>This season H&M draws inspiration from faraway places with a series of exotic prints. Trends for summer include lightweight tailoring, bohemian styles, ornate embellishment and bold accessories. “We wanted to create something very colourful and light, with stand-out print,” says Head of Design Ann-Sofie Johansson. “We were inspired by hot holidays in Africa, India, Hawaii and South America; hence ethnic-style prints such as tropical flowers and leaves, ikat designs, dip-dyes and ombre effects.” (more…)

On Thursday 8 May H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB held its Annual General Meeting under the chairmanship of lawyer Sven Unger. The AGM approved the dividend of SEK 14.00 per share in accordance with the Board of Directors’ proposal. The record day is 13 May 2008.
The dividend is expected to be paid out by VPC on 16 May 2008.The AGM discharged the members of the Board and the Managing Director from liability for the 2006/2007 financial year.
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Brand consultancy company Interbrand revealed its first ever ranking of Europe’s Top Performing Retail Brands by brand value. The top 25 was announced by Jez Frampton, Group Chief Executive of Interbrand, at the second annual World Retail Congress in Barcelona, Spain. Swedish high-street chain H&M, ended as the number one with a value of €10.366bn. Other outstanding performers included the French-owned Carrefour (€6.620bn), Sweden’s Ikea (€6.516), the UK’s supermarket chain Tesco (€5.617bn), and department store Marks&Spencer (€5.100bn).

“Retail brands have the ultimate opportunity to create a chain of brand experiences through their environments, service standards as well as products and services. Our study shows the real value of getting this right for the business and the brand,” commented Jez Frampton. According to Interbrand’s research, top retailers generate value for their brands by understanding the importance of building and investing in their own brands. 60% of the retailers in the Top Performing study offer their own brands that contribute between 30-100% of their revenues.
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Comme des Garçons’ founder and head designer Rei Kawakubo will create this autumn’s guest designer collection at H&M. Rei Kawakubo, famous and admired for her creativity and artistry, will design a women’s and a men’s collection, with some pieces for children too. Accessories and an exclusive unisex fragrance will also be included in the collection.
“I have always been interested in the balance between creation and business. It is a dilemma,although for me creation has always been the first priority. It is a fascinating challenge to work with H&M since it is a chance to take the dilemma to its extreme, and try to solve it”, says ReiKawakubo, Comme des Garçons.
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