Yesterday's Business of Fashion piece that spoke to several major fashion PR agencies regarding their digital strategy, re-affirmed a few thing - Twitter is way important, personal relationships with journalists still matter, and that digital specialists/departments will be springing up (or already has done) at the agencies. All very well but if we're going back to the basic notion of having a presence on the internet - the designer's website which is the first port of call for anyone stumbling upon a designer (before Twitter/Facebook etc...) - is still an area of neglect The likes of Giles or Christopher Kane are notable examples, who STILL don't have websites (ChristopherKane.com leads you to a blog of a software developer!). Actually it's kind of depressing that just as a general comparison, young London designers do lose out a little against their New York counterparts when it comes to engaging website design that also incorporates e-commerce. Granted, a few are still in construction (Meadham Kirchhoff, Mary Katrantzou) and a few are also purposely kept clean-cut and perhaps slightly sterile (Richard Nicoll, Peter Pilotto - I do like their use of BIG BIG images though) for simplicity's sake.
However as I was browsing through New York-based design agency designedmemory's portfolio as they've recently redesigned Suno's website, it struck me that websites with a highly personal graphic treatment that still conveyed all the useful bits was certainly a possibility. This is coming from a person who used to favour perfunctory website from which I can grab images easily and get contact/bio details. When aesthetics are balanced out with practicality as they do in designedmemory's portfolio of sites, then the possibility of selling casual browsers such as myself into the brand highly likely. The multi-layered approach which seems to be inspired from taking the tactile elements of print and applying them to the web makes for a browsing experience that can almost be described as sumptuous. This is probably down to designedmemory's treatment of web and print as one as they also create printed media for their clients too. Suno's new site is a particularly seductive feat with the homepage awash with paint swabs and a print that looks like ink has been accidentally transferred from a silk screen...
The e-commerce branch of Suno's site is also lovely with a decent selection that has been presented with plenty of perspective images all in a clear layout. Again, in general, own branded e-commerce sites also seem to be a bigger priority for American designers, exemplified by people like Proenza Schouler, who pointed out at the IFB Conference talk that having the freedom to put whatever they like up on their site meant they can occasionally bypass retailers. I have high hopes for J.W. Anderson though who I hear is launching e-commerce soon and is someone who has been web-focused from the get go. House of Holland also has had a head-start with his eponymous tees requiring web presence immediately.
I envision that more and more designers will have the ability to control their spheres of sales through their websites and it's good to see that agencies like designedmemory are recognising that need as well as ensuring the practical parts are given a visually fitting treatment.
Other designedmemory sites include Chris Benz's website...
...Timo Weiland's website
As well as brands such as the ones above and The Row, Erin Featherston, designedmemory also did the site for Au Revoir Simone...
The common traits between a lot of the sites that designedmemory does is a pop-up story book aesthetic that makes you want to delve into the site despite the slightly slower loading time. I even don't mind the fact that I have to screencap some of the images to get to the collections because I'd rather see something considered unfold before you, making you want to put your browser on full screen and maybe even listen to whatever soundtrack they've got going on...
