The Style File - Victor Rolf and H&M:
A Perfect Match
 

With Victor Rolf.s new Spring/Summer 2007 collection finally hitting H&M boutiques worldwide, it seems oddly appropriate to comment on one of the most exciting oxymorons in today.s fashion industry: fast fashion.

Simply put, fast fashion is what allows moderately priced retailers like H&M and Zara to put out cutting edge styles inspired by . or in H&M.s case, actually designed by . some of the leading designers in the couture circle. Germany's Karl Lagerfeld and Britain's Stella McCartney also designed lines for H&M, indicating that this trend is more than just a wacky Dutch dream.

Rather, this move is an undeniable step in the right direction for the industry as a whole, as it offers fashion-conscious consumers the opportunity to buy outfits from their favourite designers at a price they can afford, while simultaneously civilizing the heathen spectacle mainstream retail fashion used to be in 1990s. It also grants these designers a wider audience of people that will actually wear their clothes, rather than admire them on the runway. If this makes designers - particularly in the artsy couture circles . offer more pragmatic and wearable designs as well, then everyone wins.

Of course, there must be a limit. Designers cannot begin watering down their most imaginative designs to ensure mass appeal. High concept couture is what sets the precedence for the wearable garments that eventually hit stores. A market still exists for these elaborate designs and expensive pieces, and this market cannot be ignored, for these consumers allow designers to elevate their designs from fashion to art.

Fast fashion may, however, actually benefit the couture world. Consumers who otherwise may never have heard of Victor Rolf may soon become fans, and may wish to explore the design duo.s other pieces, if only to feed their fashion imaginations. By spurring an overall interest in fashion through collaborations such as these, designers can ensure that their $10, 000 dresses are appreciated as the works of art that they are, rather than just dismissed as unaffordable and gaudy.

Plus, isn.t just a more pleasant world overall if your average Jack n. Jill are rocking Victor Rolf threads? From an aesthetic perspective, I don.t think we could ask for more. Except maybe a public banning of velour tracksuits and Croc sandals.

Here.s hoping that other retailers and designers pick up on this trend and start collaborating with retailers. By offering affordable collections to the public, designers will be more grounded, better appreciated, and, through the added revenues such partnerships can yield, better suited financially to continue making inspiring couture . or fashion for the imagination, as I like to call it. Of course, limits must be set. Tom Ford for Zara might make a perfect match. Marc Jacobs for Wal-Mart - not so much.

If paired properly, though, high fashion and mass retail may just become this season.s perfect compliments.