June 2006

June 28th 2006
Florence, Italy

I have just arrived back in Florence in order to check on our Fall 2006 production, and today I had quite a scare.  I always like to see each pair of shoes before it goes in the box, so I can make everything is 100% perfetto before being shipped to our lovely clients around the world.  I knew we had a shipment leaving tomorrow, so I booked my flight in order to arrive today around noon to spend the afternoon at the factory working on the assembly line. 

Usually when I arrive the factory is in a state of chaos, with sewers and cobblers running from place to place trying to get everything done on time.  Today however, when I arrived at the factory just after lunch hour, the place was as empty as a ghost town.  I began to panic, knowing that an empty shoe factory during work hours can only mean one thing: STRIKE!  Those of us that live in civilized countries aren’t used to these sorts of things, but in Italy strikes can last for weeks and entire shipments can be totally cancelled due to factory staff refusing to come to work. 

Before resorting to crying my jetlagged self to sleep on the factory floor, I decided to find someone to explain the situation.  I ran from empty room to empty room looking for anyone with an answer, when finally I found a startled receptionist sitting alone at her computer.  I said a quick prayer (which is actually very Italian) and asked her as casually as I could where everyone had gone for the day.  She informed me that they had all gone home, but offered no other explanation.  Without wanting to say the word “strike”, I gingerly inquired as to why they would all be at home and she looked at me like I was crazy.  Was there a terrorist attack, or perhaps had bird flu hit Italy, I wondered?  Finally after moments of silence she replied, as if talking to an alien, “the game… no one goes to work during the World Cup games.”  Oh.  Of course they don’t.

June 22nd 2006
Southampton, NY

I am finally getting around to giving you the full scoop on our Southampton soiree last weekend.  The party was a celebration to launch our new Cruise 2007 Collection, which won’t hit stores until next November, and was co-hosted by our favorite oh-so-chic social/fashion magazines, Quest & Q, at our most favorite furniture store on the planet, Mecox Gardens.  For those of you who live in a bubble (or not NYC), here’s the dish:

• Quest is a fabulous magazine which chronicles all of NYC’s most fantastic socialites, philanthropists, and boys & girls about town.
• Q is Quest’s little-sister publication, which is a gorgeous full-fledged fashion magazine that comes out on a quarterly basis and is coveted among the New York Social Set.
• Mecox Gardens is the most divine furniture store in the world, and also happens to be HOLLYWOULD’s next door neighbor in their Palm Beach location.
• Southampton, in case you really live on Mars, is the Manahattanite’s answer to St. Tropez in the summer, and offers beautiful beaches, fabulous people-watching, and cocktail parties galore from June to September.

Our petit partay began at cocktail hour and brought out all of Southampton’s finest, including:  Elizabeth Meigher, Whitney Smith, Annie Churchill, Stephanie LaCava, Lilly Bunn, Blair Clarke, Peter Davis, Andrew Flach, Alex Decarbalas, Euan Rellie, Cricket Burns, David & Samantha Yanks, Kristen Pisarcik, Adam Eskin, Lisa Salzer, Leslie Smith, Jordan & Shannon Eddy, Roxy & Adrien Kuzmak, awesome clean up crew Jackie Terrenbone, Melissa Berkelhammer, Christine Cachot Williams, Megan Richer, Lauren Remington Platt, Grant Quasha, Michael Winston, Michael Passaro, Lin White, Morgan White, Amanda Berlin, Anand Dharmalani, Mark Langrish, Susan Shin, Annie O'neill, David Lucido, our supermodel/intern Shelby Scudder and many more…

Thanks so much to all of our co-hosts and guests for coming to celebrate with us!

June 19th 2006
New York City

Yes, I will post party pictures and a post-party-recap of our Southampton soiree by tomorrow, but in the meantime, HOLLYWOULD is looking for two PR stars!

STAR SEARCH… HOLLYWOULD IS HIRING!

Please tell all your fashion friends, HOLLYWOULD is looking to fill 2 positions in PR as soon as possible!  Please see job descriptions below, and if you fit the criteria, please email cover letter & resume to jobs@ilovehollywould.com.  No phone calls please.  All submissions will be held in strictest confidence.  

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC RELATIONS

Responsibilities Include:

• Managing Events & Securing Sponsorships – event production including fashion show production.
• Coordinating Partnerships, Special Projects & Joint Ventures
• Print & Broadcast Media Publicity
• Personal Appearance Scheduling
• Celebrity & Social Client Liaison
• Contact Database Management
• Brand Management

Experience / Skills Needed:

• Must have two year’s experience working in fashion communications in New York City
• Must be excellent manager, have good written and speaking communications skills, be creative and resourceful, be highly organized, detail oriented, and great at multi-tasking in a fast-paced environment.
• Must be adept in MS Word, Excel and Outlook.
• Must be obsessive about popular culture, fashion, media, & celebs
• Must hold a B.A., B.S., or equivalent degree from four year college

Additional Information:

• Compensation:  Full time position with competitive salary
• Start Date:  ASAP
• Job will be based in showroom on 57^th Street in Manhattan  

Responsibilites Include:

• All press lending to fashion editors and stylists  
• Coordinating all sample traffic and managing press lending records
• Working with celebrity publicists and stylists for red carpet events
• Product placement with TV and movie stylists
• Organizing and updating press books
• Packing and shipping of samples for trunk shows, trade shows, & photography
• Assist in production of all special events

Experience / Skills Needed:

• One year on the job experience or equivalent intern experience in fashion or PR
• Must be resourceful, highly organized, detail oriented, and great at multi-tasking
• Adept with MS Word, Excel and Outlook. Experience with inventory systems a plus.
• Knowledgeable with current media including magazines, television, movies & music
• Must be a college graduate. 

