You can get a slouchy woman's tunic at different price points. But if you want a great pair of trousers or a dress with delicate pleating, you're going to have to spend a little more.
I believe that all brands will become storytellers, editors and publishers, all stores will become magazines, and all media companies will become stores. There will be too many of all of them. The strongest ones, the ones who offer the best customer experience, will survive.
Brands will increasingly handle their own e-commerce and rely less and less on local distribution partners. Why should they give away their profit margins?
I think there will be an increasing convergence between content and commerce, that it will be about following consumers instead of making consumers come to you, and I am especially excited about the various platforms that will allow more and more access to customers.
I envision a day when a businesswoman will be having lunch, and then her phone will ring. When she opens it up, she will see an image of the latest Marc Jacobs coat that just arrived in stock. With a click of a button, she can purchase it and then find it waiting for her when she gets back to her office.
As much as I love to shop online, I also love walking the streets on a beautiful day and seeing what finds I can discover in a small shop or vintage store.
To be a designer today is to be an entrepreneur. Whether you're a two-man operation in Shoreditch or a 3,000-person, vertically integrated brand, you need to have the wherewithal to run your business through investment, considering everything from start-up funds to your exit plan or what it takes to go public.
Having the positive belief that it will all be O.K. just means that you hustle and make it work because failure is not even an option in your own mind.
