Fashion Style You

Motel is a retro brand that has appeared in many of the fashion mags recently. Here is a taste of some of their dresses and tunics.

Dari Dress. This dress comes in a lovely vintage floral print. The dress has a pretty frill on the front panel and a tie that pulls in at the back to give definition to the dress. This dress is 100% cotton.

 Lolly Polly Dress. This dress comes in a black an white satin fabric with a feathery graduated print running all around the garment. It gathers in at the front making it super flattering around the chest. It floats beautifully from the fitted cups hiding a multitude of sins.

Roxette Dress. The dress is super flattering dress with cups and adjustable straps for the perfect fit. It has a contrasting metallic placket at the front with buttons. The dress comes in a purple and mustard print in a light weight cotton.

Click to See and Buy girls clothing from Motel

Popularity: 9% [?]

Fashion retailer Laura Ashley announced soaring profits of 62.3% (£19.8 million) in 2007, in spite of what a company described as a “challenging trading environment”.

UK fashion retail sales were up 7.7%, although there was a drop of 4.4% on a like for like basis. Overall group sales rose by 5.6% to £237.6 million, while UK retail sales lifted 7.2% to £187.2m.

Best sellers in the spring / summer season were dresses, while coats were a very strong performer in the autumn / winter season.

Laura Ashley chairman KP Khoo said:

“The improved profitability is the result of our successful store expansion and realignment programme, improved product offering and continued focus on operational efficiency,” he added.

In an update on 2008 trading to date, the company reported total retail sales had increased by over 5% up to mid-March.

Visit the Laura Ashley online store

Popularity: 4% [?]

I am sure that you will by now have seen the Lighthouse Advert that Marks and Spencer have had made to launch their fabulous Spring Style collection, just in case you have missed it here it is.

This enjoyable little commercial shows Twiggy, Mylenne, Lizzy, Erin and Noemie frolicking at the seaside in their new outfits.

Visit Marks and Spencer online.

Popularity: 9% [?]

Naketano is a designer German streetwear brand that ships to the UK.

The collection is of high quality and bright colours, so you will stand out in a crowd.

Conny black/purple. Reversible hooded double-layer Shirt. Very feminine! Naketano Logo-stitiching on one side, Naketano-print on the reversed side. Totally a favourite piece!

Sandra light black. Very comfortable hooded sweatshirtwith sewed-on stripes. Naketano stitching on the chest.

Niko light pink. Patched hooded sweatshirt. Patches on the front and the complete left sleeve! Lots of attention is guaranteed.

Click to See and Buy womens clothing by Naketano

Popularity: 6% [?]

UK fashion website Lastseason.com has developed a Facebook e-commerce application, they are the first UK business to go down this route.

The Lastseason.com Facebook application allows users to see and buy what a friend wants through their Lastseason.com wishlist, the wishlist shows images of clothes that a Facebook user likes. Friends are able to click on an item and buy it as a gift.

Founder of Lastseason.com Stefano Passantino said:

“This is a really simple idea based on how people interact with each other, who hasn’t been in a situation of wanting buy something for someone but not knowing what they like? The norm is to find a roundabout way of asking, or asking a mutual friend. The Lastseason.com wishlist shows you want your friends already have their eye on. It’s a great example of how technology intersects with some aspect of human behaviour which then redefines the way that behaviour takes place - communication by texting is a good example.”

Facebook applications are little programs embedded within the site which users can use to do anything from quiz friends on their movie knowledge to play Scrabble.

In the past applications have not been direct e-commerce applications, this new approach to applications is expected to be the precursor to a seamless integration of commerce and business into social network sites.

Amazon launched a wishlist application last week.

Denver-based bSocial Networks Inc also last week released Market Lodge 2.0 - an application that lets members customise and host their own stores within Facebook. These individualised Facebook stores can be created in five minutes, the company claims.

Nick Boardman, the CEO of Rock Computers PLC who is backing Lastseason.com with a £1m investment, says:

“The great thing with the Lastseason.com application is that it taps into how people behave at several levels. There’s the idea of knowing what your friends like so it makes shopping for birthday and other presents easier, and then there’s other quirks of the human condition like admiring someone so much that you want to dress like them and buy all the same clothes they buy. On reflection, this sounds quite frightening! But I think you get the basic idea how the Lastseason.com wishlist is useful for people.”

Visit www.lastseason.com

Popularity: 8% [?]

Swedish outdoor clothing and equipment company Fjällräven was founded in 1950 by Åke Nordin who had developed a revolutionary backpack frame, he launched the company as a vehicle to market this invention.

For over forty years Fjallraven has been the leading Scandinavian outdoor clothing company and over the past ten years brand has seen something of a resurgence as fashion oriented clients have joined the sports and outdoor types who love this functional stylish clothing.

The name Fjällräven is taken from the Arctic Fox, this little animal lives in the harshest conditions and Nordin’s aim has always been to give his garments that same resilience.

Click here to view and buy Fjällräven Clothing.

Popularity: 4% [?]