Additional Information:

• Compensation:  Full time position with entry level salary.
• Start Date:  July 10^th, 2006.
• Job will be based in showroom on 57^th Street in Manhattan.

HOLLYWOULD is an equal opportunity employer.

June 13th 2006
NYC meets Florence

Hopefully you’ve all received your invitation to HOLLYWOULD’s big soiree this weekend in Southampton.  The event is sure to be trés fun, and with our co-host as Quest & Q Magazine, it is also sure to be trés chic.  If you haven’t yet received your invitation, it’s high time you registered online as a HOLLYWOULD VIP!

Next week I head back to Florence, where it seems like everyone in the world is headed this summer.  I’ve gotten email after email from people wanting to know where to go and what to do, so I’ve decided to give you all the full scoop in case you plan to jet-set to Tuscany this summer:

HOLLY’S FLORENCE HOT SPOTS

FOOD/DRINK

• Breakfast:  “Café Giacosa” (also known as the Cavalli Café) makes the best cappuccino in Florence.  Right off Via Tornabuoni.
• Weekend Brunch:  “Hotel JK” (also good for cocktails) on Piazza Santa Maria Novella.
• Lunch:  “Osteria Santo Spirito” on Piazza Santo Spirito
• Wine/Snack:  “Verazzano” for cheese, wine, and foccaccia
• Tea:  “Hotel Lungarno” lobby
• Pre-Dinner Cocktails:  Roof of the “Hotel Continentale”
• Dinner:  “Quattro Leoni” on Piazza Quattro Leoni – the fiocchetti pasta is amazing!  Or… “Il Parione” on Via Parione – must have their cheesecake for desert.
• Post-dinner drinks:  Harry’s Bar, bellini mandatory.

SHOPPING

• “Flair” home store on Lungarno Guiarcciardini
• “Gerard” for edgier stuff like Balenciaga
• “Luisa Via Roma” is Florence’s “Colette”
• “Patrizia Pepe” is Florence’s BCBG (but cooler)
• “Farmacia Santa Maria Novella”, amazing monastery-turned-pharmacy.
• “The Mall” – all of the outlets including Pucci, Valentino, Gucci, Tods, McQueen, Loro Piana, etc, etc, etc.  Is about 30 min south of Florence off A1 autostrada going to Rome.  Exit is “Incisa” and there are signs from there.
• Weekend markets in Piazza Santo Spirito are also always good.

IN TOWN HIKES

• Piazza Michelangelo and the Florence Rose Gardens (only open May-July)

NEARBY JAUNTS 

• Beach = Forte dei Marmi (like Hamptons)
• Chic Town = Lucca (best non-touristy town in Tuscany)

June 8th 2006
New York City

Good morning ladies!  Here in NYC it’s been raining non-stop all week long, but that hasn’t stopped anyone from attending back-to-back parties every night this week.  I, for one, am exceedingly hungover after last night’s events, which included a fabulous garden party hosted by our favorite zigzag dress makers, Missoni, and then a way-too-late night at our favorite dance club, Marquee.  My partner in crime for the evening was Albane de Corbiac, who happened to be visiting from HOLLYWOULD’s Italy office.  This morning my camera was filled with photos of the new “friends” we made on the dancefloor, most of whom I hope remember our dance moves as vaguely as I do.

Monday night was also loads of fun, with a CFDA party hosted by Swarovski.  The girls at Swarovski always know how to throw a star studded event, and we all had a fabulous time sipping cocktails while cheering on our favorite CFDA nominated designers.  I did a poor job of taking pictures both nights, so you will see more than a few photos (right) courtesy of photography stars Hanuk (http://www.hanuk.com/) and Kate Schelter (http://www.kateschelter.com/).

In other news we have a new HOLLYWOULD Customer of the Month, Jean Siri, who is pictured (right) wearing her red ‘Rachel’ shoes at her graduation from the Medical College of Virginia.  For being such a fabulous HOLLYWOULD girl, Jean wins a $100 gift certificate to use online or at our Nolita or Palm Beach shops!  Congratulations Jean! 

If you think you’ve got what it takes to be a HOLLYWOULD Customer of the Month, apply now!  Email shop@ilovehollywould.com a photo of you wearing your favorite HOLLYWOULD and tell us why you love it!  Be sure to title your email “CUSTOMER OF THE MONTH”.