Burberry Celebrates British Culture in London Live Show Return

Shoppers walk past a store of fashion company Burberry, amid the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Zurich, Switzerland December 11, 2021. (Reuters)
Shoppers walk past a store of fashion company Burberry, amid the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Zurich, Switzerland December 11, 2021. (Reuters)
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Burberry Celebrates British Culture in London Live Show Return

Shoppers walk past a store of fashion company Burberry, amid the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Zurich, Switzerland December 11, 2021. (Reuters)
Shoppers walk past a store of fashion company Burberry, amid the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Zurich, Switzerland December 11, 2021. (Reuters)

British luxury label Burberry returned to the London catwalk on Friday with its first in-person fashion show in two years, presenting menswear and womenswear collections that celebrated British culture.

Following digital presentations in past seasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Chief Creative Officer Riccardo Tisci said he mixed different vibes for the autumn/winter 2022 lines, playing with the brand's classic camel trench looks.

"It was important for me to explore what it means to belong, how our roots influence our identity and how the power of community and togetherness is what truly brings meaning to the world," he said in a statement, also paying homage to London.

"The collection embodies an intangible essence that is Britishness, a unique fusion of honoring the beauty of the past, whilst also remaining focused on the future with thankfulness, hope and love."

Models wore trench coats with chain details, country-style outerwear, bodysuits, detailed checked skirts and twin sets paired with tight high platform boots.

The brand's classic check print in camel, red and black appeared on pleated dresses and skirts, while Tisci used Burberry's equestrian knight design and oak leaf crest as prints or embellishments.

For the evening, he reimagined a trench coat as a strapless gown, offered frocks trimmed with feathers and black velvet shirts worn with long skirts and tuxedo jackets. Shiny metallics decorated some designs.

Menswear featured puffer, aviator and tailored jackets, high-waisted trousers with corset-like laces, rugby shirts and jumpers with embellishments.

Some outfits had off-the-shoulder panels - in faux-fur, shearling or rib-knit. Accessories included baseball caps.



Zara Owner Inditex Says Autumn Sales Stronger After First-Half Growth Slowdown 

A woman carries a bag from Spanish multinational retail clothing chain Zara, the flagship brand of the Inditex clothing company, in the Gran Via of Bilbao, Spain, March 12, 2024. (Reuters)
A woman carries a bag from Spanish multinational retail clothing chain Zara, the flagship brand of the Inditex clothing company, in the Gran Via of Bilbao, Spain, March 12, 2024. (Reuters)
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Zara Owner Inditex Says Autumn Sales Stronger After First-Half Growth Slowdown 

A woman carries a bag from Spanish multinational retail clothing chain Zara, the flagship brand of the Inditex clothing company, in the Gran Via of Bilbao, Spain, March 12, 2024. (Reuters)
A woman carries a bag from Spanish multinational retail clothing chain Zara, the flagship brand of the Inditex clothing company, in the Gran Via of Bilbao, Spain, March 12, 2024. (Reuters)

Zara owner Inditex reported on Wednesday stronger recent sales of its first autumn-winter collections after posting a slowdown in sales growth in the first half of the year that was in line with analysts' expectations.

The fashion giant said its sales between Aug. 1 and Sept. 8 saw an 11% boost in constant currency compared with a year ago. In the first half, sales growth had slowed to 7.2% from 13.5% in the same period the prior year.

The world's biggest listed fashion retailer reported a 10% rise in first-half profit amid tougher times for fashion retailers in Europe, partly due to a wet and cold June in its biggest market, Spain. Despite those headwinds, Inditex posted net income of 2.8 billion euros ($3.09 billion) and sales of 18.1 billion euros in its first half ending in July.

Analysts polled by LSEG had expected a profit of 2.77 billion euros based on 18 billion euros in sales.

The company reported a gross margin of 58.3% for the period. Analysts from HSBC, RBC, JPMorgan and Bestinver had forecast Zara's sales growth would rebound into the double digits in the first five weeks of its third quarter beginning in August after the poor weather in June dashed Zara's initial expectations of a bumper second quarter.

The fashion company has fought to stay ahead of competitors such as H&M and fast-growing Chinese rival Shein by investing in logistics and technology to deliver fashion trends faster and making an effort to minimize price increases on everyday items.

Zara hiked prices more slowly than in the past in the second quarter and less than H&M in the United States, its second-biggest market, according to retail analytics firm EDITED.

Prices for women's jeans at Zara were 2% higher than a year ago, while the average price of jeans at H&M increased by 8%, EDITED added.

H&M said June sales were likely to fall 6% in local currencies versus a year earlier, partly due to worse weather in many markets, while the wet weather in Britain also hit summer sales at Primark.

"I don't look at stocks with a short-term horizon. (On) a three-to-five year view, Inditex is the best fashion retailer in the whole brick-and-mortar space, as well as online," said fund manager Vera Diehl of Union Investment, who considers Inditex's gap with H&M and Shein has widened.

"The company takes long-term strategic decisions," Diehl added. Inditex said Zara will offer live shopping broadcasts in key markets such as Spain, the US, France, Italy, Germany, Britain, Ireland, the Netherlands and Canada in the coming weeks, following the format's launch in the Chinese market in November 2023.

Zara's parent company, which also owns the Pull&Bear, Bershka and Massimo Duti brands, is expanding in the US, enlarging and relocating stores and investing 900 million euros per year through 2025 on new logistics centers in Spain and the Netherlands.