Roland Mouret has identity on his mind. It came across in several ways. To start, he recruited Mimi Xu to star in his lookbook. "I like the magic of a real woman styling the clothes," he said. More important, he s thinking about ways to put his stamp on pieces beyond his famous Galaxy dress. "I want to make it a cult piece, like the Galaxy is a cult piece," he said. The "it" in question was a short dress that draped rather than clung. He s noticed a movement toward simpler shapes; women are wearing clothes with an easier fit. A cult hit, after all, doesn t become a hit without a cult behind it. Along those looser lines, he s putting a big emphasis on coatdresses. He s whipped them up in long and sleeveless styles; the sleeveless version looked sharp as a tunic over pants.
Another thing he s picked up on: the way his girls are wearing pants for evening, jumpsuits in particular. He responded with not one, but two all-in-one options for Resort, a knockout fitted number in black and white, and a slouchier option in black lace with a sturdy zipper. Mouret likes it zipped up high near the neck, like a guy in a garage. He hardly ignored the glam gowns he s known for. They didn t turn up in the Mimi Xu lookbook, but there were racks of them in the showroom—the most memorable being the off-the-rack wedding dresses he s selling exclusively on Net-a-Porter.
