WWDAccessories Section II

Not everyone holds the queen’s purse — but it is possible to get a smart, well-crafted leather bag for under $700 retail. Here (from top): Furla, $548; Zac Zac Posen, $495, and Milly, $345. For more, see pages 10 to 13.

ROYAL DEAL

LAUNCHING PADPHOTO BY THOMAS IANNACCONE; STYLED BY ROXANNE ROBINSON

ACCESSORIES COUNCIL AT 20

NICHE EYEWEARGAINS GROUND

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WWDACCESSORIES

WWD MONDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2014

HAYDEN’S HANDBAGSFor Hayden Lasher, great-grand-niece of Henri Bendel, fashion is in the genes. After a string of high-pro-file internships (Michael Kors, Marc by Marc Jacobs) and a job designing shoes and handbags for Oscar de la Renta, Lasher has branched out with her own line of handbags, in collabo-ration with Belgian Shoes.

Belgian Shoes, founded by Henri Bendel, is a 300-year-old company that produces just one style: a simple loafer embellished with a dainty bow.

“It’s an East Coast cult thing,” Lasher said. “Basically, it’s just this one style done in a million different colors and fabrics.”

Lasher took Belgian’s business model as inspiration for her own brand. “I grew up going to Belgian Shoes and always thought it was crazy that they didn’t have bags,” she said.

Lasher also produces a single design: a structured, top-handle bag offered in colors and materials that vary from season to season. Current options include red crocodile, black calf leather, white crocodile with black patent piping, and vanilla pebbled leather with pink lambskin piping. Each bag features Belgian’s sig-nature bow and includes an interior cell-phone pocket, zipper pocket and key ring. “I liked the idea that it was struc-tured but still feminine and had the Belgian bow on it,” she said.

The bags are manufactured in New York, using Italian leather. “We have two Italian master craftsmen here who are the only two in the city who can touch these bags,” Lasher said.

Though her bags are a riff on Belgian Shoes, Lasher said the two companies work as connected but ultimately separate entities. Since launching in May, Lasher only re-cently enlisted the help of a p.r. firm, and otherwise runs the company from her Upper East Side apart-ment. “The more we grow and are on that track, the more I’ll need help,”

she said. “But right now, it’s fun to wear all the hats.”

She has kept production and re-tail distribution intentionally small for the time being. The collection is sold exclusively in Belgian Shoes’ New York store and on Lasher’s site, and each colorway is produced in limited quantities — about 25 for each style. The bags retail for $1,500.

“It’s about keeping the line spe-cial and exclusive,” Lasher said. “You don’t want to walk into a room and see 15 people carrying your bag.”

Despite the “insider” nature of the brand, Lasher has managed to nab one famous fan: Taylor Swift.

“A friend of mine knew Taylor’s stylist and sent a picture,” she said. “They flipped for it, so I sent a bag over. Next thing I know, she’s wear-ing it.” The business is already feel-ing a boost since images of Swift hit the wires. “We did sell our first bag in Malaysia after that,” Lasher said, noting that New York and London are the most popular cities for sales. “All of a sudden, we had all these global hits on our site.”

As for reconnecting with her ancestry, Lasher doesn’t sell at Bendel’s — at least, not yet. “Henri Bendel is one of the great depart-ment store brands, and, especially for personal reasons, it would be fun to be a part of its history,” she said, “but we are happy to bloom right where we are planted at Belgian Shoes.”

— LAUREN MCCARTHY

TIME TO SHEENKAVIAR GAUCHE HAS long been one to watch — and now the Berlin design duo known for edgy bridal and eveningwear has a timepiece of their very own, thanks to a collaboration with Casio’s women’s watch brand Sheen.

Alexandra Fischer-Roehler and Johanna Kühl, who recently showed their spring collec-tion during Paris Fashion Week, pulled inspi-ration from their signature blend of feminine cool and relaxed sexy glamour for the Sheen by Kaviar Gauche watch. The timepiece has a sil-ver-and-white face and a laser-cut leather band with an open floral motif reminiscent of recent Kaviar Gauche designs. The white band has a stud fastener and is produced in Germany.

The Sheen by Kaviar Gauche watch is limited to 100 pieces, and will retail for 500 euros, or about $641; Sheen models are gener-ally priced between 100 and 300 euros ($127 to $382). The watch was launched in September, but is not yet on counter. Sales locations will be revealed soon — and the watch will be ex-clusive to Germany.

