When is designer not designer?

[davei]

Check out this article: http://www.lefirme.com/media_releases_p2.htm I've dealt with this store before and have absolutely no complaints. It's a very nice shop, only it's location stinks - it's out in the middle of nowhere (well, an industrial strip area close to townhouse bedroom communities.) Discounting a production over-run sounds OK with me. House label suits made from top quality fabric at a "name" factory sounds OK with me too. But a factory that has excess fabric and is looking to use it up.... hm, I don't know. If the item is made with the same fabric, sewn with the same attention to detail, and has the same label, I won't quibble. What if the item is just thrown together and sewn haphazardly, or without the same amount of quality control? It's discounted, but not up to snuff - a second, in my book. Thoughts, anyone?

 

[LA Guy]

As in all things, I think that judgement is called for. Joe G., for example, has often called the quality of first quality Prada items into question. I personally think that the materials and workmanship of any product licensed through IT, including D&G, D&G Jeans, &, (but not black or white label Dolce & Gabbana), Ferre Jeans, Versace Jeans Couture, and exte, are shoddy.

I think it unlikely that by "leftover material" what they mean are "scraps". Much more likely, they have whole rolls of surplus material leftover because they overestimated the number of seconds, etc..., and just continued their production run until they actually ran out of cloth. In that case, I would say that the product is first quality.

You must, however, remain the final arbiter. Make sure to inspect the goods thoroughly before you purchase, especially at stores like Le Firme, which are unlikely to have a good return policy.

 

[bengal-stripe]

It is quite common for a manufacturer/designer to commit to an order of a minimum quantity of a particular fabric/cloth; either to get exclusivity of an existing pattern or to have a pattern of your own design woven or printed.

If the sales of that design don't come up to expectation, you will be left sitting on bales of fabric. If your company is incredibly exclusive and if that pattern is instantly recognizable (like an Hermes tie pattern) you will shred it, as not to devalue the design and the brand. Otherwise you try to sell it on; at a loss if need be. So there is nothing wrong in having overstock of certain fabrics/cloths.

 

[jetLab]

Is Le Firme locataed near the Chinese mall called Times Square? What is the selection like? There is a store in the Chinese mall that sells Ittierre labels including D&G, GFF Jeans and Trussardi.

Just checked out the website, sounds pretty cool:

As always men's suits from Cerrutti and Zegna are less than half of retail; the handmade Radaelli line (alterations done on site) starts at $700.00. Le Firme's new private-label suits, made by the same Italian factories that service Prada and Dolce & Gabbana, start at a mind blowing $500.00.

 

[davei]

Is Le Firme locataed near the Chinese mall called Times Square? What is the selection like? There is a store in the Chinese mall that sells Ittierre labels including D&G, GFF Jeans and Trussardi. Just checked out the website, sounds pretty cool:
Quote:

As always men's suits from Cerrutti and Zegna are less than half of retail; the handmade Radaelli line (alterations done on site) starts at $700.00. Le Firme's new private-label suits, made by the same Italian factories that service Prada and Dolce & Gabbana, start at a mind blowing $500.00.
It's in the general vicinity of Times Square - about fifteen minutes away, it's around West Beaver Creek if I remember correctly. Since I moved from the area, I haven't been there in a while, but the selection was OK. Kind of a mix between Harry Rosen & the Holt Renfrew sportswear section, maybe leaning towards Harry a bit. At one point they did online sales as well, but I guess they stopped.