Rebranding Project for Halston

ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY

Rebranding Project by Gabriela Alejandra Salinas Creative Direction Master Polimoda

Table of Contents

Brand Concept -6History of Halston -8Mision/Vision -11Mantra -12Values -14Halston in the 70’s -16Halston today -26Gap Analysis -31Competitors -32Brand Positioning -34SWOT -36Proll Professionals -40Goals -50Moodboard -54-

Prints -56Color Palette -60Fabrics -62Line up -64Store -66Distribution Plan -70Packaging -74Community -76USP -78USP -72Installation -80Social Media -88Advertisement -90References -97-

Main Brand Concept

Halston is more than an American Luxury brand. Halston is all about glamour, splurge and freedom. Its identity is tied up with the 70’s, when the idea of liberation of women’s body from the 60’s was more spread across society.

He created clothes cut on the bias, simple, comfortable and outstanding.

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Keep it simple by day and simply extravagant and glammourous by night.

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Short Reflection

of the Halston History

Roy Halston Frowick was the creator of the brand, well know by his groundbreaking designs, one piece patterns and his iconic American style.

He started as a milliner, and later in 1966 expanded the HALSTON label to womenswear. He reinvent the jumpsuit concept and transformed the theory of how people should life and dress (comfortable but elegant at all time) leaving an undenaible mark on fashion.

He was “the premier celebrity fashion designer in America” his iconic designs became synonymous with the 1970s and the glamourous era of Studio 54. His strong connection to pop culture was evident by his friends and clients, which included Andy Warhol, Bianca Jagger, Elizabeth Taylor, Anjelica Huston, Liza Minelli, and his famed model entourage, the Halstonettes.

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Roy Halston was the brand itself, he was the soul of the label.

His lifestyle, friends and behaviour became really tied up with the image of HALSTON. Since he lost the control of the brand and died, many tried to revive the brand unsuccessfully.

Over the years the label lost its path and its place in the high fashion radar.

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MISSION Our mission is to encourage women to live the dream that is fashion while wearing HALSTON. Offering designs that make them feel comfortable, exude confidence and stand out wherever they go.

VISION Our VisiOn is to become the most iconic American brand for nightlife, being the first choice not just in the United States but also around the world.

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“Simple by day, simply extravagant by night”

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MANTRA

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VALUES

CONFIDENT JOYFUL FREEDOM SNAPPY

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How was Halston in the 70’s?

Where is the brand now?

What are their products?

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Halston in the

70’s

ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON

Halston was considered the Great Gatsby of fashion, he created clothes from one piece of fabric and cut on the bias that framed the body. He believed that clothes were meant to free the body instead of being caged into a corset. He took away the cage and the constricting elements of clothes. He was always betting for comfortable and statement clothes.

He is being always associated with the glamour and nightlife of Studio 54.

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Halston success was followed by a huge fall. First he sold the label in 1973 to Norton Simon. In 1983, he signed up with JC Penney, this devalued his high-class, and Bergdorf Goodman stopped ordering.

After struggling with addiction issues he lost control of his brand, then he got AIDs and died. That is how the eminent fall started.

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ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON

The HALSTON shapes Halston used to reduce his patterns to the least common denominators.

Using just one piece pattern to do a whole new garment, for him, less definitely becomes more at the moment of creating clothes.

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Sometimes you could go to his house and see a white dress with a knot on the front and a recreation of its pattern hanging on a wall as if it were a painting.

He redesigned the idea of pattern making and created his own rules.

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The HALSTON of today

Now a days the brand has no impact in the fashion radar and hast lost the DNA in their garment designs.

It looks completely different from what Halston used to be.

Last Halston appearance in a runway was in 2011 and Halston Heritage in 2018; since then they have being developing basic products out of a collection and with no storytelling.

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Social Media Communication There is not a strong engagement with the consumer through the social media platforms, almost not interactions and a disorganized feed on their Instagram page.

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Lack of communication, inconsistency in social media.

Continuous use of old editorials and poor creation of new relevant content.

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Gap Analysis

Founded in the 70s, HALSTON is a label that always used to stand up for its innovation and ferocity, people wearing Halston were extroverts, the “A list” of New York. Was a brand with a strong connection with a luxurious and fun lifestyle.

Sadly, nowadays the DNA of HALSTON has nothing to do with the image it projects. The strong design codes have been lost, and now the designs are completely disconnected to the DNA, causing misleading idea of the brand identity. There is not coherence between what the brand is and what it projects to the public.

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Competitors

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Brand Positioning The 3 main positions I spotted from Halston are: First: During the 70’s; when Halston was at the peak and used to create clothes for the A-list at Studio 54, having always a modern and minimal glamour.

Second: Where Halston is today; the clothes are super minimalistic and they look more like basic garments, there are not new innovations.

Third: Where I wanna take the label after the rebranding , being a bit on the avantgarde side and into the luxury segment.

It will be like taking the best traits of all the positionings and applying them into the new one to create a stronger direction.

