Yahoo Finance The Jonases’ New Investment, Kering’s Big Dinner, Chanel Goes for a BAAND Encore
IDEAL MATCH: Perfect Moment, the sports brand known for its glamorous skiwear, has new investors in Priyanka Chopra Jonas, the actor, philanthropist, Gloria Vanderbilt and Max Factor ambassador, and Nick Jonas, the recording artist and actor.
The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
More from WWD
According to a joint statement from the brand and the investors, this marks the first time the couple has entered into a business partnership in fashion.
Chopra Jonas and Jonas are longtime customers of the brand and will play a “substantial role” in the company as it expands its global footprint and breaks into new markets in Asia and the Middle East, the statement said.
Perfect Moment’s biggest markets are currently the U.K. and the U.S., and more expansion is planned in those regions.
The brand, which started in Chamonix, France, and is now based in London, is known for its brightly hued, striped or star-print skiwear, selling at retailers including Net-a-porter, Mytheresa and Farfetch.
It was originally created for extreme sports racers before moving into the fashion arena. Going forward, the company said it plans to put more of a focus on its existing menswear collection to create a “balanced offering” for its full consumer base.
Perfect Moment’s cofounder and creative director Jane Gottschalk said the “fun, diverse, business-savvy couple” would “help us grow the brand to the next level. They are admired globally not only for their talent but for their passion for life and impeccable taste.”
Chopra Jonas said that “not having to choose between looking amazing and performing at their highest level, is a consumer need that Perfect Moment not only understands but one that is baked into the ethos of this brand. I am proud to be a strategic investor and adviser to such a bold and trendsetting company. We’re looking forward to a bright future.”
Jonas said “we feel other ski and surf enthusiasts worldwide will appreciate the fashion and function of this brand.”
CEO Negin Yeganegy said it was important for the brand to bring in “like-minded partners who can elevate the brand even further. Not only do they live and breathe the brand, but their proven track record of successful business endeavors makes them ideal partners.”
Perfect Moment was founded in Chamonix in 1979 by Thierry Donard, the French racer-turned filmmaker. In 2010, the headquarters moved to Hong Kong and then London after Jane and Max Gottschalk bought the brand. — SAMANTHA CONTI
KERING CARES: The Kering Foundation is hosting a high-profile dinner this September to benefit three organizations dedicated to ending gender-based violence.
The foundation on Wednesday revealed plans for its first “Caring for Women” dinner in New York. The dinner is set for Sept. 15, one day after the conclusion of New York Fashion Week, at iconic restaurant space The Pool on Park Avenue. Anderson Cooper will host the event, with co-chairs including Kering chief executive officer and chairman François-Henri Pinault and wife Salma Hayek Pinault, Gisele Bündchen, LaTanya Richardson Jackson and Samuel L. Jackson, artist Julie Mehretu and Gloria Steinem. The evening will support the National Network to End Domestic Violence, Global Fund for Women, and Ms. Foundation for Women.
Stephane Feugere/WWD
“Kering and its Houses stand in active opposition to all forms of violence against women and, now more than ever, the Kering Foundation is resolute in its mission to create a world where women can live freely in physical and psychological safety,” said Pinault, in a statement announcing the dinner. “The Caring for Women Dinner represents a milestone in our 14-year history of partnering with front-line organizations that support women survivors to escape violence and rebuild their lives.”
An additional co-host and performer for the event are still to be announced. — KRISTEN TAUER
BAANDING TOGETHER: After sponsoring the inaugural BAAND Together Dance Festival last summer, Chanel is back for the encore. The fashion house is supporting the second edition of the five-day outdoor performance series, set to take place Aug. 9 to 13 at Lincoln Center in New York.
The BAAND Together festival, made possible by Chanel, will include daily performances from five of New York’s top dance companies, including Ballet Hispánico, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet and Dance Theatre of Harlem. Each daily performance will feature the world premiere of Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s choreography “One for All,” which was commissioned by Lincoln Center and features dancers from all five companies. The piece is set to “Manteca” by Funky Lowlives/Dizzy Gillespie.
In a collective statement on Ochoa’s piece, the artistic directors from each company offered, “This year we will go beyond performing side by side and do so together, as a unified dance family, through an exciting new work by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa. This work is a testament to our commitment for building new avenues of cultural innovation, dialogue and accessibility for our incredible city.”
The BAAND Together Dance Festival is part of Lincoln Center’s summer-long Summer for the City programming, which features performing arts programming free to the public.
