Who says, "we don't do retail" ?

Cindy Allen -- Interior Design, 4/1/2002 12:00:00 AM

Philippe Starck did, for one—until a meeting of minds with fellow French iconoclast Jean Paul Gaultier changed everything. Starck abandoned a policy of 20 years' duration to design a New York boutique that puts a glam edge on modern. It goes to show that, when interior design's best talent collides with the fashion industry's finest, the outcome can only be explosive, exquisite, and enduring. This issue focuses on a group of high-profile designers who are extremely serious when fashion retail is at stake. Our April world tour makes stopovers in Paris for Roberto Baciocchi's Miu Miu, Milan for Sean Dix's Moschino, Venice for Michael Gabellini's Ferragamo, and Tokyo, the most fashion-crazed city on the planet, for Christian Lacroix by Christophe Carpente. Back in a gradually reviving Manhattan, there's Gaultier and Hillier's offices for LVMH uptown. Downtown, we present our own survey of the much chatted-about Rem Koolhaas oeuvre for Prada and Frank Gehry's concept for Issey Miyake, executed by Gordon Kipping.

So, are fashion designers really just like you and me? Todd Oldham, the subject of "Crosslines," embodies both breeds, but we admit that the combination is rare. To see how the other half lives, we visited hatmaker Rod Keenan's funky town house and accessories designer Elizabeth Gillett's pristine loft. Rounding out our prismatic view of the business of fashion, we report on upholstery couture from DCOTA and the latest scene in Paris.

But enough about us—we'd love to hear from you. As of this month, we cordially invite readers to send questions, opinions, frustrations, and inspirations directly to interiordesign@cahners.com. Add it to your address book!