By Craig Patterson

Concord, Ontario-based multi-brand representative OriginalLuxury Inc. will launch luxury brands Philipp Plein and Billionaire to the Canadian market on July 30.

The expansion will begin with an online offering. OriginalLuxury will also allow its VIP clients to visit the showroom by appointment to showcase product to customers who are interested in interacting with the product prior to making a purchase.

Innovative photo and video technology from StylePhotos Canada will be used for the brands’ Canadian e-commerce sites.

Entrepreneur Husan Aripov, is spearheading a major brand development initiative in Canada on behalf of OriginalLuxury. Swiss luxury brand Philipp Plein, known for its pricey and flashy men's and women's sportswear fashions, will launch on the OriginalLuxury website next week, with new products arriving weekly. Philipp Plein founded his eponymous brand in Lugano, Switzerland in 1998 by making bags and accessories from leftover exotic leathers.

The fashion-side of the Philipp Plein business launched in 2004 and has grown substantially since. The brand is particularly known for its bejewelled leather and crystal-studded knits, and has sold very well in Asia, Russia and Eastern Europe, and is expanding further into North America. Philipp Plein designs and manufactures fashions, accessories and footwear for both men and women, and has stores in major markets globally.

This fall the luxurious, Italian-made men’s fashion line, Billionaire, will launch in Canada through OriginalLuxury.ca’s e-commerce site. Billionaire features clothing, bags, accessories and shoes as well as a children’s line. “Billionaire presents an extravagant, rich wardrobe for mature men who are unafraid of who they are and who they want to be,” according to the company’s website.

The designer, named “Mr. Plutus”, is described as being “Part man, part machine” as he “represents a new breed of creative force in the fashion industry.” Billionaire’s website goes on to say, “A mysterious robotic entity, Plutus miraculously appeared earlier this year behind the wheel of a white Rolls Royce, The Rolling Stones’s anthem Sympathy for the Devil blaring as he raced into the heart of Milan. Rumours and theories about the origins of this electronic enigma immediately started swirling, with some experts believing him to be the ancient Greek god of wealth returned to earth on a secret mission.”

Securing the Philipp Plein and Billionaire brands is a major coup as OriginalLuxury becomes a significant player in the international brand market with Canadian distribution. Concord-based OriginalLuxury Inc. continues to expand the roster of brands it represents, with many being high-end. Additional brands carried by OriginalLuxury include: Italian luxury brand Artioli, French fashion house Christian Lacroix, Como Silks, Escorial, Faliero Sarti, Joshua Ellis, MA.AL.BI., Mantero, The Volon, and Serpui (a Brazil-based handbag brand).

*billionaire’s Paris, France store photo: billionaire couture via facebook*

*photo: billionaire couture via facebook*

For all of its online brand offerings, OriginalLuxury Inc. uses StylePhotos to photograph and take videos of its products. Mr. Aripov explained how StylePhotos is able to capture the “actual” look and texture of products when photographed using their proprietary technology; these services are available for anyone seeking top-quality photos and videos for e-commerce. With StylePhotos, the cost per photo or video is a fraction of the cost of traditional e-commerce product photography and videography, according to Mr. Aripov, making StylePhotos accessible to a wide range of retailers from independents to major players.

StylePhotos is located at OriginalLuxury’s headquarters in Concord, just north of Toronto. Those seeking photography and/or videography services using StylePhotos’ technology can visit the Concord office to rent the equipment or send product to their headquarters to be photographed or captured on video in the most accurate way possible. StylePhotos Canada is owned by local partner OriginalLuxury Inc., and Retail Insider has profiled StylePhotos, which can be read here and here.

OriginalLuxury Inc. will continue to target unique global brands looking to enter the Canadian market through its online platform. We’ll continue to follow up on this story as we track international brands entering the Canadian market.

For Retail Insider readers, OriginalLuxury Inc. is offering a 10% savings on StylePhotos for those interested in high-quality, affordable e-commerce photography and videography.

For more information on OriginalLuxury Inc., visit: OriginalLuxury.ca.

For more information on StylePhotos Canada, visit: StylePhotos.ca

Now located in Toronto, Craig is a retail analyst and consultant at the Retail Council of Canada. He's also the Director of Applied Research at the University of Alberta School of Retailing in Edmonton. He has studied the Canadian retail landscape for the past 25 years and he holds Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Laws Degrees. He is also President & CEO of Vancouver-based Retail Insider Media Ltd. Email Craig: craig@retail-insider.com

TODAY'S TOP HEADLINES