Casio’s Sheen launched in Japan in 1999, added the U.K. at the end of 2012 and entered the rest of Europe in spring 2013.

This is Sheen’s first designer collaboration. In the U.K., Sheen has so far looked for broad-er appeal, teaming up first with hit British reality TV show “The Only Way Is Essex,” and more recently with girl group The Saturdays. Sheen has also used Claire Danes and Elisabetta Canalis in its campaigns.

K a v i a r Gauche has previously col-laborated with ArtDeco cos-metics, created a capsule collec-tion for Zalando and designed a styl-ish diaper bag for Bugaboo.

— SUSAN STONE

MARCOLIN COMPLETES VIVA INTEGRATIONMILAN — Following the acquisition of Viva International about a year ago, Italian eyewear powerhouse Marcolin Group has finalized the integration of the North American eyewear manufac-turer, previously controlled by holding company HVHC Inc., into its American branch. Called Marcolin USA, this oper-ates in all the North, Central and South American markets except for Brazil.

The integration involved all the de-partments, including product develop-ment, sales and operations.

As Marcolin USA chief executive officer Fabrizio Gamberini explained, the American arm set up a team with the goal of globally developing the brands in the company’s portfolio.

The Viva acquisition added to Marcolin’s stable some of the most pop-ular eyewear labels in the American market, including Gant, Timberland, Cover Girl, Skechers and Guess. The latter represents the most-distributed brand in Viva’s portfolio and is sold in 9,000 stores across the Americas.

“Marcolin was originally strong in the luxury business,” said Gamberini, “so by acquiring Viva, we are expand-ing our presence in the middle seg-ment of the market.”

Swarovski is also posting outstand-ing performances. “Since the acquisi-tion, the brand is experiencing a 121 percent growth compared to last year,” said Gamberini, who listed investments

made by Marcolin and a larger sales force among the reasons for the brand’s success across the U.S. Swarovski eyewear collections are available in most of the country’s de-partment stores, including Dillard’s, Lord & Taylor, Von Maur, Saks Fifth Avenue and Bloomingdale’s.

Currently, in the Americas, luxu-ry brands account for 50 percent of

Marcolin USA’s total business. Among the best-performing, high-end fashion brands, Gamberini cited Tom

Ford, which continues its double-digit growth;

Balenciaga; Roberto Cavalli; Montblanc, and Dsquared2. In addition, starting in 2015, Marcolin will distrib-ute the new Emilio Pucci eyewear line.

The sales teams of Marcolin USA and Viva International were also fused and organized into three divisions handling the distribution of different brands.

“Each division, which covers about 35 percent of the opticians in the

Americas, counts between 60 and 65 salespeople,” Gamberini said, not-ing that most of Viva International’s sales force has been incorporated in Marcolin USA, including two vice pres-idents. “The integration wasn’t done in a perspective of mere acquisition, but we focused on the talent of the people

in each role.”The acquisition of Viva, an opera-

tional part of the strategic business plan of Marcolin parent PAI Partners, a private equity firm, will help expand the Italian firm’s optical business. While previously this accounted for 30 percent of Marcolin’s business, now it represents 50 percent.

“The sunglasses business is very cyclical, while the optical side is much more constant,” said Gamberini, pointing out that optical frames used to account for 90 percent of Viva International’s total business.

In 2013, Marcolin and Viva International posted combined revenues of 345 million euros, or $458 million at average exchange.

— ALESSANDRA TURRA

In the Mix

$14.1 billion: Total men’s accessories market, up 10%.

$3.7 billion: Jewelry, up 12%.

$3.2 billion: Watches, up 7%.

$2 billion: Sunglasses, up 10%.

$1.9 billion: Bags, up 24%.

$1.6 billion: Other accessories, including knit gloves/mittens, leather gloves, belts and umbrellas, up 6%.

Men’s SnapshotThe men’s accessories market is on

a roll. The following data reflects

sales for these men’s categories

in the 12 months ended in August,

with growth compared to the same

period a year ago. — DAVID YI

SOURCE: THE NPD GROUP

Kaviar Gauche watch in collaboration with Cassio’s Sheen.

Guess sunglasses.

Swarovski sunglasses.

