The Biggest Fashion Stories Of 2012: Raf Simons, Alexander Wang And Louboutin

PR maven Lynn Tesoro by French magazine editor Jennifer Eymere over seating arrangements and her subsequent “Now you know you don’t f–k with French people.” And in a move that many viewed as “Don’t f—k with Americans,” Tesoro slapped a US$1 million lawsuit against Eymere and her mother and sister who were present during the incident.

Days after the slap at the Zac Posen show, Oscar de la Renta took a full-page ad in WWD and addressed an open letter to fashion critic Cathy Horyn following a review of de la Renta’s collection in The New York Times. The two took to meat metaphors — one called the other a hotdog and the other a stale three-day old hamburger. As of this writing, the two have been reported to have reconciled.

In 2012, Raf Simons unveiled his first collection for Dior to critical acclaimed. Hedi Slimane showed his first collection at the house of Saint Laurent albeit to less stellar reviews than Simons’ prompting a Simons vs Slimane debate. Before his spring 2012 show, Slimane made many controversial changes to the brand including the name and logo, switching it from Yves Saint Laurent (YSL) to Saint Laurent Paris and moving its design headquarters from Paris to Los Angeles where he lives.

Designer movements were felt everywhere, from New York to Paris to Milan. Jil Sander returned to the label that bears her name. Nicolas Ghesquiere left Balenciaga after 15 years. Alexander Wang filled his position. Christopher Kane left Versus and was, at one point, poised to succeed Ghesquiere. Stefano Pilati, formerly of YSL, moved to Ermenegildo Zegna. Derek Lam left Tod’s after 6 years. Peter Som ended his consulting gig at Tommy Hilfiger. Simon Spurr puzzled many when he left his eponymous label. Despite her clothes being worn by first lady Michelle Obama and a collaboration with Macy’s, Doo Ri Chung parted with her namesake label. Betsey Johnson filed for bankruptcy in April and liquidated her stores. Then she bounced back and staged a fashion show last September, which also marked her 70th birthday.

The Prada and Schiaparelli Impossible Conversations exhibit opened at the Costume Insitute of the Met.

British supermodels led by Naomi Campbell and Kate Moss sashayed down the stadium at the closing ceremonies of the London Summer Olympics. Another highlight of the Olympics was the mini-reunion of the Spice Girls, which included pop star turned bonafide fashion designer Victoria Beckham.

2012 was also the year of fashion copyright lawsuits. The red-soled debacle between Christian Louboutin and Yves Saint Laurent finally came to a close after more than a year. Louboutin maintains its trademark protection on the red sole. Gucci was awarded US$4.66 million following its lawsuit against Guess over the use of the interlocking G logo. The court also banned Guess from selling goods that resembled Gucci’s designs. Tory Burch and her ex-husband Chris Burch remain entangled in messy lawsuits over the similarities of their respective labels, Tory Burch and C. Wonder.

Designer collaborations continued this year. H&M launched re-editions of Maison Martin Margiela’s most iconic designs. GQ magazine teamed up with Gap and American menswear designers. Online retailer eBay created a holiday collection with the likes of Chris Benz, Jonathan Adler, Tibi and Steven Alan. J. Crew landed in Hong Kong via Lane Crawford. And the biggest collaboration of 2012 was that of Target and Neiman Marcus, which featured 50 products from 24 designers from the CFDA.

After Hurricane Sandy, the CFDA, Vogue and Tory Burch Foundation banded together to stage a shopping event to benefit victims of the natural disaster.