Fashion
US’ VF Corp sells Dickies brand to Bluestar Alliance for $600 mn
Dickies is an iconic American heritage brand that sits at the intersection of workwear and streetwear, with distribution in 55 countries. For over a century, it has been a cultural staple, known for its durability, authenticity, and global influence. Balancing utility and style, Dickies continues to resonate across generations, geographies, and subcultures.
VF Corporation has agreed to sell its Dickies brand to Bluestar Alliance for $600 million in cash.
The iconic workwear label, with distribution in 55 countries, will benefit from Bluestar’s consumer insights and operational expertise.
VF CEO Bracken Darrell said the deal will reduce net debt and support portfolio growth while thanking the Dickies team for their efforts.
“Since 1922, Dickies has provided hard-wearing, long-lasting and comfortable clothes, cementing its status as a storied brand in performance workwear. We have followed the brand for many years and have a deep appreciation for its history and legacy, which VF Corporation has successfully begun to rebuild over the past few years,” said Joseph Gabbay, CEO, Bluestar Alliance. “We are committed to supporting the Dickies brand’s growth by leveraging our consumer insights and operational excellence to unlock its full value for all stakeholders.”
VF’s President and Chief Executive Officer, Bracken Darrell, said, “Dickies is an iconic American workwear brand with a bright future, and I am confident that under Bluestar Alliance’s ownership, it will continue to improve and realize its significant growth potential.” Darrell continued, “As I’ve said before, we continuously evaluate our portfolio and this transaction will enable us to bring our net debt level down and will be accretive to our growth on a pro-forma basis. I want to thank the entire Dickies team for their strong commitment to transforming the brand.”
The transaction is expected to close by the end of CY2025, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals.
Note: The headline, insights, and image of this press release may have been refined by the Fibre2Fashion staff; the rest of the content remains unchanged.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (RM)
Both met during Carney’s first visit to Mexico City as Canada’s Prime Minister.
“North America is the economic envy of the world, is the most competitive economic region of the world, and part of the reason for that is the cooperation between Canada and Mexico,” Carney said in a press conference following the meeting. “We complement the United States. We make them stronger. We are all stronger together,” he said.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney yesterday promised to strengthen trade ties amid US tariff threats and pushed to keep the US-Mexico-Canada trade pact (USMCA) alive in the lead-up to 2026 review talks.
Both want to raise bilateral trade through USMCA through maritime routes, avoiding passage of goods through the US, Sheinbaum said.
Over three-fourths of Canada’s exports and more than four-fifths of Mexico’s are to the United States.
Carney said he expects “much greater amounts of trade, much greater amounts of investment” between Mexico and Canada, while Sheinbaum said the two countries had agreed to a plan that what would “bring a new era of further strengthening economic ties” between the two sides.
Both want to raise bilateral trade through the free trade agreement through maritime routes, avoiding passage of goods through the United States, Sheinbaum said.
Carney aims to improve ties with Mexico during his two-day visit. The two leaders promised new rounds of bilateral meetings in the next few months, and greater collaboration on security issues, agriculture, energy, finance, health and environment, according to media reports.
Sheinbaum said the countries are already setting up teams and reviewing the agreement with the hopes of keeping trilateral free trade in place.
“USMCA is a testament to if Mexico, Canada and the United States work together, we can create prosperity, face global challenges successfully and position ourselves as the most dynamic region in the world,” Sheinbaum added.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
The slowdown in annual inflation was mainly driven by regulated energy products (+12.9 per cent vs +17.1 per cent in July), non-regulated energy (-6.3 per cent vs -5.2 per cent), communication services (+0.2 per cent vs +0.5 per cent), and processed food including alcohol (+2.7 per cent vs +2.8 per cent), Istat said in a press release.
Conversely, prices accelerated for unprocessed food (+5.6 per cent), recreation and personal care services (+3.0 per cent), and transport services (+3.5 per cent). Core inflation rose to 2.1 per cent from 2.0 per cent, while inflation excluding energy increased to 2.3 per cent from 2.2 per cent.
Italy’s consumer price index is estimated to have risen by 0.1 per cent in August 2025 from July and 1.6 per cent YoY, slightly down from 1.7 per cent.
The slowdown was driven by weaker energy, communication, and processed food prices, while unprocessed food, recreation, and transport accelerated.
Core inflation edged to 2.1 per cent.
The HICP fell 0.2 per cent monthly but rose 1.6 per cent annually.
On an annual basis, goods prices grew 0.6 per cent, slower than July’s 0.8 per cent, while services rose 2.7 per cent, widening the inflation gap to 2.1 percentage points.
Monthly price increases were led by transport services (+2.1 per cent), processed food (+0.5 per cent), and recreation services (+0.4 per cent), partly offset by declines in non-regulated energy (-2.1 per cent) and regulated energy (-0.3 per cent).
The harmonised index of consumer prices (HICP) fell 0.2 per cent month-on-month (MoM), due to summer sales excluded from the NIC, but rose 1.6 per cent YoY, below the flash estimate of 1.7 per cent.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (SG)
Published
September 21, 2025
London Fashion Week went hyper experimental this Sunday, with surrealist couture from Erdem, disgruntled debutantes at Simone Rocha, conceptual picnics Kent & Curwen, and full-on ergonomic sporty chic at Johanna Parv.
Erdem: Surrealist chic
No designer can boast of more unlikely muses than Erdem Moralioglu, whose wellspring this season was a wantonly obscure surrealist artist named Hélène Smith.
Though that very obscurity helped inspire another great collection from Erdem. Bloomsbury couture at its best.
