Lily loses out to Kate in high street showdown

11 April 2012
The Weekender

Sign up to our free weekly newsletter for exclusive competitions, offers and theatre ticket deals

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

Queues that began forming in the early hours ...heaving masses of excited shoppers... expectant faces pressed against store windows.

These are the scenes that did not materialise as Lily Allen launched her high street fashion range.

Lily in a £25 strapless dress at the launch of her range for New Look in Oxford Street, while Kate - in a sheer dress - arrives at the New York launch of her TopShop line

Crowds were noticably absent from the Lily Loves launch, unlike the kick off of Kate Moss's range last week

Indeed, the response to the Lily Loves collection at New Look outlets across the country was distinctly lukewarm.

As the doors to the Oxford Street branch opened at 10am, no more than ten shoppers wandered in. Within half an hour, there were about 50 customers in store - an average number for the outlet.

It was maybe no surprise for Miss Allen. The 22-year-old pop star admitted at a private launch party the night before: "I don't really understand why anyone would come and buy these dresses so I am preparing for the shame of tumbleweed in Oxford Street when no one wants them."

Gilded Lily: Allen in foxy look for Lily Loves... and right, a gold smock

It was all in stark contrast to the feverish scenes at nearby Topshop last week when crowds packed the streets before the launch of Kate Moss's fashion range.

There was further reason for Miss Moss to feel smug as shoppers queued for three hours outside the upmarket Barneys store in New York before her range went on sale there. She made a personal appearance in a revealing dress.

Moss have: Kate at a gala on Monday and right, modelling her hotpants

Her sense of satisfaction may be enhanced in the light of Miss Allen's criticism of her and Topshop owner Philip Green for designing clothes for "superskinny models".

Speaking of her collaboration with New Look, she said: "They have responsible role models and are very conscious of having positive body images - unlike Kate Moss and that ****ing billionaire who's thrown a load of money at her so we get to see what her wardrobe is like."

This won't make her smile: empty streets on the day of Lily Allen's clothing launch

Miss Moss's range of trousers, dresses, shirts and shoes has been described by fashion experts as "broader" than the Lily Loves collection, which is limited to six prom-style dresses, peep-toed stilettos in different colours and a couple of accessories.

Her dresses also come in a lot cheaper, with the most expensive priced at £55 compared with Miss Moss's collection, which includes a £200 leather jacket.

New Look spokesman Catherine Reynolds claimed the collection would outsell Miss Moss's: "We will probably knock Kate Moss at Topshop for six. There's no comparison with Kate Moss, who is a fashionista.

"Lily Allen is a style icon and what she represents is different. She is a normal girl, very real girl next door who is not size zero."

She added: "We were not expecting a high turnout because this collection is not about that."

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in