G-III Apparel Group, which owns the Donna Karan name, has launched a new brand (separate from DKNY) that draws from its high-fashion archives.
As Fashionista reports, last week, Donna Karan New York revealed both a Spring 2024 workwear-oriented collection and accompanying campaign photographed by Annie Leibovitz, titled “In Women We Trust.” It features eight supermodels chosen for their already-established connection to the brand: Amber Valletta, Carolyn Murphy, Cindy Crawford, Imaan Hammam, Karlie Kloss, Linda Evangelista, Liya Kebede and Shalom Harlow. Many of these women walked the original Donna Karan runways during its ’90s early-aughts heyday.
Karan, the woman, isn’t involved in the project. She stepped down from the brand in 2015; LVMH had bought the company in 2001, then sold it to G-III in 2016 for $650 million deal — a net loss for the French luxury conglomerate, but “a way to get rid of a problem,” as one analyst told Fashion Network.
Unlike DKNY, the less expensive and youth-focused label, the Donna Karan New York brand aims to hit an “accessible luxury” price point, per the press release. It’s staying true to the philosophy of making classic wardrobe essentials for the professional woman, as Karan did with her “seven easy pieces,” drawing from the original designer’s archives. Spring 2024 includes artful button-up shirts, draped bodysuits, pencil skirts, eyewear, perfume and more, ranging in price from $159 to $599. It will be available to purchase on a relaunched website.
“We are repositioning and expanding the Donna Karan brand aggressively,” Morris Goldfarb, chairman and chief executive officer of G-III, told WWD in December. “The new Donna Karan will be a modern system of dressing reimagined for today’s women who are craving accessible luxury and will address the full lifestyle needs of a new consumer and a new era. With the imminent launch, we unveil not just a collection but an extended experience, developing new licenses that embody the essence of our brand’s evolution.”
“We believe long-term, it’s easily a $500 million business,” he added. “I would say that’s probably around three years from now… three to four years. And beyond that, it’s a $1 billion brand.”
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