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Affordable

Commercial

Avant Garde 2 3 1

Luxury -35-

SWOT

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Strengths -Strong brand identity and history.

-Financial backing from Xcel Brands Inc, to maximize its scope of opportunities, embrace the brand heritage and strengthen Halston identity.

-Aesthetic timeless, comfortable and flattering for all body types.

-Recently acquire completely for the Xcel Brands Inc, so the label its unifying under one owner.

Weaknesses

-Not strong leadership in the last 40 years, too many changes in creative directors.

-Last Halston line created in 2011, last Halston Heritage runway in 2018; causing disconnection with the brand.

-Too many lines (Halston, Halston Heritage, Halston limited, Halston III, Halston IV) -Ownership by investment groups with low knowledge about the brand history and fashion system.

-Many of the original consumers have been lost and are not updated about the brand.

-The brand nowadays has completely different image, disconnected from the roots.

-Low awareness of the brand globally.

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Opportunities -More people are investing in luxury items.

-Consciousness buying is on rise.

-Higher recognition for American brands in the States.

-Experiencing a brand and feeling part of a fashion community is a trend.

Threats -There a lot of competitor brands on the same line with more engagement.

-There are a lot of new emerging designers and competitors well established in the market.

-One of the main selling points of Halston was based on the leadership Roy Halston itself, so it may be difficult to regain a strong reputation has the one he used to project.

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Proll-Professionals

Joy of material luxury, cleverness, fun of trivial pleasures, self control, comfortable with clichés Combined with cleverness and high motivation.

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ALL PRETTY GIRL IN HALSTON ALL P GIRLS ARE IN HA ALL PRETTY GIRL IN HALSTON ALL P GIRLS ARE IN HA

The term Proll Professionals is not meant in a degratory way: it describes the urge of sel-expression and fun of trivial pleasures with a lot of self control. Just Professional.

Money is so important to the pros because it provides access to fun, pleasures and recognition. They prefer to rather make a good life with their money than save it. In return they are prepare to work hard.

A down to earth attitude with a penchant of luxury is joined by a well-assorted world view.

Gender stereotypes are cultivated and aesthetically staged by the professionals.

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ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON

Old Status,

Newly packed

LS ARE PRETTY ALSTON LS ARE PRETTY ALSTON

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New For Proll-professionals

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Halston DNA used to be highly linked to the elegance and a luxury lifestyle aesthetic.

To attract this target group Halston would have to change their designs, communication approach and offer a product more bold, luxurious and joyful in order to please the customer needs.

Work about the storytelling of the brand and offer a product provocative.

Offer the clients a piece of clothes in which they will stand out and be the center of attention.

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Ideal Character

The HALSTON ideal character is an empowered woman, she knows who she is and what she wants.

She’s a successful person, very self confident and extrovert. She is an it girl and everybody look up to her, she is not afraid of being the center of attention; she enjoys it.

She enjoys luxury, going out, dancing and being the more exclusive events and parties. She has a busy social life and love spoiling herself .

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From the Background -48-

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to the Goals

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Take the brand back to the fashion radar and improve their perception and consistency.

Revive Halston with the same spark, power and glamour it used to have in the 70’s. Take a look back to the roots and DNA of HALSTON. Create a big impact in New York fashion and the fashion industry globally.

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“Fashion is art, not a formula. Its is just about intuition and having fun.” -Roy Halstton

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Brand DNA

VIBRANCY ELEGANCE FUN SMART PATTERNS

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Print Design

The inspiration for the printing is the contemporary artists Hristina Ivanoska and Yane Calovski. The printed of the collection is based in a Warhol quote dedicated to Halston, “All Pretty Girls are in Halston”. It consists of different layers of this quote and some organic shapes overlapping.

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The print will be done with a big fond and is gonna fuse with the color of the fabric, being merged in a discrete way; being almost abstract.

The print will be used for the collection S/S 2022 for the linen, trim details, accessories and some of the garments.

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Color Palette

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The Fabrics

Sequins Jersey with sequins Jersey shinny Silk Taffetan Silk

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HALSTON...

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...SPRING/SUMMER 2022 -65-

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The HALSTON Store The Halston Store will be a modern and minimalistic space, inspired by the Halston House and it design.

The aim of keeping it simple is to make the clothes stand out.

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On the other side one of the peculiarities of the store is that it will have a lounge and a bar area where the client can relax or be attended in a more personal way. The idea is to offer a space of meeting where people can go to see the store, clothes and also have the possibility to stay for a while and grab a drink or coffee.

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Distribution Plan

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The first step of the distribution plan is launch the store in New York, as this is the main city of the Halston roots and its origin.

It is not possible to imagine Halston without New York.

First Step -71-

Two years later, after it’s success among the Americna community and gaining recognition worldwide, HALSTON will start opening stores in the main fashion capitals.

This list include: Paris, Milano, London, Shangai and Tokyo.

Second Step -72-

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Packaging

NEW YORK

NEW YORK

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Building a Community HALSTON has always beien well known for his inner circle of gorgeous and powerful women dressing his designs, “the Halstonettes”.

