One way that many retailers have attempted to stand out in today’s crowded marketplace is to arrange exclusive deals with designers. This enables the retailers to carry merchandise lines that are exclusive to them.

Thus, even the competition for designer-partners has become more intense. As reported by Elizabeth Holmes for the Wall Street Journal:

“Target Corp., a pioneer of the high-low apparel collections that periodically cause a frenzy in the fashion world, has selected its next collaborator: designer Phillip Lim. The discounter will carry Mr. Lim’s line of men’s and women’s clothing and accessories for a limited time in September. Target looks to these partnerships as a way to keep up its ‘Tar-zhay’ reputation. In recent years, other mass retailers have launched high-profile temporary lines, such as Versace for H&M and Narciso Rodriguez for Kohl’s. J.C. Penney is selling a line of special occasion dresses by Georgina Chapman of Marchesa, and Gap now has a children’s collection from Diane von Furstenberg.”

“Capsule collections, a one-time product partnership between a retail chain and a high-end designer, have become ubiquitous, and recent consumer response has been uneven. But Target is going full speed ahead. ‘We have major plans to constantly surprise,’ says Jeff Jones, chief marketing officer at Target, which has worked with more than 100 designers since 1999.”

Click the image for a video interview with Phillip Lim. 

Photo by Andrew Burton for the Wall Street Journal