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We Love Justin, Not His Jeans
For celeb designers like Timberlake, recession means hard times for fashion lines
By Evann Gastaldo
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Posted Sep 16, 09 12:53 PM CDT
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(Newser)
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The latest casualty of the economic crisis: celebrity clothing lines. “Every D-level celebrity who thought they could make a quick buck by designing a handbag or whatever is going to disappear,” Vogue editor Anna Wintour tells the Wall Street Journal. “And I think that's a good thing.” Wannabe-designers including Jennifer Lopez, Lauren Conrad, Heidi Montag, and Nicky Hilton have had to call it quits on their collections due to disappointing sales.
Even Justin Timberlake—mobbed by hundreds of girls in NYC while promoting his fashion line, William Rast—is struggling. “Being a celebrity gets your foot in the door, but once you are there, people go, ‘OK, now what?’” he says. A big name isn’t enough: brands must be “on trend,” says a Saks exec, citing Gwen Stefani’s L.A.M.B. line—one of the few Saks carries—as an example.