Designer Chris Benz was appointed creative director of the legendary but slowly dying fashion label Bill Blass nearly a year ago. On Monday, the day finally arrived for Benz to attempt to restore the Bill Blass name with his e-commerce launch.

“Nov. 2 is really the starting point. Everything comes from that,” Benz said in an Oct. 27 interview with The Cut.

Fashion icon Bill Blass was known as one of the first American designers to put his name on a label, but this wildly successful namesake quickly went downhill after his retirement in 1999. The company then went through a string of new creative directors, leading to its bankruptcy in 2008. In October, a final effort was made to reestablish the brand. Benz, a young, colorful designer with his own eponymous collection, was named creative director.

Despite, or perhaps because of, the pressure on Benz to resurrect the Bill Blass company, the designer is riskily shaking things up. That is, you won’t find Benz at fashion shows, you won’t see the name Bill Blass in advertising, and there won’t be any stores at least for now. Benz has created an e-commerce-only model and is thinking of the label as a start-up or a design company, rather than a fashion house.

The collection, which launched on billblass.com on Monday, is bright and playful, consisting of orange ruffled skirts and pink sequin dresses balanced with structured bags and flats.

The new look and design model relies on a customer that already knows Bill Blass. This seems like a tough audience to maintain, but Benz’s smart choices may keep him afloat. He considers his e-commerce approach progressive and said it is fortunate because customers can see the collection and buy it immediately — there is no six-month fashion show waiting period where you are viewing clothes in the opposite season you’re in. The collection is also global; the site ships to nearly 70 countries already.

Only time will tell whether Bill Blass will become a success once again, but Benz’s unique e-commerce approach is likely to spawn at least a few copycats. As technology rapidly moves forward, there is a necessity for designers to keep up and use it to its fullest potential. No seasons? No stores? No ads? This may be the future of fashion, and I guess Benz is getting ready to find out.

Jackie Homan is a sophomore magazine journalism major. You can email her at jahoman@syr.edu or follow her @jackie_homan on Twitter.

Published on November 2, 2015 at 9:58 pm