以愛國的名義 紐約將推男裝周

MEN’S WEAR DESIGNERS of America: Uncle Sam wants you — for New York Men’s Week this summer.

美國的男裝設計師們：山姆大叔需要你們——爲了明年夏天的紐約男裝周。

Though the calendar is strafed with sequential and ever-lengthening international fashion weeks, American designers are agitating for a men’s week of their own. Though the idea has been percolating for some time, it has gained momentum in recent weeks as sponsors have signed on. Men’s designers received emails from representatives of the Council of Fashion Designers of America in October gauging interest.

如今日程表上已擠滿各種國際時裝週，它們接連不斷、時間越來越長，但美國設計師們正在鼓動設立自己的男裝周。這個想法已經慢慢散播了一段時間，但是最近幾周，隨着贊助商們開始簽約，它的勢頭又開始高漲。10月份，男裝設計師們收到美國時裝設計師協會的代表們發來的電子郵件，意在評估大家的興趣。

To hear its supporters tell it, creating a midsummer presentation of men’s shows is nothing less than a point of national pride.

支持者們認爲，在夏季中段（譯註：7月4日爲美國國慶日）舉辦男裝展示會無疑能夠增強民族自豪感。

“Everybody has a connection to it,” said Steven Kolb, the chief executive of the C.F.D.A., who is spearheading the effort, “because of the patriotism of it all, as American designers.”

“每個人都與此有關，”引領這一倡議的美國時裝設計師協會首席執行官史蒂文·科爾布(Steven Kolb)說。“因爲這完全體現了美國設計師們的愛國精神。”

The proposed week would fall, patriotically enough though not expressly for that reason, not long after the Fourth of July.

提議舉辦的時間是7月4日之後不久，這足以體現愛國主義，雖然沒有明確說明。

At New York Fashion Week, held in February and September, the men’s collections tend to languish in the shadow of the women’s. Many established men’s designers have decamped to fashion weeks abroad.

在每年2月和9月舉辦的紐約時裝週上，男裝似乎被籠罩在女裝的陰影下。很多老牌男裝設計師都選擇在國外的時裝週上發佈新裝。

“New York has such strong men’s wear designers at this point, but I think what happens in New York is that your business gets to a certain point and then you feel compelled to show in Europe,” said Daniel Silver, the co-designer of Duckie Brown.

“紐約擁有強大的男裝設計師羣體，但我覺得紐約現在的情況是，生意壯大到一定程度，你就覺得要被迫去歐洲展示，”達基·布朗(Duckie Brown)的聯合設計師丹尼爾·西爾弗(Daniel Silver)說。

The reason for this is partly logistical. The selling season for spring men’s wear, when buyers see collections and place orders, occurs over the summer, just after the European men’s wear shows in London, Milan and Paris. New York designers and labels including Calvin Klein Collection, John Varvatos, Thom Browne and Phillip Lim have moved their shows to Europe to close the gap between showing and selling.

這其中有物流方面的因素。春季男裝的銷售時間（也就是買家們觀看服裝系列、下訂單的時間）是在夏季，既倫敦、米蘭和巴黎的男裝秀之後。CK高級時裝(Calvin Klein Collection)、約翰·瓦維託斯(John Varvatos)、桑姆·布郎尼(Thom Browne)和林能平(Phillip Lim)等紐約設計師和服裝品牌把時裝秀搬到歐洲，以彌補展示和銷售之間的時間差。

“One of the biggest puzzles in the industry is why we’re showing men’s wear on the runway three months after we’ve bought it,” said Kevin Harter, the vice president of fashion direction for men at Bloomingdale’s.

“這個行業最大的一個謎題是，爲什麼男裝在銷售三個月後纔在秀臺上展示，”布盧明代爾百貨公司的男裝副總裁凱文·哈特(Kevin Harter)說。

The burden falls disproportionately on emerging designers, who may not have the resources to sell their collection early.

這種壓力主要落在新秀設計師身上，他們可能沒有足夠的資源，無法提早銷售自己的系列。

“We have a great pool of young talent in America,” said Jim Moore, the creative director of GQ. “That’s something you don’t have in a lot of places. It seems to be the land of opportunity.”

“美國有很多有年輕人才，”《GQ》的創意總監吉姆·穆爾(Jim Moore)說，“這是很多地方沒有的。這裏似乎是機遇之地。”

But by September, Mr. Harter said, the New York collections have “almost become an afterthought, because your budgets have already been spent by then.”