Hayden Lasher handbags.

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WHILE ITALIAN powerhouses such as Luxottica, Marcolin and Safilo domi-nate the eyewear business, an array of independent brands offering high-end, artisanal yet high-tech products is making headway in the market. The segment is even starting to sprout its own specialized con-sultants, publications, dedicated retailers and trade shows.

“The niche segment has in-creased its business over the past couple of years, increas-ing from 2 percent to about 5 percent of the global eyewear industry,” said Dante Caretti, who in 2009 founded Caretti Consulting, a company focused on advising independent eyewear labels and retailers.

“The market is definitely looking for a different kind of eyeglasses,” added Cristina Frasca, editor in chief of LYF, Les Yeux Fertiles, an inde-pendent magazine dedicated to the niche eyewear sector. “During the past year, we posted a 40 percent increase in eyewear advertising in our magazine, which is definitely a sign that despite the generally difficult economic moment, these compa-nies are growing.”

To support and give visibility to these independent labels, Caretti and Frasca teamed with Massimiliano Bizzi, president of M.Seventy, the organizer of the Milan-based White trade show, to cre-ate DaTe, an eyewear fair exclusively fo-cused on this emerging market segment.

One hundred exhibitors attend-ed the second edition of the annual, three-day trade show this month. That represented a 30 percent increase and was coupled with a strong visitor turn-out: 1,300 people came to DaTe from Italy and around Europe.

“The goal of DaTe is to offer the international market a new way of looking at the eyewear industry,” said Caretti, noting that, especially in Italy, most eyewear retailers are behind the times. According to Caretti, they need to change their buying strategy, spending more time at trade shows and in show-rooms, “where they can be focused on what they do,” and less time meeting sales people from different brands in their stores during business hours.

“The sales person going from one store to the other is dead,” Caretti said. “Retailers have to be stimulated with new products, which can push them a step closer to the niche offering.”

He added that opticians should di-vide their time equally between eye exams and helping customers choose the best frames. This, in turn, could benefit independent eyewear labels, which usually guarantee better fit and comfort, more polished and durable materials than standard brands, as well as more interesting shapes and styles. Caretti said optical frames cur-rently account for the bulk of indepen-dent eyewear companies’ business, while sunglasses make up just 15 per-cent of their sales.

The trade show could strengthen firms’ connections to fashion retailers, Bizzi said, because the latter are keen

on expanding their product range with cool eyewear — especially sunglasses, since Italian law prohibits the sale of optical glasses if no optician is present.

Although closer ties with fashion re-tailers might sound appealing to

niche eyewear manufactur-ers, some obstacles re-

main. In particular, Caretti highlighted

the seasonal sales of fashion stores as a problem, since niche eyewear products cannot be discounted, mostly because they stay on the market for more than a single season and do not drop in value after six months.

Only about 30 of Italy’s estimated 11,500 eyewear retailers stock only inde-pendent labels. Another 200 sell a mix of independent and mass-market or widely distributed labels.

Punto Ottico Humaneyes is one of them, and it operates six national eye-wear stores, including a unit in Milan’s central Piazza Meda, as well as a New York boutique on Madison Avenue.

“Our customers are all very different in terms of age, style, job — but they all share one thing: They want to stand out from the crowd,” said Marco Annibali, co-owner of Punto Ottico Humaneyes.

According to Annibali, most of the store’s custom-ers come through word of mouth, while others are simply attracted by the window display and wander in. “In this case, we immediately explain to them that we are not a tradition-al eyewear store, and that we don’t sell pieces from big groups,” he said.

Annibali added that since niche frames are usually more expensive than mass-mar-ket products, those who sell this kind of sophisticated product have to explain the stories behind each piece, how it is made, what the distribution is.

“There are some [customers] who don’t make the purchase because of the price, or because they don’t view eyeglasses as accessories,” he said. “But in general, once people buy their

first pair of independent frames, they never go back to less-sophisticated products,” he said.

In keeping with the general business trend of niche eyewear, optical frames represent the lion’s share of Punto Ottico’s sales. “You cannot only sell the most beautiful styles on the market, you have also to offer a high-end optical service,” Annibali noted. “For example,

we have the tools and know-how to assemble lenses in-house.”

