The design duo Viktor & Rolf and H&M are pleased to announce their collaboration for the autumn 2006 season. Viktor & Rolf, known for their high concept fashion shows and modern twist on classically tailored clothes, will design a collection of women's and men's wear to be produced and distributed by H&M.
The one-time collection will be available at selected H&M stores on all H&M markets across Europe, North America and the Middle East. To be launched in November 2006.
Viktor & Rolf started their career in 1993 when they won the Hyres Fashion Festival. Through exhibitions, installations, haute couture shows, and since 2000, women's ready-to-wear, they have received international acclaim as one of fashion's most innovative labels. Their brand now includes a men's line, scarves, underwear, glasses and shoes as well as a perfume range. The duo's renowned collections comprising sharp tailoring and clever artistry sell in over 20 countries worldwide. Their first signature store, which is entirely upside down, has won many design awards and was opened in Milan last year.
"If Haute couture is the most sublime form of fashion, H&M is fashion at its most democratic. Our roots are based in couture. It's the heart and soul of our work. But we also love to play with opposites: transformation is a key element of our signature style. For us, fashion is an antidote to reality. It's a great opportunity to communicate our vision with such a large audience of H&M devotee," say the designers Viktor & Rolf.
"We really admire Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren and are fascinated by their unique way of working with design, combining their artistic talent with great craftsmanship. We look forward to offering our customers a collection by these extraordinary designers," says H&M's head of design Margareta van den Bosch.
-Ends-
About H&M:
H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB (H&M) was established in Sweden in 1947. The company's business concept is to offer fashion and quality at the best price. H&M is quoted on the O-list of the Stockholm Stock Exchange and has over 1,200 stores in 22 countries. H&M has more than 50,000 employees and achieved sales including VAT in 2005 of SEK 71,886 million. H&M has a wide product range that is divided into a number of different concepts for women, men, teenagers, children and cosmetics. The company's clothing collections are created by its own designers, pattern makers and buyers. For further information, visit www.hm.com.
About M.H. Alshaya:
M.H. Alshaya is the leading retail company operating in the Middle East; and is the franchisee for 42 International retailer brands including Debenhams, Next, Pearle Opticians, Boots, MAC, Claire's Accessories, and Starbucks Coffee. Based in Kuwait, Alshaya operates more than 1000 internationally branded stores across eight Middle Eastern countries: KSA, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Lebanon, and Jordan; In addition to Turkey, Cyprus and most recently Russia. This network of stores is supported by an integrated pan-regional infrastructure, incorporating best practice activities in retail operations, merchandising, marketing, IT, logistics, real estate, human resources and financial control. Alshaya Retail employs more than 10000 employees from 46 nationalities. You can also access more information on our company by going to www.alshaya.com.
Contact persons:
For more information, please contact:
Ayman AlSaleh,
Bates PanGulf PR, at
ayman@batespangulf.com or
tel +971 4 295 3456 Ext. 317 or
mobile +971 50 210 0202.
Payal Sharma,
Bates PanGulf PR, at
payal@batespangulf.com or
tel +971 4 295 3456 Ext. 305 or
mobile +971 50 231 7578.
Press pictures from the campaign and background information for editorial use can be downloaded from www.hm.com
© Press Release 2006
