DEFYING RECESSION and inclement weather, Brown Thomas yesterday launched its spring/summer collections over lunch at Patrick Guilbaud’s upmarket Dublin restaurant for about 70 select customers.
“I’d be lying if I said things were easy,” said the department store’s chief executive Nigel Blow.
While talk of the retail downturn was unavoidable, this was a show to raise spirits – an optimistic mix of colour and pattern in which the dress in all its guises, from form-fitting shifts to floor-length maxis, was the central focus.
One well-heeled guest already reflected the spring spirit in a daffodil yellow shift with matching bow in her blonde hair.
160 years old this year, Brown Thomas has reasons to be sanguine, having weathered other challenging times in its long history.
The event showcased four outfits each from 20 familiar international brands such as Gucci, Hermes, Dior, Lanvin, Prada and Balenciaga, opening with Chanel and closing with Roberto Cavalli. The only Irish presence was Lainey Keogh.
Presented this way rather than by trend, it was possible, however, to see the many variations of the season’s dresses, from the emerald green folds of a Lanvin number, to the strapless puffball shapes of Prada and the starker grid patterns of Dries Van Noten.
The Dior knee-length daywear dresses in plain sugar pink or red and white check with their neat waists, bell skirts and shoulder bow details captured the “pretty woman” mood exquisitely.
Elsewhere, black took a back seat to a dizzying array of prints, memorably in a collection from the newly introduced Basso Brooke label, a Brazilian/UK duo whose innovative kimono patterns and origami shapes were exuberant and colourful, and a sharp contrast to Dolce Gabbana’s flesh-coloured corset dresses.
Maxi dresses came with halternecks, in swirling shell prints, in a column of blue silk from Balenciaga and in virginal white pleats from Chloe.
Shoes, occasionally worn with black socks, were demandingly high, but equally colourful with Chanel’s pom-pom stilettos and quilted ankle boots adding a playful note.
Yes, the show was upbeat, and there was no sign of a downward trend with the prices either, with dresses costing from about €395 up to €1,800.
“We are more conscious of price,” insisted Shelly Corkery, head of womenswear, “but up to a point. I don’t think people are price conscious when they want something spectacular.”