Brad Goreski named creative director of C. Wonder

Eccentric and flamboyant celebrity fashion stylist Brad Goreski has been named creative director of C. Wonder. C. Wonder filed for bankruptcy earlier this year, but they were acquired by Xcel Brands Inc., who also owns brands like Judith Ripka and Isaac Mizrahi. Now, they are looking to build the right team to help propel the preppy brand back to excellence.

Goreski has made quite the name for himself, with his career taking off when he was hired as celebrity stylist Rachel Zoe's assistant, then taking off with his own styling career, and gaining widespread acclaim when he starred in his own Bravo reality TV series, "It's a Brad, Brad World", and is now a co-host of E!'s Fashion Police. In his new role he will again be in front of the cameras as the on-air personality for the brand at QVC where new offerings will begin showing exclusively in 2016. Last month, Xcel Brands Inc. acquired C Wonder for 12.5 million dollars from Burch Acquisition LLC.

The acquisition closed on Friday, July 31, and includes rights to the C. Wonder and C. Wonder Limited trademarks. The 12.5 million dollar payment consisted of both cash and Xcel stock. Xcel has 50 full-time designers and 60 freelancers who have been concentrated on the companies other brands, but all of Xcel's companies have one thing in common: they target female customers from millenials to baby boomers.

Xcel Brands Inc. rebuilding C. Wonder brand with Brad Goreski as creative director

Goreski himself has personally been looking forward to working with C. Wonder for quite some time. "I was a big fan of C. Wonder before…. This was something I wanted to do for a while," Goreski was quoted saying to WWD. As for the direction the brand will go in under Goreski, those talks are still in their early stages as Goreski and Robert D'Loren, Xcel Brand Inc.'s Chairman and CEO, have had several talks regarding the future of the brand.

Given Goreski's affinity for brightly colored suits, expect lots of color to play a big role in the brand. Price points for the QVC line are expected to range from 29 to 34 dollars for knit tops to 248 for leather handbags. Other categories like housewares and home decor are expected to happen down the line.

D'Loren has also said that a different but connected C. Wonder label brand will be developed down the line to be sold at department stores. The brand was originally founded by Tory Burch's ex-husband Christopher Burch who shuttered the operation in January of this year due to the brand's less than stellar sales performance. Prior to shuttering the company, Christopher Burch had been embroiled in a lawsuit with his ex-wife Tory Burch who claimed that C. Wonder's aesthetic was too closer to her namesake label's. The two eventually settled, but that legal battle certainly did nothing to help C. Wonder's sales at the time.

photo:US Magazine