lunch” often over 50, but also “mums on maternity leave” (a lot of the centres also have children’s play areas – very savvy) have excellent restaurants tucked away at the back. That means diners and coffee and cake lovers have got to walk through all the product – be it garden accessories, homeware or fashion – twice. A captive audience no less.
Because of that, Hutchings talks of keeping Goose Island’s price points ‘impulse-buy’ friendly, as garden centres are giving his brand another very nice revenue stream aside from the many fashion boutiques it supplies.
Interesting then that garden and outdoor leisure show Glee is to join with Autumn Fair at the NEC, with two cross-over days next time around (on 8-9 September 2026). It could mean more garden centre buyers venturing into the fashion halls – and not just for wellies, gloves and waterproofs.
Tom Bottomley, Contributing Editor.
Chancellor says economy ‘stuck’ as Treasury reviews business rates cliff edges
I've all but given up on the Government moving to re-instate VAT-free shopping for tourists (though word has it the idea is not entirely dead in the water), so it's encouraging to see we might be seeing some business-friendly policies coming through soon.
After years of the retail industry bemoaning the iniquity of the business rates system, which disproportionately hits those with stores, the Chancellor is finally looking into this issue.
Following a meeting with retailers, Rachel Reeves appears to be prepared to make some concessions with smaller businesses set to benefit first. Wider reform is said to be coming.
You can read more here about this step in the right direction.
Lauretta Roberts, Co-founder, CEO and Editor-in-Chief.