About three years ago, Punto Ottico ac-quired French man-ufacturer Jacques Durand, which not

only produces the frames designed by

Durand himself but also the line of de-signers Veronika Wildgruber — who won the prestigious Silmo d’Or eyewear prize in 2010 — and Alyson Magee.

In terms of prod-uct, Annibali observed

that while the market is currently packed with acetate

frames, thinner, metallic styles with a certain retro feel are making a come-back. For example, Jacques Durand introduced 22-karat-gold-pleated styles, which retail at 700 euros, or $886 at current exchange.

(By comparison, designer glasses typically go from the high $200 range to just over $1,000. For instance, Tod’s

runs from $285 to $525 and Roberto Cavalli from $270 to $550; Balenciaga runs from $330 to $675 and Tom Ford retails for $320 to $550, while Montblanc goes from $325 to $1,050.)

An appreciation for retro-style frames was also noticeable at DaTe, with many companies offering varia-tions on the theme.

For instance, Belgian company Hoet presented its new Couture line, which includes two titanium frames, one for men and one for women, produced with 3-D laser-printing technology. The front of the pieces is transparent, hon-eycombed titanium, while the arms fea-ture titanium alloy springs able to mem-orize wearers’ face shapes. According to the company, the 3-D technology is energy-efficient, reduces manufacturing waste, and enables opticians to order the number of pieces they actually sell, thus avoiding overstock.

In addition, American label Chrome Hearts showcased carbon-fiber styles with ebony arms, silver details and exclusive matte lenses, re-tailing for 2,025 euros, or $2,563, while Tom Rebl introduced cool shades with real metallic rust.

The use of unconventional materi-als was another key characteristic of independent eyewear labels showing at the fair. For example, Italian brand ArtFrameTotalArt, founded by art-ist Francesco De Molfetta, proposed leather versions of its best-selling styles, which retail around 600 euros, or $759. The Alba, Piedmont-based brand Barrique, meanwhile, recycled wine barrels, creating oak arms for eyeglass-es with acetate fronts.

Among the most interesting proj-ects presented at DaTe was the Nuiit label, which, inspired by Arctic Inuit tools, showed an innovative collection of protective eyeglasses. Four high-tech lenses with luminous stripes were matched with four more essential sil-

houettes for a modern look. Sustainability and futur-

istic design were at the core of Berlin-based Vava’s eyewear

line, one of the most interesting on the niche eyewear scene. The label, founded by Pedro da Silva, presented a collection of 100 percent recycled sunglasses with flat glass lenses and aluminium joints from the aerospace industry. The range, which includes a White line with softer silhouettes and a clinical vibe, as well as a more underground Black line, retails for around 450 euros, or $569.

Vava recycled glasses.

Hoet’s Couture titanium-frame glasses.

Nuiit eyewear.

The New Look: Artisan Meets High Tech

Independent eyewear brands are ramping up. By Alessandra Turra

A Punto Ottico Humaneyes store.

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IN ITS 20-YEAR history, the Accessories Council has helped fuel the rise of bling.

To say it was a dismal period for ac-cessories within the fashion industry in 1994, when the not-for-profit, national trade group was founded, is somewhat of an understatement.

“Runway fashion was very, very minimal,” said council president Karen Giberson of the Nineties, not-ing there weren’t a lot of accessories being shown. “At that point, accessories brands and manufacturers all said, ‘If we’re not going to be on the runways, maybe there are some creative ways we can promote our categories on our own.’ The council was founded with the mission to promote our members and ultimately help sell more products.”

The council strives to bring aware-ness to the accessories world, an in-dustry that generates more than $50 billion annually in the U.S. alone, ac-cording to Giberson.

“If you look at most of the brands, whether luxury or not, the truth is that the accessories business is the fash-ion industry,” said chairman Frank Zambrelli. “You have companies within

LVMH and Kering that are professing apparel all day long, and, of course, have very important apparel business-es. But by far, they gain the majority of their revenue and profitability from their accessories businesses.

“[The council] is about really rec-ognizing that and making the industry understand the importance and the role that accessories play — and then communicating that to the consumer.”

Since 2005, when Giberson became president, membership has grown from 90 companies to 256 today. The group’s board is led by Giberson, Zambrelli, vice chairman Robert Schienberg, treasurer Gabriel Alvarez Jacobo and

chairman emeritus Ira Greenhouse. Additional board members include Carlos Falchi, Kara Ross, Monica Rich Kosann, Cindy Krupp and Alex Woo.

