Ivy Park

Ivy Park
Public
Industry Sportswear, apparel
Founded March 31, 2016 (2016-03-31)
Founder Beyoncé
Sir Philip Green
Headquarters Westminster, London,
United Kingdom
Area served
 Worldwide
Products Sportswear
Owner Topshop
Parent Parkwood-Topshop Athletic, Inc.
The activewear clothing line Ivy Park was co-founded by Beyoncé (pictured).

Ivy Park is an activewear clothing line co-founded by American recording artist Beyoncé and London based fashion retailer Topshop, introduced in 2016.[1][2][3] The joint venture of Beyoncé and Topshop was officially announced in October 2014, and operates under the company Parkwood Topshop Athletic Ltd.[4] Originally set for the fall of 2015, the launch was pushed back until the spring of 2016,[5] with an April 14, 2016 official launch date to in store and online retailers.

Launch

On March 31, 2016, Beyoncé officially launched Ivy Park by revealing two covers for the May issue of Elle magazine. The issue includes an in-depth interview where Beyoncé explains her objectives for the brand and its impact on women.[6] She said that her goal with the line is to "push the boundaries of athletic wear and to support and inspire women who understand that beauty is more than your physical appearance".[7] That same day, Beyoncé also released a promotional video, titled "Where is your park" that gives viewers a glimpse of her workout routine, samples of the clothing line and a narration explaining the origin and significance of the brand and its name; Ivy, representing her daughter who is named Blue Ivy Carter, and Park, representing Parkwood Park in Houston where Beyoncé used to go to exercise and find personal strength.[6] She elaborated in the video,

I would wake up in the morning, and my dad would come knocking at my door, telling me it's time to go running. I remember wanting to stop, but I would push myself to keep going. It taught me discipline. And I would think about my dreams. I would think about the sacrifices my parents made for me. I would think about my little sister and how I was her hero. I would look at the beauty around me, the sun shining through the trees. I would keep breathing. There are things I'm still afraid of. When I have to conquer those things, I still go back to that park. Before I hit the stage, I go back to that park. When it was time for me to give birth, I went back to that park. The park became a state of mind. The park became my strength. The park is what made me who I am. Where's your park?[6]

On April 14, 2016, the 200-piece collection was made available worldwide on the line's official website and at retailers including Topshop, Nordstrom, Zalando, Selfridges, JD Sports, Net-a-Porter, Hudson's Bay, Zalora, Namshi, The Iconic, Glue and Myer.[8] The sportswear line includes tops, bottoms, swim wear and accessories ranging from $30 to $200.[9]

In early May, 2016, a front-page story of British newspaper The Sun featured allegations that Ivy Park factories in Sri Lanka were labor-exploiting workers by paying them $6.17 a day, which is below the minimum daily wage. A representative of Ivy Park later responded to the claims by saying, "Ivy Park has a rigorous ethical trading program. We are proud of our sustained efforts in terms of factory inspections and audits, and our teams worldwide work very closely with our suppliers and their factories to ensure compliance".[7][10] As analyzed by CBS News, minimum daily wage in Sri Lanka was $2.68, which meant that workers were making double the standard.[10]

References

  1. ↑ Holmes, Sally (March 31, 2016). "OMG Beyoncé's Fashion Line Is HEEEEEEEREEEEEE". Elle. Retrieved April 2, 2016.
  2. ↑ Duboff, Josh (March 31, 2016). "Beyoncé Introduces Ivy Park, an Activewear Line". Vanity Fair. Retrieved April 2, 2016.
  3. ↑ Carlos, Marjon (March 31, 2016). "Beyoncé's New Activewear Line, Ivy Park, Has Arrived". Vogue. Retrieved April 2, 2016.
  4. ↑ Milligan, Lauren (October 27, 2014). "CONFIRMED: Beyoncé And Topshop Launch Activewear". Vogue. Retrieved April 2, 2016.
  5. ↑ Fisher, Lauren (November 30, 2015). "Beyoncé's Topshop Athleisure Brand Gets an Official Launch Date". Harper's Bazaar. Retrieved April 2, 2016.
  6. 1 2 3 "This Is What Beyoncé's Fashion Line Ivy Park Means". Elle. 2016-03-31. Retrieved 2016-04-12.
  7. 1 2 Chasmar, Jessica (May 18, 2016). "Beyonce brand Ivy Park denies sweatshop allegations". The Washington Times. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Ivy Park - Stockists". Ivypark.com. Retrieved April 2, 2016.
  9. ↑ Carlos, Marjon. "Beyoncé's New Activewear Line, Ivy Park, Has Arrived". Vogue. Retrieved 2016-04-12.
  10. 1 2 Park, Andrea (May 17, 2016). "Beyonce's Ivy Park clothing line denies sweatshop allegations". CBS News. Retrieved June 14, 2016.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 12/1/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.