Catherine-Elise Muller, know artistically as Hélène Smith, was the dubbed the “muse of automatic writing” by the early Surrealists over a century ago. Copies of those texts were embroidered on lace chess piece sheaths densely embroidered with fabric petals and flowers, or on superb starch tulle corset cocktail or moulded bustier dresses.
Smith’s other claim to fame was her belief that she was a medium, able to communicate with the deceased Victor Hugo or Cagliostro. She also believed that through trances she had voyaged to the court of Versailles, Rajasthan and even Mars.
The Versailles cycle represented by high lace-collared gowns and shirts or structured paniers riffing on Marie Antoinette. While her imagined sojourn in India mangled with her space trip in neon crushed embroidered linen sculpted dresses, worn on the cast marching in courtesan ribboned shoes.
A selection of mannish blazers and striped double-breasted jackets were in turn inspired by psychologist Théodore Flournoy, who published a book on her voyages entitled, “From India to the Planet Mars”.
Smith ended up dying in complete obscurity, but this Sunday in a magnificent show under the columns of the British Museum she galvanized a moment of fashion glory.
Simone Rocha: Disgruntled debutantes
The afternoon led us to the Mansion House in the City of London, an apt location for the theme of Rocha’s highly experimental – even by her standards – collection.
A long show – by London standards – of 52 looks, most of whom jumbled up epochs and eras in an occasionally disconcerting, though oft times, beautiful manner.
For next spring, Rocha loves sateen georgette, floral jacquards and silk organzas, cutting them into crinolines, Venetian tailcoats or hoop skirts. Before promptly covering many of these very looks in transparent plastic coats and trenches, finished in confetti prints.
“Disgruntled debutantes… A young woman forced to wear her mother’s clothes,” was the Irish designer’s definition of this spring/summer 2026 collection.
That was apparent in the opening looks: a refined organza crinoline embroidered with tiny flowers, combined rebelliously with a silver sequin bra with black lace trim. Then followed up by an oversized trapeze dress over which was plastered too huge fabric flowers.
“I really wanted to push a button when it came to my fundamental codes,” added Simone, referencing the crinolines exposed through semi sheer organza. Before adding a soupçon of perversity by covering many dresses with mini corsets.
Revealing that when it came to her own mother’s wardrobe, Simone would wear her skirts as dresses pulled up high, the better to expose shoes. A vital part of Simone Rocha’s business, which this season featured platforms with Georgian moulding or Perspex escarpins.
Her women’s clothes were deliberately not too ladylike, with lots of exposed underwear. But her menswear was positively foppish: scarlet red jacquard cloaks worn with trumpet lilies, or a ruffled soutane seen on a model carrying a ruffled satin pillow.
All driven on by a great soundtrack by Frederic Sanchez that included chunks of Marianne Faithfull with the Prague Philharmonic and the demonic sounds of “King Night” by Salem.
No one could fault Simone for not taking risks in this performance, which won her a huge cheer and prolonged applause when she took a smiling bow.
Kent & Curwen: The united parks of London
A distinctive change of gear and tone at Kent & Curwen, where designer Daniel Kearns lightened mood and materials, even as he kept a tight focus on the brand’s three lions logo and DNA.
Nice also to see an artfully produced show by producer Robin Scott-Lawson, where a set of ten 10X20 foot LED screens projected images of multiple London parks featuring kids at play, football games, boat trips and splendid giant plane trees. Guests even received smart striped blankets – ideal for a picnic on Sunday, in a sunbathed UK capital.
An ideal backdrop to the clothes. They blended haute-couture fabrics like jacquard and chiffon with techy nylons, so the clothes managed to operate on multiple levels. Creating an agreeably conceptual take on such a storied brand as Kent & Curwen.
Draping a fab short tennis dress or a superb ivory coat dress, where a blazer met a plissé chiffon skirt. Dreaming up white multi-petal swimsuits for girls, and shirts for guys in this co-ed show. Going positively Japanese with chiffon minis topped by feathered bra tops.
Before returning to the brand’s roots in bold graphic rugby colors used in pink and blue trench coats. And respecting its English roots with some great sweaters embroidered with fabric roses, and a bravura finale of Photoshop English floral pants and tops for Kearns most investigational collection for this house.
Johanna Parv: Sports, fashion, action
All-action women at Johanna Parv, where the cast dashed about the catwalk in her bold and brilliant vision of transformative sporty chic.
Using techy fabrics, Parv creates clothes that manage to be sporty, yet professional. Protective yet chic. Practical in changing weather conditions, yet sleek and stylish. Plausible from a bike ride to board room.
Kicking off the action with gym exits – taut shirts and tops, dissected with her action bags. Followed by impeccable sporty jerkins and pants cut diagonally at the ankle to suggest speed. Clever use of angled zips and ties made the clothes look and be multi-functional.
The result was a collection that reinforced women’s independence via fashion. From the updated sheriff’s dusters in anthracite to the charcoal nylon track jackets, blousons and culottes. Also including her a hybrid bags, worn sometimes as backpack, other times as ergonomic fanny pack, and even as wrap around messenger bag, attachable to a bicycle frame. Hence its name – ‘Frame‘. All of them looked cool.
“Johanna Parv brings out the inner Lime rider in us all,” commented insightfully BFC CEO Laura Weir.
In her program notes, the Estonia-born designer referenced reading “Streetwalking the Metropolis” by Deborah L Parsons – a famed study of female writers’ experiences and perceptions of negotiating the urban landscape. This collection seems ideal for today’s urban jungle.
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