“You don’t say ‘no’ to Karen,” Rich Kosann said about joining the board. “She’s a real force.”

Falchi, who oversees his namesake handbag line, has been a member since the council began. “It has evolved, big time,” he said. “It has grown profusely from the time we started.”

Established accessory-focused com-panies are invited to join the organi-zation with annual membership fees ranging from $500 to $2,000, based on annual sales. Additionally, companies that are not manufacturers or design-ers of accessories, such as retailers, publications, suppliers and law firms, are invited to join as “associate mem-bers” for annual dues of $1,000.

Beyond expanding its roster, the council has initiated a number of pro-grams since its earliest days.

“We started by doing very tradition-al press outreaches, satellite media tours and advertorial sections and long-lead magazines,” said Giberson.

“Today, we put a lot more time and money into our education programs. We feel strongly that if we can arm peo-ple with information, we’ll ultimately save them time and money.”

The program covers an array of top-ics — at least one class each month — that are free for all members. Recent classes have included “How to Improve Your Social Media by Creating Pictures,” led by Unique Photo presi-dent Matthew Sweetwood; round-table discussions on topics like “Innovative Ways to Grow Your Business in Rapidly Changing Times,” and “Using Visual Social Commerce and New Mobile Technologies to Grow Your Business.”

The council also connects members with retailers by bringing younger mem-bers to trade shows, such as WWDMagic in Las Vegas and VisionExpo East in New York. Facilitating net-working opportunities is also an integral service.

“There are so many catego-ries that work in little silos, whether it’s fashion jewelry people or handbag people or scarf people or millinery people,” said Giberson. “We find that when we get everyone together, magical things happen.”

The organization’s flag-ship event, the ACE Awards, was created in 1997 to honor individuals and groups for exceptional work in the acces-sories realm. This year’s gala will take place on Nov. 3, with honorees including Kerry Washington and Lyn Paolo as “influencers,” Shinola for a brand launch, Proenza Schouler as designer of the year and Alex and Ani as specialty retailer.

“I was nominated in 2004 for the Rising Star Award, which is no longer in exis-tence,” recalled Alexis Bittar. “It was actually the first time I’d won an award, and I had massive stage fright. I got up there and had done no mic check, so I didn’t realize how loud my voice would be. I said, ‘Thanks’ and it was just so loud, so I was like, ‘Oh s--t,’… and that was my acceptance speech.”

Despite the disruptive nature of his debut, Bittar has become a frequent

attendee of the gala. “I think they’ve done an amazing job bridging the gap [between] accessories [and the rest of the industry],” he said. “Karen has brought in that showmanship to the ACE Awards. It feels more holistic in terms of media and outside industries. You can see it incrementally grow. Ultimately, the ACE Awards are the biggest platform in terms of visibility. It’s become really coveted.”

“The award gave me more exposure to retailers like Bergdorf ’s, Neiman’s, Saks, Nordstrom and Bloomingdale’s,” added Rafé Totengco of his 2001 Best Accessories Designer award. “I also col-laborated with more designers for their runway presentations — Tracy Reese, John Bartlett, Jussara Lee, Peter Som and Diane von Furstenberg, when she relaunched her collection.”

This year, the awards will also honor the inaugural winner of its Emerging Designers Competition, an initiative done in partnership with Lividini & Co. to find the next big name in accessories.

“I worked at Saks as senior vice presi-dent of fashion merchandising, so finding

new talent was something we did all the time,” said Jaqui Lividini,

founder and chief executive officer of the branding con-sultancy. “It always struck me that [new designers] just needed help. They needed help positioning their brand and really hav-ing a plan for the brand. That was the thinking for this competition — if we could select an emerging designer to assist in devel-oping the brand and build-ing a strategy, that can be very helpful to them, espe-cially early on.”

Entry to the competition is limited to designers who have been in business fewer

than three years and can provide a tentative busi-ness plan, as well as look books and product in-formation. The winner, voted upon by all mem-bers of the council, will receive free Lividini & Co. client services for a year and a year-long membership to the Accessories Council.

The Emerging Designers Competition punctuates the organization’s intent to keep growing and expanding.

