Asos goes global

INTERNATIONAL shoppers discovering internet retailer Asos are helping it combat a UK sales slowdown caused by the Royal Mail strikes and youth unemployment.

Read Full Story

Have Your Shout

Burberry blues

TOURISTS flocking to London to buy its handbags and scarves have failed to prevent profits slumping at Burberry.

Read Full Story

Have Your Shout

Get posting in the Star Forums!

You can join the debate and post your own views in the lively Daily Star Forums!

TOPSHOP'S KANE RANGE STEALS THE SHOW

ABOVE: Kane's crocodile print flew off the shelves

ABOVE: The designer mixed edgy style with pastel hues

ABOVE: Hundreds of shoppers queued to get their hands on the line

It’s quite a special collection in the sense that it’s very much for the fashion follower

Andrew Leahy, of Topshop

ABOVE: Eyelets, studs, mesh and lace were key in the collection

ABOVE: Christopher Kane stole the attention from London Fashion Week

18th September 2009

By Nicola McCafferty for dailystar.co.uk

Your Shout ( 0 )

TOPSHOP stole the limelight from the start of London Fashion Week today, as hundreds of shoppers flocked to stores to get their hands on the Christopher Kane collection.

More than 100 fashionistas queued outside the flagship store on London's Oxford Street this morning, as the high street giant launched a 39-piece range from the British designer-of-the-moment.

The latest collection, which is Kane's third collaboration with Topshop, is packed with his typical edge; fierce, outlandish, unique and in this case, complete with studs, tassels - and our personal favourite - crocodiles.

Combining innocent babydolls and gem busted-cup dresses with mesh platforms and rocker bodycon minis, Kane's latest landing packs a punch as well as giving a nod to the feel of fashion at the moment - punk-meets-80s rocker.

That crocodile print - which comes in both a t-shirt, £45 and a dress, £60 - harks back to the infamous gorilla print from his spring '09 ready-to-wear collection and provides some fun, catty chic that is not for the faint-hearted.

Glam partywear is evident in the black mesh mini-dress, £125, covered in studs and mirrored circles and the eyelet lace dress, £150 - with an 80s-inspired lace skirt and a cut-out t-shirt top that screams Madonna's Material Girl.

Kane strips down the harsh, monochromatic theme of the collection for his wider audience; offering his mesh mini-dress in a sickly-sweet pink and a yellow t-shirt dress with cute lace panels.

And it hasn't all been designed for a night out on the tiles either - laid-back and casual clothing comes in the form of hoodies, darkwash denim jackets, jeans and joggers, all featuring a flash of eyelet-studding.

Funky embellished pants will almost certainly feature on Lady GaGa's must-have list and party girls will love the gem corsets, edgy cycling shorts and rivet sandals.

The launch - which is a sure-fire sell-out - saw shoppers from around the country and beyond come beckoning.

One shopper, Parisian stylist Kristina Gisors, 28, queued from 7.30am for the alligator's jaw tee.

The stylist, who was in the capital for London Fashion Week, said: “For me this is the signature design. I love this kind of look, this style.

“It’s big and it’s flash. I love the cut of Christopher Kane clothes.”

Jordanne Young, 22, from Essex, who works in PR, favoured the neon dresses but said she was “not adventurous enough” to wear them.

She said: “I just love Christopher Kane designs. They’re simple but with embellishments.

“I think it’s really cool when designers do collections for Topshop because it makes it affordable.”

The collection went on sale online at 6am and at 9am at 39 stores around the country.

Andrew Leahy, of Topshop, said: “It’s quite a special collection in the sense that it’s very much for the fashion follower.”

And the collection is bound to please both shoppers and the mega-brand - providing a much-needed boost for retail sales after the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported the high-street mini revival fizzled out between July and August.

Despite Scottish-born Kane's success today at Topshop, London Fashion Week is set to steal the limelight back next week when his ready-to-wear collection hits the catwalk on Monday.

Today Dublin-born Paul Costello was the first to show his collection for Spring/Summer 2010 at the exhibition, which spans two venues.

However the hugely-anticipated date on the fashion calendar was once again marred at its opening, with critics slamming the show for promoting "underweight women."

Professor Schmidt said: “We are very concerned that the lack of medical checks for models at London Fashion Week, coupled with working in an environment where being underweight is considered the norm, prevents models with eating disorders from gaining insight into their condition.”