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Images via WWD. Click to enlarge.
WWD has the first look at Coach's fall 2014 offerings under the brand's new creative director, Stuart Vevers. Vevers has been hard at work for four months reworking the brand, which just launched a fresh less-is-more direction in September. The Borough collection, as it was titled, eschewed logos and excessive hardware for a minimal yet functional aesthetic rendered in classic hues.
The new designer comes most recently from Loewe, but has also worked with Louis Vuitton, Bottega Veneta, and Mulberry, so its safe to say he knows a thing or two about businesses that survive on handbag and shoe sales. That said, the collection—which will be shown in full on Thursday—offers a full apparel lineup with a focus on outerwear (priced from $495 to $2,995). Coach Inc. CEO Victor Luis says they're "evolving Coach from a woman's handbag and accessories brand to a broader lifestyle one that is still very much anchored in accessories."
As far as brand direction goes, Vevers says he was "thinking about what it should be, not so much what it was." This translates to an assortment that triggers words like "new, young, and urban," with varsity jackets and oversized shearling coats, a shoe assortment that's heavy on boots and sneakers, and Americana references in the form of an Apollo One sweater. While Karlie Kloss was the flagship model for the Borough collection, Vevers' muse could well be a more hip hop Sky Ferreira.
Vevers tells WWD, "Whenever I go downtown or to Brooklyn, I always see girls carrying Coach bags, which just happen to be the vintage ones." However, he isn't hyper reliant on the heritage brand's archives. "As great as an archive is, you need to glance at it and then move away... When I started to receive these things that were playing off the archives, they just didn't look contemporary enough." The handbags will range from $198 to $1,500, with an emphasis put on the new Rhyder style, pictured above and retailing from $350 to $1,300.
· Stuart Vevers Ready to Unveil First Coach Collection [WWD]
· Coach Reveals New Less-Is-More Approach [Racked]
· Now Introducing the New Coach Under Stuart Vevers [Racked]
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