“We’ve learned what works, what’s effective and how to keep pace,” Zambrelli said. “The goal, both inter-nally and externally, is to be a portal — a place to go, or a one-stop place for what’s happening within the industry.”

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The Accessories Council marks its 20th anniversary with new education initiatives and an emerging-designers

competition. By Lauren McCarthy

Proenza Schouler is 2014’s

designer of the year.

Alex and Ani is being honored as retailer of the year.

Karen Giberson

A scene from last year’s ACE Awards.

Accessories Advocate

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WWD Monday, october 27, 2014SECTION II

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For many consumers, a designer-priced bag is simply not a fiscal reality. Fortunately, there are plenty of well-designed, reasonably priced bags at retail this spring. — ROXANNE ROBINSON

Less Is More

PHOTOS BY THOMAS IANNAccONE

WWD Monday, october 27, 2014

WWD.COM

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Clockwise from left: Hayden-Harnett’s saffiano-leather bag, $448; Guess’ tie-dye python-texture polyurethane bag, $98, and Jessica Simpson’s metallic-straw and napa-leather bag, $108.

Clockwise from left: Vince’s geranio-leather

bag, $295; Peter Nappi’s vachetta-leather bag, $695;

SJP’s napa-leather bag, $345; Raoul’s saffiano-leather bag, $450, and

A.L.C.’s leather bag, $495.FA

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WWD Monday, october 27, 2014

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Clockwise from left: Loeffler Randall’s anaconda-embossed and knit-raffia bag, $295; Cole Haan’s soft pebbled-leather drawstring bag, $328; Ramy Brook’s printed pebble-leather and patent leather bag, $495, and Elaine Turner’s double-faced saffiano-calf-leather bag, $278.

w27b010(11-13)a;13.indd 12 10/24/14 7:10 PM10242014191436

WWD Monday, october 27, 2014

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Clockwise from left: Facine’s calfskin-leather clutch, $295; Lucchese’s palmellato calf-leather clutch, $695; Ela’s leather clutch, $548, and Etienne Aigner’s lizard-embossed vachetta-leather bag, $445.

SECTION II WWD.COM

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IN AN OPEN-SPACE office in New York’s SoHo neighborhood, Natalya Poniatowski was straightening out a table of jewelry. A few feet away, some-one organized the logistics of delivering a selection of headbands to a magazine shoot, while another checked on the payment status of a recent sales order.

Welcome to the world of LuxCartel, one of several new incubators for young designers with a focus on ac-cessories. LuxCartel, The White Space and #8 New York are among the new-est crop in fashion agencies offering such services as press relations, sales, creative direction and merchandising.

“The company was structured to be an all-encompassing incubator, essen-tially an office share for designers who cannot have their own internal team, and then a p.r. office and a sales office,” said Poniatowski, chief executive offi-cer of LuxCartel. “We provide all those services at a preferential rate.”

Alison Brokaw, founder of The White Space, added, “I wanted to help emerging brands gain access to the American market in an efficient, cost-effective way by offering them access to influential retailers and press. The brands we work with require more than what a showroom can offer. We can do everything in one shot and keep the cost down.”

Brokaw, a freelance stylist, formed the company in partnership with Ruth Runberg, former buying director of London’s Browns department store, in 2013. Runberg has since left the firm, and today Brokaw oversees a roster of clients that varies from season to sea-son. Most recently, for spring 2015, The White Space worked with British eye-wear maker Finlay & Co., fine jewelry designer Jody Candrian and Serbian jewelry brand Arme de L’amour, as well as two ready-to-wear lines.

“Finlay & Co. had several distribu-tion channels in Europe but hadn’t been able to access America,” said Brokaw.

“This was a really cost-effective way for them to come here, access the market, and they’ve done really well — now they sell at Barneys. They got to come to New

York, meet retailers and get feedback. I facilitate it, but I really want the design-ers to interact with the retailers to get feedback about price points and deliv-ery dates. It’s great to get information directly from buyers.”

Brokaw, who declined to disclose client fees, uses her experience in the fashion industry to facilitate these meetings, and connect brands with re-tailers, often creating showcases for her brands during market weeks. The White Space occupies a 600-square-foot office and works seasonally with the Koons studio to hold such showcases.

