Maria Pinto Closes Boutique; Files For Bankruptcy

Sad news. The Chicago Sun-Times has reported that Maria Pinto, the prominent Chicago designer who dressed First Lady Michelle Obama during the the 2008 presidential campaign, has decided to shut down her boutique and will file for bankruptcy:

Pinto said, ''After 20 years of pursuing my greatest passion and striving to build a successful high-end fashion business, the time has come for a new chapter in my life.''

Pinto cited ''increasing economic challenges and soft buying trends at the top end of the apparel market'' among the reasons for the downfall of her business, which includes the shuttering of her design and wholesale operations and the retail store on South Jefferson.

The news comes as a surprise to many in the industry. Ms. Pinto became the darling of the fashion world when Mrs. Obama wore several of her designs on the campaign trail (My favorite was the purple silk sheath Mrs. Obama wore when her hubby, President Barack Obama, clinched the democratic nomination. She looked gorgeous!). Last year, Ms. Pinto showed her Spring 2010 collection at NY Fashion in September, and was inducted into the CFDA last year. So, the question is: What happened? Why she wasn't able to capitalize on the Obama connection like J.Crew and Jason Wu, two of Mrs. Obama's fashion favorites? Kevin Wilder, retail analyst and president of Wilder, Inc., tells WWD that her wholesale business may have been the problem:

“If some of the boutiques she was selling to weren’t paying their bills, there’s only so long you can exist. I suspect that’s what happened,” said Wilder, also questioning whether Pinto was able to adjust her prices downward as some other designers have done.

Another potential factor could be Pinto's price point. While other luxury labels have either lowered their prices, or created products specifically for their budget conscience cliente, like Coach, Inc., Ms. Pinto kept her price point the same.

But Ms. Pinto says don't count her out just yet. ''I am confident that the 'Maria Pinto' name will not go away, but will merely take a break, before emerging in a new form. I plan on using the next several months to explore different avenues and opportunities for business, as economic conditions improve," Pinto said.

J.Crew Stumbles On The Obama Effect

Fist bumps must have been going around the J.Crew offices when word surfaced that the First Family wore outfits and accessories from the retailer on Inauguration Day, and at various Inauguration weekend celebrations. First Daughters, Malia and Sasha Obama wore specially made outfits from the Crewcuts for Kids collection to the Inauguration ceremony, while First Lady Michelle Obama wore leather olive green gloves. President Barack Obama sported a white satin bow tie with his tux for the Inaugural Balls.

The NY Daily News reports that J.Crew's website, www.jcrew.com, shut down for an half hour as people flocked to the site to buy up the outfits. This isn't the first time the Obamas had a positive effect on J.Crew. When First Lady Michelle Obama appeared on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" wearing a three-piece yellow J. Crew ensemble, searches for the outfit caused their online traffic to increase 64% according to New York magazine.

So, it's puzzling that J.Crew didn't anticipate this type of response, and configure their site to a) be able to handle the traffic and b) offer a user friendly way to access merchandise that is similar to the pieces the Obamas wore, being that outfits and pieces the First Family wore were specially made and currently unavailable for purchase.

On the front page of the J.Crew website, the visitor is greeted with sketches of the outfits, as well as swatch samples. The visitor can "roll over" the images to get more info on the designs, as well as quotes from the designers:

(Photo: J.Crew/jcrew.com)

What was missing, however, were links to similar pieces that are being offered on the website. Performing a search for "Obama", "Michelle", "Barack", "Malia" or "Sasha" on the website only takes you back to the front page. It would have been prudent to have those searches lead to actual merchandise. It's great that J.Crew has received so much needed attention, but what's the point if they're not using in a way to generate profit?

However, this has been a good week for J.Crew. Since the Inauguration, the stock price has gone up from a Jan. 20th opening of $9.61 per share to a Jan. 22nd closing of $10.26 per share. Today, shares rose 55 cents to $10.81 during midday trading on analyst upgrade to "Equal Weight". It closed at $10.56 per share, down from an opening price of $10.96.