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I was just cruising the net yesterday and I found the portfolio of Scharad L. Scharad is a professional photographer according to the profile. I have to say, he has some of the best photography I have seen it terms of people, creativity, vivid colors and diversity all fused together. I enjoy looking at good photography, and I was impressed with the array of photos on the site DipLight Media. I first found his MySpace page somehow, when I was clicking links through the site. Take sometime that you can spare, navigate through the DipLight portfolio and take in the amazing photography.

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I was doing some more research and found pix of this LG KE850 phone. It looks just like the Prada phone, but re-skinned. So it is most likely the case that the Prada phone is for real.

Since we are still on the topic of these phones, Engadget has a good post regarding the uncanny resemblence betweem the LG KE850 and the Apple iPhone. More pics below….

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There is some sort of speculation going on about this new Prada phone by LG. I am not too sure how true this is, but I’ll admit the phone looks quite sleek. But it also looks very much like the Apple iPhone. Time will tell.

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I was watching a TV program the other day where the host went to South Africa and visited the Young Designer’s Emporium (YDE) in South Africa. The YDE is a concept that allows young designers to showcase their work: clothing, jewelery, shoes etc. It is a collection of stores in which, each designer has their own space with their brand. The concept is really something to admire, and it was pioneered by Paul Simon. Here is some more details from the Ernst & Yonge - 2001 World Entrepreneur Award profiles:

Paul Simon has been pioneering a new concept since 1994 - forming a collection of aspirant South African designers, which provides cutting-edge fashion and lifestyle products at affordable prices. With over 80 designers and suppliers, including over 50 clothing designers, each have a rail or space which, in addition to carrying merchandise, is branded according to the fashion label. For this reason, Young Designer’s Emporium cannot be called a chain store, despite there being 8 stores in South Africa and one in Dubai.

Young Designer’s Emporium’s “store-within-a-store” approach allows talented young designers to rent space in A-grade shopping centres at prices they can afford. It brings together competitive clothing, as well as related products such as shoes, handbags and jewellery aimed at the target market aged 16-35. Furthermore, it allows designers to concentrate on what they’re good at, designing and manufacturing.

Young Designer’s Emporium handles all the administration, from training the staff, expansion of stores and lease negotiation to store design and display, marketing and marketing materials, stock reports, promotions. It also acts as a constant sounding board to what the market wants from the fashion industry.

Another thing I’m curious to know is, who designed the logo? The logo is simple, clean, sharp and catchy…yet very very cool! We need something like this in Canada. In fact, we need something like this in every country. This is a really good way to empower our young ones and nurture their talent. I wish I had the full video of the YDE segment, the retail space for the designers were so trendy and upscale looking. I’m surprised Paul started this concept in 1994, and it hasn’t caught on else where. Maybe I should start mine!

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I found this FAQ link yesterday that gives answers to some common questions on how to start your own clothing line. I know people who have ventured into their own clothing business, including myself….but it’s quite hard knowing where to begin, what is priority and how to handle certain issues. The article has some really good insight to questions like business license, and online vs in store business:

Do I need a business license? Your business is only as serious as it looks. If u sell your shirts out the back of your car it will most likely look like a brand u sell out the back of your car! So I would say apply for one its not hard or very expensive. It would bring a certain level of professionalism too your business and make stores take your brand seriously. Yes get a business license if u want to be taken seriously.

Should I go for Online vs. Store accounts first? That really depends on what kind of presence you are trying to build in the Street wear Arena. Online stores can give u a lot of exposure consumer wise on a larger scale but I think actual store fronts build the foundation for a line and gives u a chance to build a relationship with a store buyer and get direct feedback from the demographic that the store sells too. It also gives the consumer a firsthand look at your brand rather than just a picture and a description.

I posted this for anyone looking for some insight from another source. Extra knowledge is never useless, you might learn something new!

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