GUCCI the Most Coveted luxury brand in the world?

Gucci, the flagship brand of French luxury group PPR, is the world’s most coveted luxury brand according to a global luxury brands survey by The Nielsen Company.

In the latest survey, one in five global consumers said they would choose to buy Gucci (over any other luxury brand) if money was no option, making the Italian fashion brand that was revived by Tom Ford in the 1990’s the most coveted and aspirational luxury brand in the world today.

Chanel and Calvin Klein tied for second place in Nielsen’s 48-country global online survey that was conducted in November 2007. In fourth place came Louis Vuitton, followed by Giorgio Armani, Christian Dior and Versace.

Two years ago in the same survey, Gucci shared top honours in the survey with Giorgio Armani – which has since slipped to fourth place in current global rankings.

Givenchy mens wear by Riccardo Tisci

Givenchy has unveiled a gallerylike Paris boutique featuring a series of black-box display suites and a long, gleaming gold ingot for the cash wrap, WWD reports

The new 3,750-square-foot flagship on the Faubourg Saint-Honoré, opens to the public Friday and is a chic statement for a French house's recent success.

"Our strategy now is very clear and it's working well," said Marco Gobbetti, chairman and chief executive of Givenchy, part of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton. "The company is now looking at a phase of faster growth."

(Auction) RED

(Auction) RED held in New York City, at the Gagosian Gallery, located in West Chelsea, saw the work of Jeff Koons , Takashi Murakami ,Richard Prince available for sale with proceeds going to Global Fund, helping to eliminate AIDS in Africa. The cocktail party was hosted by Larry Gagosian, renowned Armenian-American art dealer, Vogue's Anna Wintour, and Lisa Dennison from Sotheby’s.

Edition 1

Edition 1 is Porsche design in its purest form. Inspired by the world’s first entirely black chronograph, which was designed at the Porsche Design Studio in Zell am See in 1972. The special Edition 1 collection pays homage to this extraordinary design with 14 accessories for men. All black. Black leather. Black titanium. Black steel. Black aluminum.

Charles Dickens Collection To Be Auctioned Off

Christie's New York will auction off The Kenyon Starling Library of Charles Dickens on April 2. The collection includes a complete set of Charles Dickens's contributions to The Monthly Magazine or British Register of Politics, Literature, Art, Science, and the Belles Lettres. London: A. Robertson; Cochrane and M'Crone; James Cochrane and Co., December, 1833-1835.

Peter Beard, Collector's Edition, 965 Elephants

Spilling out over the pages of this massive tome, Peter Beard`s collages are reproduced as a group for the first time at the size they have always meant to be seen, some as foldouts. Hundreds of smaller-scale works and diaries fill the remaining spreads—magnified to show every detail, from Beard`s meticulous handwriting and old-master-inspired drawings to stones and bones and bits of animals pasted to the page. Available in both Art and Collector`s editions, this opulent and beautifully crafted limited edition—complete with wooden stand—is a work of art in itself. Features:

• Comes with a specially fabricated wood book stand
• XXL-Format: 34.5 x 50 cm (13.4 x 19.7 in.)
• Main book: 200 pages of diaries and 294 pages of collages + 5 fold-outs
• Original essay by photo critic Owen Edwards
• Companion volume: PB2 image index with captions for all images from main book, personal photos and early work of the artist, interview with the artist by Steven M. L. Aronson , a facsimile reprint of Beard`s 1993 handwritten essay from the sold-out first issue of Blind Spot magazine, extensive bibliography, and a list of exhibitions
• All color illustrations are color-separated and reproduced in Pan4C, the finest reproduction technique available today, which provides unequaled intensity and color range

Collector's Edition, No. 1 – 250

• Limited to 250 individually numbered copies, each signed by Peter Beard
• Books No. 126-250 accompanied by the gelatin-silver print "965 Elephants" (1978/2006). Printed on 50.8 cm x 40.64 (16 in. x 20 in.) paper and signed below the image by the artist.
• Sumptuous leather cover
• Packaged in a velvet-lined wood shipping crate

Zenith Defy Extreme Stealth

Zenith has announced Defy Extreme Stealth– a limited edition men’s chronograph. Only 250 of these were made in each color offered. The Zenith Defy Extreme Stealth uses shock-resistant technology and new Open Grande Date 4039 SX movement.

eames house bird by charles & ray eames for vitra

charles and ray eames augmented the interior "collage" of the eames house with numerous objects brought back from their extensive travels. the figure of a black wooden bird - evidently one of their most prized objects of american folk art - has stood in the center of their living room for over fifty years. also seen as an accessory in many of the eames' photographs, the bird figure was from the appalachian mountain region of the eastern united states. based on the original artifact and in cooperation with the eames family, vitra is now producing the first series of this figure.