Chanel’s support of the festival marks a continuation of the house’s commitment to dance and the arts. A friendship with Serge Diaghilev led Gabrielle Chanel to become a lifelong dance patron and creative collaborator. In 1920, the designer funded the revival of the (very scandalous at the time) ballet “e Sacre du Printemps” (“The Rite of Spring”). In 1924, she designed the costumes for “Le Train Bleu,” performed by Diaghilev’s Ballet Russes. Chanel outfitted the dancers in designs inspired by sporting life; her vision of leisurewear was revolutionary for the ballet stage.
Today, in addition to its support of BAAND Together, Chanel celebrates its legacy within the dance world as an official partner of the Nijinsky Awards; patron of the Opéra’ de Paris’s Opening Gala and, as of 2021, all of the Opéra’s artistic projects, and a Living Heritage partner of the Australian Ballet. — K.T.
Courtesy of Dan Jackson
HOME FOR AFGHAN KIDS: Acknowledging the complex environment in Afghanistan following last year’s takeover of the Taliban party, the OTB Foundation has once again teamed up with Nove Onlus to support a public orphanage in Kapisa, a region northeast of Kabul.
Offering shelter to around 50 orphaned children and kids whose parents and relatives are unable to take care of them, the unit, recently reopened after the Taliban shattered it, provides education, food, clothing and personal care goods, helping prevent children from being exposed to abuse, mistreatment and exploitation. With the OTB Foundation’s support the orphanage’s operators are regularly paid.
“It’s absurd that we have to choose which humanitarian emergencies to support globally. There are too many,” said Arianna Alessi, vice president of the OTB Foundation. “Afghanistan represents a special commitment. We’ve been present in the country for years thanks to associations spread and linked with the area, which continued to work toward female emancipation, the protection of young women and children and we actively contributed to handle the emergency following the Taliban’s reprise of power helping the disadvantage people and families fleeing the country,” she added.
According to the U.N., 97 percent of the Afghanistan population lives below the poverty line, with reportedly 13 million children in need of humanitarian help.
Courtesy of OTB Foundation
This is not the first time that the charity arm of the OTB Group, established in 2008 by OTB founder Renzo Rosso, is channeling its efforts toward the war- and poverty-torn country. Last year it linked with Nove Onlus to fly some women it had been supporting since 2019 out of Afghanistan and into Italy as part of the Pink Shuttle program launched by Nove Onlus and supported by the foundation.
The charity arm of the OTB Group, the parent company of brands including Diesel, Maison Margiela, Marni, Jil Sander and Viktor & Rolf, has supported about 300 international projects focused on social development with an impact on the lives of 300,000 people. — MARTINO CARRERA
DENIM MANIA: Italian luxury denim brand Jacob Cohën, led by artistic director Jennifer Tommasi Bardelle, is partnering with American designer Matthew Adams Dolan for its first women’s capsule collection for spring 2023.
The Jacob Cohën by Matthew Adams Dolan collaboration will include designs made predominantly using denim, a fabric often employed by the designer for some of his recent looks.
“Working together with Matthew was a truly thrilling experience,” stated Tommasi Bardelle. “I am sure that our collaboration is the first step toward a real opening of Jacob Cohën toward the world of fashion, whilst remaining faithful to the stylistic codes and DNA of the brand.”
Courtesy image
The artistic director, whose husband Nicola Bardelle had relaunched the brand before dying in an accident in 2012, added that: “In Matthew, I saw the creative flair that has always characterized Nicola’s work.”
The collection will be distributed in selected Italian and international retailers.
Adams Dolan is an emerging designer who launched his namesake brand after graduating from Parsons School of Design. He collaborated with Rihanna, who enlisted him to consult on her Fenty x Puma collections.
The collaboration with the artist continued until the launch of her Fenty brand with LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton in 2019. In 2018, the designer was selected as one of the nine finalists for the LVMH Prize.
“The collaboration with Jacob Cohën has given me the opportunity to discover an Italian company able to speak an international language, focusing on quality, creative identity and luxury details able to make a real difference,” said Adams Dolan. “Here I was able to fully express the codes that have always described my style.”
In 2020, the Jacob Cohën brand partnered with Italian fashion manufacturer Sinv to create JC Industry, for production in the Italian Veneto region, between the towns of Schio and Piove di Sacco, and the distribution of its collections. — ALICE MONORCHIO
Best of WWD
Sign up for WWD's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
