Friday Focus: Celebrity Fashion Lines

Friday Focus is all about Who's that girl? getting down to business and applying our full attention to one hot topic, store, designer, fashionista etc. (we can't quite manage to apply ourselves to focusing on one issue but whatever we do focus on we will give 100% attention!)

This week we're going to be discussing 'celebrities' who cross over into fashion by launching their own fashion line and whether they ever really cross-over, how do they gain credibility and are they always open to criticism just because of their roots?

The inspiration behind this post began with the comments made about Victoria Backham being included in the role-call of British designers in the Olympic Closing Ceremony. The decision came under fire because Beckham was not deemed to be up there with the likes of Vivienne Westwood and Paul Smith. Whilst we know that these brands are well established and are icons of British fashion, we wondered whether the criticism levelled at VB was justified or was it simply because she is Victoria Beckham and people love to criticize her?

Georgia May Jagger in Victoria Beckham olympic design (Vogue)

The time defence

Victoria has been involved with fashion for a long time, designing a line for Rock & Republic way back in 2004 and in 2006 launched dVb Style - a denim collection. She launched her eponymous, and perhaps most well-known, collection in 2008, only two years after Christopher Kane established his label and yet no-one has spoken out against his inclusion in the closing ceremony. So, those that say she should not have been included as she's still 'new' to the fashion industry need to get a grip of what new means. This may help:

Question: "Are those shoes new?"
Answer: "No, they're old - I've had them about 3 weeks"

By this logic, VB's links with fashion are ancient!

The style defence

So, perhaps they were criticizing her inclusion because they don't think her clothes are good enough for Britian to be bragging about them on a world stage. Errr, wrong again!

Glamour Magazine awarded her Woman of the Year and Entrepeneur of the Year in 2007. As if that wasn't enough, she really proved her fashion expertise last year by not only being crowned Designer Brand of the Year at the British Fashion Awards but also raking in $95 million in sales - we think this speaks for itself!

So there you have it, Who's that girl? thinks Victoria Beckham totes deserved her mention in the Olympic fashion line up and has more than proved herself to be an accomplished fashion designer. We're just annoyed we can't afford to treat ourselves to her amazing dresses!

Our fave dresses from Victoria,Victoria Beckham (the "affordable" line) available at net-a-porter

Victoria isn't the only one who has done well in fashion; the Olsens have made over $1 billion with The Row and Elizabeth and James, Mischa Barton has created a successful handbag line - and affordable too and Nicole Richie's House of Harlow has established itself as a recognised brand.

However, whilst the above celebrities are all becoming better known for their clothing than anything else, some others haven't quite pulled it off. Now, we're not ones to name and shame but we're talking about you, David Hasselhoff!! Malibu Dave anyone?! I thought not.

In conclusion, it seems to be a successful celebrity designer it helps to have plenty of style yourself to begin with. If that's the case, look forward to a Who's that girl? line coming soon...