Nanette Lepore Strikes A Deal With Bluestar Alliance

by Dena Silver

Nanette Lepore has signed a deal with Bluestar Alliance LLC, giving the company majority ownership of her namesake contemporary label. While the mission of the joint venture is to further broaden Lepore’s offerings and take the label international, Lepore plans to remain fully involved in the day-to-day business of her brand, which turns 22 this year. The brand’s CEO, Robert Savage—Lepore’s husband—will retain his current position. “I’m very excited about our partnership,” Lepore told The Daily. “I’m thrilled because I love my company and I love designing and running my business. Sometimes in a deal like this you have to give up control, but in this case, we don’t have to. The Nanette Lepore brand as we know it will continue and thrive.”

Bluestar will support and maintain the current licensing that is in place, which includes swim and home as well as L’Amour Nanette Lepore, a juniors label distributed at J.C. Penney. Next up, the focus will be on global expansion, followed by growth in the accessories category, including further offering of shoes and bags. Also on the horizon? “There’s going to be a budget for publicity and advertising. In the past, that’s been kinda tight for us. This gives us a chance to really tell the brand story the way we see it,” said Lepore. Quite a way to kick off 2015, non?

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