Lynn Rosetti of #8 New York is also an industry veteran, having spent time with Stephen Sprouse, Jill Stuart and Anna Sui. Most recently, she spent 13 years running the Steven Alan show-room. In 2013, however, she decided to go out on her own.

“I got it into my head that accesso-ries was the way to go,” she said. “The market for ready-to-wear has gotten so small — there are fewer designers

that have bigger market share — so I had this idea to focus on handbags and more lifestyle accessories.”

Rosetti runs #8 New York from a

500-square-foot showroom and current-ly oversees eight brands: smartphone case-maker Corners4, headphone brand Frends, eyewear companies Sunettes and Sunday Somewhere, jewelry brand Poupette and handbag designers Campos, Marie Turnor and Oliveve, the latter of which is her own brand. As a one-woman operation, Rosetti focuses primarily on the sales end, bringing in freelancers during busy market weeks, and, like Brokaw,

she connects brands with retailers.

She also offers ad-vice to the brands, such as what factories to use or how to price the merchandise. “A lot of handbag designers are just paying enor-mous fees because the factory has taken ad-vantage of them,” she said. “They just don’t know any better.”

Rosetti charges a monthly fee of $1,000 for her services, and standing place on display in her showroom, as well as 12 to 15 percent in sales commis-sion. She said her self-funded venture saw a profit within its first four months.

“We’re growing at the rate I antici-pated,” she said. “I don’t want to get too big. I want to keep that one-on-one aspect with the designers.

LuxCartel operates as a one-stop shop for emerging talents; an office share with services in p.r., sales, consult-ing, creative direction, merchandising, strategy and logistics. Poniatowski, for-merly in private equity, began as an in-vestor and silent partner in the compa-ny, which was founded by Jenna Sloan.

“Slowly, I became less si-lent,” she said. In December 2012, Poniatowski took over the firm, which at the time offered p.r. and sales ser-

vices. With one additional full-time employee, an intern,

and a handful of brands re-maining from the initial launch,

Poniatowski refocused the com-pany. LuxCartel currently employs three sales associates, three p.r. ex-ecutives, a client-relationships ex-pert and ceo Poniatowski. It works with accessory brands Masterpiece, Anndra Neen, Aurora Bailey and A La Russe, as well as ready-to-wear brand Kalmanovich.

“I like working with brands that have growth potential,” said Poniatowski. She noted that most brands approach her for representa-tion, rather than her soliciting clients. “Sometimes people will recommend an amazing brand, but I can’t have these designers think of me as their agent. The relationship needs to be much more student and teacher, where they will accept my team’s authority. And for that to happen, they tend to have to come to us.”

The tough-love mantra is a corner-stone of the company’s success. “It’s not just a business relationship,” she said “A typical client-agent relation-ship is, ‘You pay us money, and we make you smile.’ A LuxCartel relation-ship is, ‘You pay us money, and we’ll do everything in our power to make your brand grow, even if that means yelling at you.’ We don’t sugarcoat anything.”

For its involved services, LuxCartel charges a flat monthly fee of $10,000, as well as 10 percent in sales commission.

“We base our fee on the fact that our work combines the work of a p.r. office, a sales agency, a consult-ing and logistics agency,” Poniatowski explained, adding that 90 percent of that revenue goes to paying office rent and employee salaries.

“I am adamant about organic growth,” she said. “I never in-vest money in the com-pany. We generate and spend. It’s always been a break-even, or slight-

profit, company. Overall, we are in the positive.”

During fashion week, the company hosted presentations for A La Russe, Anndra Neen and Masterpiece, which drew editors, buyers and a number of “It” girls, such as Constance Jablonski, Leandra Medine and Stephanie LaCava. Poniatowski herself is some-thing of an “It” girl, frequently pho-tographed at fashion events, yet she maintains that she’s still an industry outsider — and that, in fact, is part of the company’s strategy.

“The founding members of the group have nothing to do with fashion,” she said. “We have a good eye, an un-derstanding, good connections and our brains. The fact that we’re not limited by how it’s done in a normal fashion company has helped us so far.”

The Launching PadA crop of companies is sprouting to help emerging accessories designers

get their footing in the business. By Lauren McCarthy

Lynn Rosetti in the #8 New York showroom.

LuxCartel’s NatalyaPoniatowski;an Anndra Neen cuff.

The White Space’s Alison Brokaw; Finlay & Co. sunglasses.

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