但是哈特說，到9月份，紐約的時裝發佈會“幾乎是馬後炮，因爲到那時你的預算已經花完了。”

Between the megabrands that head to Europe and the smaller ones that stay in New York are midcareer designers like Michael Bastian, who holds sales appointments with buyers in June in Milan but stages a runway show in New York in September.

除了去歐洲舉辦發佈會的大品牌和留在紐約的小品牌，還有一些中間層設計師，比如邁克爾·巴斯蒂安(Michael Bastian)，他6月份就在米蘭和買家們簽署銷售約定，9月份纔在紐約舉辦時裝秀。

“Theoretically we could be showing in Milan,” he said. “I just never felt comfortable showing anywhere but America. We’re an American brand.”

“理論上我們能在米蘭舉辦時裝秀，”他說，“但是在美國之外的地方舉辦時裝秀就是讓我覺得不舒服。因爲我們是美國品牌。”

Stumbling blocks persist. One is creating a strong enough lineup to draw international press and buyers to New York. The possibility of a New York event is testing the American spirit of the brands born and bred in the United States that have migrated elsewhere to show, or elected not to show at all.

有些障礙一直存在。其中一個是需要強大的陣容，把國際媒體和買家吸引到紐約。能否在紐約舉辦男裝周，關鍵在於考驗這些土生土長的美國品牌是否具有美國精神，之前它們有的去其他地方展示，有的乾脆不展示。

Large labels, including Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren (which has not produced a men’s wear show in recent years) and Tommy Hilfiger (which has shown intermittently) declined to comment on whether they would join a New York men’s week. A representative for John Varvatos did not respond to requests for comment.

CK、拉夫·勞倫（Ralph Lauren，該品牌近些年沒有舉辦男裝秀）和湯米·希爾費格（Tommy Hilfiger，它偶爾舉辦）等大品牌拒絕就是否參加紐約男裝周發表評論。約翰·瓦維託斯的一位代表沒有迴應要求評論的請求。

Another hurdle is sponsorship dollars, to defray costs of sites and production. Three sponsors have committed thus far, but at least one more is needed to meet a proposed budget of $2 million.

另一個障礙是支付場地和製作費用所需的贊助。到目前爲止，已有三位贊助商，但是至少還需要一位贊助商，才足以支付200萬美元的預算。

Mr. Kolb said that creating a stand-alone men’s showcase would have historic significance.

科爾布說，創設單獨的男裝周將具有歷史意義。

“When I look at the things that C.F.D.A. has been able to accomplish over the last number of years, we’ve changed the organization in a big way,” he said, citing the acquisition of the 65-year-old Fashion Calendar in July as a highlight. “If we were able to pull off men’s and do it right, it would have that same kind of stature.”

“我在回顧過去幾年美國時裝設計師協會取得的成就時，發現我們已經在很大程度上改變了這個組織，”他說。他認爲今年7月該協會收購有65年曆史的時尚日曆(Fashion Calendar)是最大的亮點。“如果我們能成功創辦男裝周並良好運營，它將具有同樣的高度。”

But time is running out. Mr. Kolb said that if enough sponsorship to cover the budget is not confirmed by the beginning of the new year, the July shows, in discussion for over a year, would be scuttled and a men’s event once again postponed.

但是時間快不夠了。科爾布說，如果明年初籌集不到足夠的贊助費，討論了一年多的7月發佈會就將流產，男裝周將也將再次延遲。

It is perhaps especially frustrating that London has managed to create exactly the sort of event the C.F.D.A. is attempting. In 2012, the British Fashion Council moved its men’s wear from a single day at the end of London Fashion Week to the four-day London Collections: Men and quickly found success, first in press, then in sales.

特別令人沮喪的是，倫敦成功創辦了美國時裝設計師協會想要創辦的那種活動。2012年，英國時裝協會把倫敦時裝週最後一天的男裝秀改成爲期四天的倫敦男裝周(London Collections: Men)，很快取得成功——先是在媒體上，而後在銷售上。

“What a huge deal this would be if he could pull this off,” Mr. Bastian said. “It would really validate all of American fashion, in a way, to figure this out.”

“如果他能促成此事，那真是了不起，”巴斯蒂安說，“從某種程度上講，它真的能證明所有美國時裝的價值。”