They were unconsciously the first brand ambassadors of the label, advertising his brand in a natural way instead of a billboard.

The Halstonettes did more than reflect the designer’s clothing style, they mirrored his selfimage: young, beautiful, glamorous, haughty, vibrant, and photogenic. Every woman wanted to be part of that circle, wearing Halston was a sign of status,power, recognition.

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Now, wearing Halston is more than acquiring luxury clothing, it is about becoming part of the community.

Being part of the exclusive HALSTONETTES community.

the new HALSTONETTES -77-

Unique Selling Proposal

Being part of the Halston brand is a whole package. Halston is not just about clothes it is also about the experience.

That is the reason why when buying a Halston project the client will acquire a scan code to be part of the Halstonettes community.

This code will give you access to premium events in the main Fashion Capitals and also a map with the hot spots in the city.

Looking for an excuse to dress up?

Well, here you have one...

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to dress r a excuse Looking fo

Looking for

an excuse to

up?

dress up?

Looking for an excuse to dress up?

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HALSTON takes back New York

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The main idea to take HALSTON back in the fashion radar is make a huge appearance to the public.

In this occasion Halston will take back New York through an installation place in no other place than the skyscrapers of New York.

Using billboards placed in key points of the city and mapping in the most iconic skyscrapers of New York, Halston will project images from their performative runway in live.

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The plan is to start with a screenshot film of the city, empty streets, New York city is empty without life. Suddenly the Halston fashion show starts as a performance and fill the streets with music, movement and fun. Breaks the silence of the streets.

Halston brings the rebirth of New York.

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The main angles of the videos will be: first the models walking and dancing as they are on their way to the “after party”, the people around and their reactions, some shoots of a fashion video from the new collection.

The runway will start at studio 54, then the models will walk as a performance of an after party throughtout the New York Streets till they arrive to the Halston House, where a private launching event will be happening with the guests already waiting for them.

The main points for the projections will be: The Financial District Hudson Yard Billionaires’ Row Tribeca The Empire State

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ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE IN HALSTON ALL PRETTY GIRLS ARE

ALL PR ARE IN ALL PR ARE IN ALL PR

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RETTY GIRLS N HALSTON RETTY GIRLS N HALSTON RETTY GIRLS

During the runway the main aesthetic will be an after party look.

The models will perform as they just got out from a party, and the makeup will be a little messy.

While they walk in the streets, they will just have fun and be loud, generating that way interaction with the environment.

The idea is to connect with the mood of contradiction, a never ending party.

Bring to New York the party that is not possible becuase of the current COVID situation, just like in a dream.

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Social Media All the pictures generating visual noise and from all collections will be deleted. The first big launching event is going to be the street runway that is gonna be transmitted on live.

HALSTON social media will start generating content and doing more story telling and videos. In those videos there will be small stories related to the vibrant mindset of the brand, making of the dresses and exclusive events where the brand is gonna be invited.

In order to become the new it brand of NYC, HALSTON will be coherent with the feed and engage the community through the stories and posts.

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On Instagram

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Advertisement Campaign

“There is not need of a party to dress up” After the pandemic and all the isolation months, there is an extra need to socialize, reconnect with people. Sadly, even today is not possible to do that in a complete way. There are always restrictions.

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The idea of the HALSTON advertisement campaign is to take the brand back to its roots The idea for the advertisement campaign is creating an installation in the Halston House with different Instagrammables places, where people can go in small groups of maximum 3 at the time to have a good time, take pictures and dance to the rhythm of some 70’s-80’s classics mix with contemporary songs.

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The idea is to give the customer the possibility to dress up and join the party once again.

The irony is that in this case the whole installation is inside the HALSTON house and the mood is homely instead of being in a nightclub. The idea is to have fun inside the HALSTON house; as well as publicity through the costumers posts in social media and give them at the same time the opportunity to buy some clothes from the last collection in the pop-up store that will be inside.

“There is not need of a party to have fun, it is all about wearing HALSTON.”

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-Franzen-Sheehan, A., Frowick, L., Huxley, G., Labalme, C., Steele, V. and Chambers, N., n.d. Halston & Warhol -Bluttal, S. (2011). Halston (Illustrated ed.). Phaidon Press.

-Frowick, L., n.d. Halston.

-Frowick, L., & Minnelli, L. (2014). Halston: Inventing American Fashion. Rizzoli.

-Gross, E., & Rottman, F. (1999). Halston: An American Original -HALSTON. (n.d.). Halston - About. https://halston.com/pages/ halston-about (First Edition). Harpercollins.

-B. (2020, October 6). Halston. Biography. https://www.biography. com/fashion-designer/halston -Nast, C. (n.d.). Halston News, Collections, Fashion Shows, Fashion Week Reviews, and More. Vogue. https://www.vogue.com/fashionshows/designer/halston -Nast, C. (n.d.-a). Halston Heritage News, Collections, Fashion Shows, Fashion Week Reviews, and More. Vogue. https://www. vogue.com/fashion-shows/designer/halston-heritage

References -97-

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