TMCnet News
MYTH -makers (Designers open lifestyle boutique in Greenbelt 5)(Business World (Philippines) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) Five apparel designers, a cosmetics/skincare expert, a hair care expert, and an artist have combined their talents in Myth, the latest luxury boutique at the second floor gallery in Greenbelt 5. The shop opened on Dec. 7 with a mini fashion show showcasing its holiday collection, alongside the launch of a joint promo with Smart Communications, Inc. and Samsung. Myth is owned and managed by Ruby Gan of Shop Manila, Inc., in partnership with designer Randy Ortiz, who serves as creative director of the pool of creative talent, namely, Henri Calayag for skincare and cosmetics, Jing Monis for hair care, painter Doltz Pilar for store design and home accessories, and Ivarluski Aseron, Jojie Lloren, Dennis Lustico and Joey Samson for apparel design. "Personally, they're my favorite designers. They have their own characteristics, but their styles, more or less, follow one direction... It's one cohesive look, but at the same time, it can be mix-and-match. There's individuality, but no one is trying to outdo the other," Ms. Gan told BusinessWorld at the launch. "Every quarter, we can invite new designers, young blood, so to speak, to jazz up the collection. So it's also a venue to introduce to the market [and show that] Filipinos are really teeming with talent." All in this together Myth sources raw materials locally and has the tagline "Proudly Philippine-made" on all its boxes. A marketing ploy for the new brand is a price range set below P1,000 to a little over P5,000, making a statement that branded items need not necessarily be expensive or made from imported materials. Mr. Ortiz, former president of the Fashion Designers Council of the Philippines (FDCP), said that electing to locate Myth in the Filipino Zone of the mall is like joining a trade show, only this time it's a more permanent venue for the designers to participate in retail and create awareness Philippine-made products. "This is in line with the objectives of the FDCP, its vision of developing brands, which, at the end of the day, is bringing ourselves out of our ateliers into a venue where we can express our creativity to a much larger market," Mr. Ortiz told BusinessWorld in a phone interview the day after the launch. "Myth is a multi-brand store; we are really here to gather a number of brands, instead of each one having his own shop. It's partly economic, because putting up a shop is very costly - you have to have capital to go into manufacturing and product development. By gathering all these designers and creative people, right away you establish a strong brand and you create a much bigger impact. It's really giving retail a new idea," he added. Creative movement Collaboration within Myth means following Mr. Ortiz's product development choices on color scheme, silhouette, textures and fabric. For the moment, Myth's team has come up with a men's and women's line of holiday apparel, both for day and night, ranging from taffeta cocktail dresses and ballgowns to knit tops. Each designer has contributed 40 pieces, made in a little over six months. The color of the season is black, white, with a smattering of red in dresses and patent leather goods, as well as the crimson lip gloss aptly named "Blood." Hair care products include wax and gum. Accessories range from cufflinks to an extensive bag line, including a tote, gym bag, body bag, messenger bag, bead bag and cosmetics bag. There are also soy wax candles - Mr. Ortiz created six in all but only three are currently made available, namely, mango-papaya, melon and green tea. Ms. Gan indicated that the lines will be expanded in the future. "There will be new items... if it is summer, we bring in swimwear, but these will not be staples, it will be the special collection for that season. In other words, the shop will always evolve; it will not stay static and offer the same things day in and day out throughout the year. We want to be dynamic, because that's the only way to survive the competition," she said, adding that customers can also expect customization and a designer present at the store to assist them in choosing the clothes and accessories. Mr. Ortiz envisions a collective that will create change in the fashion industry, similar to how Movement 8, a consortium of top Filipino furniture-makers, set benchmarks for the furniture industry, a team whose output could be as effectively marketed to the international market. "It's really about branding. We'll branch out into the region first. We start with bringing the brand to the World Boutique in Hong Kong and to the trade expos in Singapore and Bangkok. And then, perhaps we can also go to the popular trade shows in Las Vegas and New York, all the venues for our brand to be discovered," he said. For the Mythmakers, it's today, Manila; tomorrow, the world." (Beginning the third week of December, and valid until February, those who avail of a Smart Gold postpaid plan with a brand-new Samsung handset - 3.5G Ultra Edition 12.1 (U700), Smartphone I600, Samsung Z240, or Samsung E250 - will get an exclusive 20% discount to the Myth collection. For more information, visit www.smart.com.ph/Gold, call 888-111, or visit the nearest Smart Wireless Center.) Copyright 2007 Business World Publishing Corporation, Source: The Financial Times Limited |