Is William Rast the real deal?

| Posted Oct 25th 2006 7:33PM by Elise Carter
Filed under: On the catwalk, Style icons, Jeans and Denim, Men, Designers

At first glance, the world of clothing design doesn't seem so different from the world of music production. Both require an artist's mind, rely heavily upon image, and have to be creative in order to compete. It makes sense, then, that so many songbirds have attempted the jump from musical artist to designer extraordinarie.

The problem with this trend, however, is that image alone can't sell a clothing line. Most of us have had the experience of coveting a fabulous dress, finding the one store in our tri-state area that carries the dress, trying the dress on, and wanting to pull our hair out in frustration because IT DOESN'T FIT! See, image isn't everything, and consumers aren't the only ones voicing their disappointment.

Frank Doroff, a senior executive vice president at Bloomingdale's recently chimed in on the issue. "We have departments for clothes, not celebrities," said Doroff. "Quite a few of the (celebrity) lines we feel are not appropriate for Bloomingdale's, or that they really don't sell." I feel for Mr. Doroff there. There's nothing worse than having a clothing line in your store that looks great on the hanger, is advertised out the wazoo, and fails miserably in the dressing room.

Justin Timberlake, another singer turned designer, is trying to avoid a similar fate with his clothing line, William Rast. Although Timberlake and his childhood friend, Trace Ayala, have been producing the William Rast clothing line for a little over a year now, last week marks the first time Timberlake has become actively involved in advertising, as the line presented for the first time at LA Fashion Week.

"I don't want to look like a celebrity who is cashing in on celebrity," Timberlake said. "That's my fear."

The William Rast show featured short denim skirts, ultra-skinny men's jeans with mid-calf cuffs, and (what else!) rock-star inspired T-shirts.

You can buy William Rast merchandise at Revolve Clothing.

Tags: Bloomingdale's, celebrity designers, designer, jeans, Justin Timberlake, JustinTimberlake, LA Fashion Week, premium denim, Trace Ayala, William Rast