What You May Have Missed This Week

LONDON, United Kingdom — This week, just after the Met Gala and the unveiling of "Manus x Machina," the industry turned to Cuba, where, on the same day that the first American cruise ship in nearly 40 years docked in Havana, Chanel staged its latest Cruise show for industry insiders and top clients. Also present, if only symbolically, was ex-YSL designer Hedi Slimane, who appeared in the form of a Saint Laurent jacket worn on the runway by Mr. Lagerfeld, fuelling long-simmering speculation that Mr Slimane is headed to Chanel, a possibility underscored by a statement issued on Wednesday by Slimane's legal counsel, denying the designer was raising money to launch his own label. Meanwhile, Dior is struggling to replace Raf Simons… In other news, funding for fashion e-commerce is tightening, but investors in Asia are still looking for deals. See Farfetch, which just raised a $110 million Series F round led by Singapore's sovereign wealth fund and one of China's first venture capital firms. Catch up on these stories and more with BoF's Week in Review.

1. Chanel Cruises into Cuba, a Country on the Cusp

Chanel Cruise 2017 | Source: Olivier Saillant for Chanel

Although the fundamental incongruity of the moment was lost on no one, both Karl Lagerfeld and Fidel Castro share an ability to imagine a world and bring it into being.

2. Cuba’s Ambitious Fashion ‘Cuentapropistas’

Havana, Cuba | Source: Shutterstock

Economic reforms, improved relations with the US and even Chanel’s upcoming Cruise show are all encouraging signs, but the future of the Cuban fashion market still remains uncertain.

3. Why Dior Is Struggling to Replace Raf Simons

Raf Simons takes his final bow at Dior's Spring/Summer 2016 show | Source: Shutterstock

Christian Dior is struggling to find a creative director more than six months after the abrupt departure of Raf Simons.

4. BoF Exclusive | Farfetch Raises $110 Million in 'Strategic' Move

José Neves | Source: Farfetch

BoF can exclusively reveal that fashion e-commerce platform Farfetch has closed a $110 million Series F round, led by new investors Temasek, IDG Capital Partners and Eurazeo.

5. Decoding ‘Manus x Machina’

(L-R) Thomas Campbell, Andrew Bolton, Anna Wintour, Sir Jonathan Ive | Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art

BoF talks to key players at Condé Nast, Apple and the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art to unpack the meaning of its latest exhibit on the evening of the Met Gala.

6. Is the New Luxury a Better You?

District Vision's meditation session in Brooklyn, New York | Source: District Vision

Luxury spending is shifting from stuff to experiences to personal transformations, where a better you becomes the product.

7. Why Aéropostale Lost Its Cool

Source: Flickr/Jpellgen

Aéropostale Inc., once a popular mall destination for teens, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, becoming the latest victim in the fast-changing retail landscape.

8. Luxury Sector Pays the Price of Fear

Savigny Luxury Index April 2016 | Source: Savigny Partners

The aftermath of the terrorist attacks in Paris and Brussels weighed heavily on the sector’s first quarter results as tourist flows to Europe dropped.

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