The Caradiaz team was particularly busy today checking and packing a wholesale delivery for Red Direct, the mail-order shopping arm of the UK fashion magazine Red.

Negotiations started back in April this year, when we met with Red Direct's jewellery buying at their head office in London to show them our new arrivals and discuss the possibility of introducing some of these items in their catalogue for the following season. The meeting went well and ultimately the shopping editor chose the Manhattan necklace, a stylish multi-string beaded necklace featuring silver metal beads on black waxed cotton strings.

This is Caradiaz's third collaboration with Red Direct (we had two designs in the 2007 Spring catalogue and one in the 2007 Summer catalogue) and hopefully one as successful as the previous ones!

Manhattan necklace
Picture: Red Direct Autumn'08 catalogue

A few weeks ago I treated my husband (who also happens to be the Caradiaz IT Manager) to a posh meal for his birthday. The chosen venue: Gordon Ramsay at Claridge's.

We hadn't been there before and upon making that admission our waiter asked 'Are you excited to be here?', a comment that we actually thought a bit on the arrogant side... Once at our table, our waiter quickly proceeded to enquire about the special occasion that led to our visit - surely there could be no other reason for us to be there - so my poor husband then had to come clean and admit to his birthday, a response that of course satisfied our waiter very much - after all he was right, there was a special occasion involved - and made him shake my husband's hand enthusiastically saying 'congratulations'.

By now, we were really rather worried about the big fuss made around us when all we wanted to do was enjoy a nice meal. But thankfully, once we ordered and the food started to arrive, we were left to eat in peace and there we no more surprises ... well, until dessert time when our waiter brought to the table a kind of cupcake with a candle lit up on a plate decorated with the words 'happy birthday' written with chocolate. It was a nice touch and something a lot more inconspicuous than having the whole restaurant - including the Ambassador of El Salvador to Taiwan - singing 'happy birthday' to you, as it happened to me a couple of years ago during dinner at the Grand Formosa Regent Hotel in Taipei. But that's another story which I may tell you about some other time.

All in all, the experience at Claridge's wasn't too bad. We had a lovely meal, the food was gorgeous and we couldn't find anything that was 'out of season' on any of the three menus we were offered to choose from. Hang on, is this really the same chef that constantly advocates for keeping the menu simple in his tv show, Kitchen Nightmares?

Gordon Ramsay at the opening of his new restaurant in LA
Picture: www.wireimage.com

The new series of Mary Queen of Shops kicked off on Monday, 9th June, on BBC2. The target: a womenswear boutique in Ascot (Berkshire) specialising in large sizes.

The script was as simple as usual: shop owner doesn't know her business, therefore doesn't make any money and Mary Portas comes to the rescue. It's the same formula as Gordon Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares really - but without the continuous swearing...

Some of the morning after tv reviews described Ms. Portas as 'scary' but I actually didn't think that was a fair comment. She had A LOT of patience with the owner of the shop and had to try really hard to open the woman's eyes to see her mistakes and make things better. Eventually (and after quite a few cringing moments) the penny dropped and the shop owner finally realised the potential of her business, so she began to implement some much needed changes.

Mary Portas seriously knows her stuff when it comes to retailing and I really do admire her, not just for her individual sense of style and the gorgeous chunky jewellery she wears all the time (maybe one day we'll see her in something from Caradiaz?) but also from a fashion business point of view. I'm totally with her on the subject of good customer service (something that we take extremely seriously at Caradiaz) and also agree with her views on the downfall of high street quality fashion as a result of the proliferation of big chains selling dirt cheap clothes. "Younger shoppers are starting to ask who is suffering to make it possible to sell a £7 dress." - she said in a recent interview with the Daily Mail.

I really hope she's right and the tide turns!

Mary Portas
Picture: www.maryqueenofshops.com

American designer Tory Burch received the Accessories Designer of the Year Award at the 26th CFDA Fashion Awards (dubbed the 'Oscars of Fashion') held in New York last Monday, beating fellow nominees Marc Jacbos and Michael Kohrs.

I first came across Tory's designs about four years ago through American Vogue (of which I'm an avid reader). I liked the shoes and also the jewellery - I hadn't started Caradiaz yet - and was delighted when Tory's designs were brought to the UK by Harvey Nichols and www.net-a-porter.com - I'm now saving quite a bif of money in delivery charges, as Tory's on-line shop (www.toryburch.com) doesn't do international deliveries and a friend of mine in Washington DC used to ship stuff over for me!

So anyway, many congratulations to Tory for this well-deserved award.

Tory Burch with her CFDA award
New York, 2nd June 2008
Picture: www.wireimage.com

Picture: Patent Victoria Shoes

One of my all-time favourite luxury brands much to my husband's regret (I adore Chanel's bags!) has embarked on a new shop set up with the opening of a mini-boutique in LA's trendy Robertson Boulevard.

The new Chanel 'small shop', which opened to the public last Friday after a lavish, celebrity-attended private party the night before, is decorated in classic Chanel black and white and offers hand-picked ready-to-wear pieces, as well as fine jewellery, gorgeous camelia-decorated accessories and cosmetics, including an exclusive range of eye-catching nail polishes called The Robertson Collection, made up of four different shades named after LA's iconic sites: Melrose (a shocking pink), Rodeo Drive (soft purple), L.A. Sunrise (primary yellow) and L.A. Sunset (warm tangerine).

Given the shop's location in a trendy area frequented by young starlets and wannabes, it has been suggested that Chanel's new strategy aims to attract younger customers; however, the company has strongly denied this.

If the new LA shop is a successful as the company expects, Chanel plans to roll out the 'small shop' concept to locations in London, Paris and Tokyo.

Classic Chanel - Robertson Boulevard shop, LA

Desperate Housewife Nicollette Sheridan
at the shop's private opening party
29th May 2008

Pictures: www.wireimage.com