Hordes of People Are Buying Nail Polish Like There's No Tomorrow

The at-home nail business is growing. As a category, nail-care product sales grew year-on-year by 16% in 2012. Polish sales led the trend: Americans spent $768 million on nail polish in 2012, an increase of 32% over 2011. Overall cosmetics sales grew by a comparatively modest 4.3%. Theories about what’s driving this trend basically boil down to the economy — analysts say that nail polish is a relatively affordable and long-lasting cosmetic product that it’s easy to keep buying even as a woman may have to forgo more expensive items. But there has to be more to it; the same could be said for drugstore lipstick, and yet you’ll mark no 16% increase in sales of that. Let’s blame/credit nail blogs. [WWD]

Brands like Prada, Louis Vuitton, and Chanel have recently garnered some positive press for including Asian models in their spring ads. But Fashionista takes a closer look at those campaigns and concludes the issue of racial diversity in fashion is still a complicated one:

In most ads, women of color are almost exclusively featured in large groups, mainly with other white models, and there are plenty of examples from the spring 2013 campaign season of other similarly ubiquitous brands featuring multiple models without a single person of color: Balenciaga, Chloe, Givenchy, Burberry Prorsum, Dolce & Gabbana, Gucci. The list goes on.

[Fashionista]

The new issue of Love has released three covers: Edie Campbell, Kate Moss, and Cara Delevingne. Inside is lots of nudity. [Fashionista]

Lea T. talks about faith in God and being trans in this ad for the new Benetton campaign. [YouTube]

Protests have again erupted in Bangladesh near the location of the nation’s deadliest industrial incident — the November garment factory fire that claimed more than 111 lives. This time, workers are angry at Wal-Mart, which produced apparel at the firetrap factory. They say the company’s new safety policy for its suppliers does not go far enough to prevent future tragedies. Wal-Mart was aware of fire-safety violations at the garment factory for more than a year prior to the deadly fire, but continued to choose to produce clothing there. Reporting from the New York Times and elsewhere also shows that Wal-Mart has a long history of successfully opposing efforts to improve safety standards at its Bangladeshi factories before the fire. The company’s new standards for suppliers include a slightly beefed-up inspection program and a 30-day deadline for fixing safety violations. “Wal-Mart policies needs to be more transparent for the workers,” says labor lawyer Hasan Tarique Chowdhury, who argues the changes should have been made in consultation with Wal-Mart garment workers. “What workers would really like is to know how much they are paying the workers in international markets, and how much they pay in developing countries like Bangladesh. Workers are becoming more conscious of international labor markets and terms and conditions set out by [such groups as] the United Nations and the International Labor Organization.” [WWD]
The French newspaper Libération is again on the assault against Bernard Arnault, the head of the world’s largest luxury conglomerate and France’s richest man. Arnault is seeking Belgian citizenship, apparently in response to proposed changes to France’s tax laws, but has claimed that he will remain a fiscal resident of France. (Belgium, meanwhile, may not want Arnault — it’s not clear that he meets the requirements for citizenship.) Libération, in a new cover story headlined “Bernard Arnault’s Belgian Secrets,” is reporting that the luxury tycoon has relocated $8 billion of his fortune to Belgium. This is because Belgium permits certain kinds of private foundations that French law prohibits, and Arnault wants to make preparations to ensure his sheaf of luxury brands will remain together even after his death. [WWD, Telegraph]
Over in Merrie Olde England, where everything is 73% more adorable than world average, British Vogue is launching a Teen Vogue-like title called Miss Vogue. [Racked]
Breaking: Anna Dello Russo went out in public in New Balances and an anorak. [Telegraph]
Savannah Miller likes making more-affordable clothing. “I’d never make a coat for more than 200 pounds [$317],” she says. “Yes, we have to compromise on fabrics, but we get the best that we can for our price point. The most expensive piece in the collection is less than 110 quid [$174].” [WWD]
If you’ve ever dreamed of being on Vanity Fair‘s annual Best-Dressed List (kind of a weird life goal, but hey, all kinds of people share God’s green earth) now’s your chance: the magazine is launching a monthly street style competition for us regular folks. One man and one woman culled from the monthly series will get a spot on the List itself. [NYTimes]
Luxottica, the eyewear giant that owns or holds the licenses for brands including Prada, Chanel, Versace, Burberry, and Ray-Ban, appears to be the latest target of an Italian government that is getting tough on alleged tax evasion in the fashion industry. (Dolce & Gabbana are currently facing retrial on charges of tax evasion and the Marzotto family have had $83 million worth of assets seized by investigators.) Luxottica is getting audited; the company says its accounting is in line with international standards. [WWD]
One of the challenges on The Face, the upcoming reality show with Coco Rocha, Naomi Campbell, and Karolina Kurkova, has contestants compete to book a lingerie ad for Cosabella. [WWD]
Gucci is launching a perfume called Guilty Black. [WWD]