Yesterday the John Galliano show went on without John Galliano, who is said to have entered a rehab facility in Arizona since being fired from Christian Dior for allegedly making anti-Semitic remarks. It seems unlikely, considering the great show of support the fashion community has made for the scandalized designer, that this would be his last fashion show ever, but that is a possibility. Sidney Toledano, the CEO of Dior, which owns 92 percent of the Galliano label, attended the presentation in Paris and told Reuters, "For the moment, the [John Galliano] business continues."
"This is a business which has licenses and tomorrow we will show the collection in the showrooms as usual... I am here to prove that business goes on... and to support the teams."
However, it's unclear how long Dior will continue to underwrite the label without Galliano. Press have also wondered how much involvement licensees will want to have with a brand bearing the name of a purported anti-Semite. But Retuers notes:
Without Dior, the John Galliano brand, which barely breaks even, would not survive.
Anyway, let's not forget that the gossip in the room was accessorized by all-new clothes. The fall 2011 collection was downgraded from a full-blown runway show to a presentation, with just nineteen looks — roughly half the looks that would have been shown in a typical show by a top designer. The models walked a bit in the clothes — wool suits, sheer evening gowns, and sky-high heels that were quintessential Galliano — and posed dramatically in that signature Galliano way for the photographer pit. The makeup was toned down compared to Galliano's typical fare, as was the crowd, which included no celebrities. One of the models in the presentation had a Jewish star tattooed on her arm. That she decided to appear in the show in the wake of the videotape of Galliano saying "I love Hitler" seems no less surprising than many top designers and editors vocalizing their support of the designer. That superstar label bears the same permanence of a tattoo in this business.
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