Vivienne Westwood Expands To China, Isn't That Excited About It

Vivienne Westwood is not afraid to speak her mind, dissing the most beloved of public figures (read: Kate Middleton), calling New Yorkers "stuck up" and predicting Los Angeles' imminent demise.

So we're only slightly surprised that the British designer told Women's Wear Daily that despite her recent retail expansion into China, she's not all that interested in the country.

Westwood was in Shanghai this weekend to open her first flagship in the city, her third store in China. But the somewhat curmudgeonly designer told WWD, "I actually don't know that much [about China]... I have never really taken that much interest."

She added, "Normally, I would have taken a holiday. I would have gone to Beijing, which I have never been to because I might never come again, and if I am coming all this way, I would like to know something about the country."

If Westwood sounds unenthused about China, she's even less excited about people buying her clothes. Really. She said to WWD,

"I am not actually being disingenuous when I do really say stop buying clothes to people... The slogan is 'buy less, choose well, make it last.'"

In fact, we should just appreciate the fact that Westwood is even making clothes at all. Ever the martyr, Westwood said, "I didn't want to do fashion for at least 15 years, I did it because I was good at it and I thought it was my duty to do it... When you are very good at something, you want people to recognize it, and I will still carry on," according to Xinhuanet.

That's very big of her. Read more from Westwood at WWD.com.

Comments

[darkelflass]

07:38 PM on 10/25/2011

I don't like anything this woman makes, but she obviously appeals to many. That said, I wish people who have been blessed with a talent that earns them a more than comfortable living would just stop bitching and complaining. If she doesn't like what she's doing or cares about fashion RETIRE.

[holierthandow]

11:28 AM on 10/25/2011

love her....

[pslcitizen]

01:19 AM on 10/25/2011

Oooooooogly!

[artistkatja]

10:39 PM on 10/24/2011

Good for her! I liked her to begin with, admire her all the more now.

[dididangerlove]

08:25 PM on 10/24/2011

I can't wait until I'm no longer concerned with filters. After a long, storied career, she's just being honest.

[ZMP]

08:25 PM on 10/24/2011

What a loser. She is on her way down. Why should people spend their hard-earned money on a rude person's designs. We learned from John Galliano that rude people can be dismissed as quickly as anyone, regardless of their "talent".

[dmeekthemimi]

07:21 PM on 10/24/2011

My sentiments, exactly. Good clothes never go out of fashion. A black skirt is a black skirt. You can change it up a little, but if yu buy a good one that fits, it never goes out of style!!

[Apple Baek]

07:10 PM on 10/24/2011

Gee, she seems rather cranky about everything?

[Pema]

07:05 PM on 10/24/2011

oh gods vivianne who told you that you were good designing clothes?

[Cassandra45]

08:35 PM on 10/24/2011

Well, the Queen of England made her a Dame in honor of her contributions to the British fashion industry ... and then there's all those people who keep buying her very expensive clothes ... then there's all the other designers, who bow before her ... then there's the public, some of whome like her very much (me) ... but you just keep thinking you're right, it won't hurt anyone.

[IMRITENOTU]

09:08 PM on 10/24/2011

What's going on with her Rainbow brite hair though?

[artistkatja]

10:41 PM on 10/24/2011

Hahhaah!!! I love your post! I think she's pretty great too. GMTA

[caroleann926]

12:21 AM on 10/25/2011

People who know more about design and fashion, than you do, obviously.

[lovemassacres]

06:49 PM on 10/24/2011

Fashion is supposed to be flattering on a woman. Not one of her ensembles was wearable. They all looked like zombies that got the scrap they are wearing from a dump. And yet she says she is good at designing. As if!

[tlvailco]

12:31 AM on 10/25/2011

It reminded me of a rich, futuristic, doped up, clockwork orange type of clothing.

[Hardyman1966]

02:51 PM on 10/24/2011

I'm not going to bother with the Disney Witch look, that's nothing new.  But it is still perplexing that this one has been able to make a living, considering the H Factor* of most of her work.


*Hideous

[Betsy Whelan]

02:45 PM on 10/24/2011

Why don't you keep the jobs here in the USA??? I try not to buy anything made in China.. Too many companies are moving there for the CHEAP labor and making huge profits..KEEP THE JOBS HERE. I plan to buy NOTHING with this "broad's" label on it....

[gaffagirl1]

07:56 PM on 10/24/2011

The article is about opening a store in China, not a factory. She is a British designer, I doubt she had an American factory to begin with. And I also doubt you could afford to buy much of what she sells, but don't feel bad, it's all pretty ugly anyway.

[Cassandra45]

08:22 PM on 10/24/2011

SHE'S BRITISH. She isn't "here". And she's not having stuff made there, she's SELLING stuff there. Good grief. And unless you are very wealthy, you couldn't afford her anyway, so don't worry about it. (And there is no reason to put quotes around "broad's" either.)

[artistkatja]

10:42 PM on 10/24/2011

LOL.....you tell 'em. ^5

[dmsdzinr]

02:30 PM on 10/24/2011

With a face like hers YOU would be grumpy too!

[Marie Eplion]

01:57 PM on 10/24/2011

Maybe she wanted to celebrate halloween early she looks like a pumpkin. lol

[Jlbeaverton]

01:18 PM on 10/24/2011

She is iconic and an inspiration to any aspiring fashion designer. I have always appreciated her bluntness. She Always has orange or yellow hair is that news to you people?

[lovemassacres]

06:52 PM on 10/24/2011

There is nothing blunt about her fashion, just her tongue. And she is anything but inspiring.

[Jlbeaverton]

11:52 PM on 10/24/2011

Bluntness of the tounge is what I was referring to, and just because she is not inspiring to you does not mean she is uninspiring.

[Cassandra45]

08:29 PM on 10/24/2011

At last, a civilized person! Evidently most of the people posting here have no idea who she is or even that she's British, let alone that she's a Dame. One of the most fantastic exhibitions I've ever seen was of her clothing at the DeYoung Museum in SF a couple of years ago. The tailoring, the cut, the colors, the fabrics, the patterns, the details ... stunning. The punk stuff from way back when was beautifully cut. If I win the lottery, I'm going straight to the nearest Westwood shop and buying my new wardrobe. Fanned to you!