When I was a college student at NCState, there was a clothing boutique called “The House of Couture” selling higher end apparel, mostly gowns. Back then, I tripped over the word “couture” thus proving that I was shopping above my raisin’. Now the word rolls right off and I add a little parisienne lilt to it. It occurred to me as I was drooling over the Fall 2014 collections that I needed to know more about what exactly couture is. It’s a word that is tossed around a lot these days, but I suspected “haute couture” was a technical term. For instance, I knew that there was something special about “Armani Prive” (not just Armani) or “Atelier Versace” (not just Versace).
Haute Couture is not just a technical term, it is a legal one. To label a collection “haute couture,” a design house must have approval from The Fédération française de la couture, du prêt-à-porter des couturiers et des créateurs de mode (translation: French Federation of Fashion and of Ready-to-Wear Couturiers and Fashion Designers) & the French Ministry of Industry. The fédération française de la couture is the governing body of French fashion and has been (under different names) since 1868. Before labeling apparel as “haute couture,” the fédération française de la couture requires, among other things, these stringent (and wildly expensive) specifications:
** Full-time workshop in Paris employing no fewer than 20 staff;
** The staff (tailors, seamstresses, embroiderers, lace makers, jewelers, etc) are highly specialized craftspeople – the best in the world;
** Each garment is hand-made and no more than 10 examples are ever produced;
** Clothing is made to measure for individual clients in personal fittings;
** Fabric is sumptuous, with hand embellishments, beading, feathering, embroidering, bejeweling;
** Construction is entirely by hand, an average piece taking 800+ hours;
** The design house must show twice per year (January & July) in Paris, and must show day and evening wear.
Who meets these criteria? In 2014, I count 16 labels. Alexandre Vauthier; Alexis Mabille; Armani Privé; Atelier Versace; Bouchra Jarrar; Chanel; Christian Dior; Elie Saab; Giambattista Valli; Maison Martin Margiela; Schiaparelli; Ulyana Sergeenko; Valentino; Viktor & Rolf; Vionnet; and Zuhair Murad. (Source: http://www.style.com).
To me, who’s noticeably absent? How about: Givenchy. Yves St. Laurent. Balenciaga.
With costs for a single daytime outfit in the 5-figures and a single gown in the 6 to 7-figure range
(yes, 1 meeeelllion dollars), it seems financially understandable for a label, even a global dynamo like YSL, not to expend resources on haute couture. Excluding a red-carpet appearance (count
that as an advertisement for the brand), who is the haute couture customer? There cannot be many on the entire planet. Surprisingly, says Women’s Wear Daily, the couture market is rising, with sales from emerging markets in China, Russia, and the Middle East. Not only are haute couture sales rising, but the average consumer is younger. Even so, estimates are that the total haute couture customer base is under 4,000 people globally. That means there must be a business reason to put out a haute couture collection because the label can't be recouping its costs by selling the apparel, no matter how extraordinary it is.
Those red-carpet “advertisements” may be working. Think Jennifer Lawrence in Dior. Angelina’s leg in Versace. With social media in full force sparking trends and label awareness,
maybe that is the tangible reason for the financial investment in haute couture. A label’s profits are going to be made mostly from accessories. If a wowza plunging green dress (JLo) creates a twitter sensation and someone buys sunglasses because they want something labeled ‘Versace,’ maybe 10+ million dollars on haute couture is worth it. I am never going to ever wear a Chanel Haute Couture gown; I will only drool in pictures. But I can (and do) own sunglasses and shoes and handbags (and makeup and perfume).
Consider the intangible value of haute couture labels -- they are the alpha dogs of the big dogs. The biggest muscle. It says something about their position in the industry; their strength; their superiority, that they put out a collection that is the best, the most expensive, the finest, the most phenomenal, lush, lavish garments in all the world.
Haute Couture is not just a technical term, it is a legal one. To label a collection “haute couture,” a design house must have approval from The Fédération française de la couture, du prêt-à-porter des couturiers et des créateurs de mode (translation: French Federation of Fashion and of Ready-to-Wear Couturiers and Fashion Designers) & the French Ministry of Industry. The fédération française de la couture is the governing body of French fashion and has been (under different names) since 1868. Before labeling apparel as “haute couture,” the fédération française de la couture requires, among other things, these stringent (and wildly expensive) specifications:
** Full-time workshop in Paris employing no fewer than 20 staff;
** The staff (tailors, seamstresses, embroiderers, lace makers, jewelers, etc) are highly specialized craftspeople – the best in the world;
** Each garment is hand-made and no more than 10 examples are ever produced;
** Clothing is made to measure for individual clients in personal fittings;
** Fabric is sumptuous, with hand embellishments, beading, feathering, embroidering, bejeweling;
** Construction is entirely by hand, an average piece taking 800+ hours;
** The design house must show twice per year (January & July) in Paris, and must show day and evening wear.
Who meets these criteria? In 2014, I count 16 labels. Alexandre Vauthier; Alexis Mabille; Armani Privé; Atelier Versace; Bouchra Jarrar; Chanel; Christian Dior; Elie Saab; Giambattista Valli; Maison Martin Margiela; Schiaparelli; Ulyana Sergeenko; Valentino; Viktor & Rolf; Vionnet; and Zuhair Murad. (Source: http://www.style.com).
To me, who’s noticeably absent? How about: Givenchy. Yves St. Laurent. Balenciaga.
With costs for a single daytime outfit in the 5-figures and a single gown in the 6 to 7-figure range
(yes, 1 meeeelllion dollars), it seems financially understandable for a label, even a global dynamo like YSL, not to expend resources on haute couture. Excluding a red-carpet appearance (count
that as an advertisement for the brand), who is the haute couture customer? There cannot be many on the entire planet. Surprisingly, says Women’s Wear Daily, the couture market is rising, with sales from emerging markets in China, Russia, and the Middle East. Not only are haute couture sales rising, but the average consumer is younger. Even so, estimates are that the total haute couture customer base is under 4,000 people globally. That means there must be a business reason to put out a haute couture collection because the label can't be recouping its costs by selling the apparel, no matter how extraordinary it is.
Those red-carpet “advertisements” may be working. Think Jennifer Lawrence in Dior. Angelina’s leg in Versace. With social media in full force sparking trends and label awareness,
maybe that is the tangible reason for the financial investment in haute couture. A label’s profits are going to be made mostly from accessories. If a wowza plunging green dress (JLo) creates a twitter sensation and someone buys sunglasses because they want something labeled ‘Versace,’ maybe 10+ million dollars on haute couture is worth it. I am never going to ever wear a Chanel Haute Couture gown; I will only drool in pictures. But I can (and do) own sunglasses and shoes and handbags (and makeup and perfume).
Consider the intangible value of haute couture labels -- they are the alpha dogs of the big dogs. The biggest muscle. It says something about their position in the industry; their strength; their superiority, that they put out a collection that is the best, the most expensive, the finest, the most phenomenal, lush, lavish garments in all the world.