A mysterious new clothes designer, known simply as FRANK, put on a major show at the weekend as part of Amsterdam’s International Fashion Week. But the name turned out to be a front for budget clothes chain Zeeman, says de Volkskrant newspaper.

“We realised that something didn’t add up,” Bart Maussen, director of the prestigious fashion week tells the paper. “So much money was being put into the show that it became obvious that a company was behind it. We just didn’t know which firm. It seems that clothes at Zeeman’s could be even cheaper since they apparently have so much spare cash for this kind of publicity stunt.”

Taken for a ride
De Volkskrant reckons Mr Maussen would prefer to be associated with Chanel than with Zeeman, which was launched in 1967 as a 'supermarket for clothes'. The chain now has around 1,000 outlets in the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, France and Luxembourg. It specialises in no-nonsense cheap clothing, often unceremoniously stacked on steel shelving.

Although Mr Maussen can see the funny side to Zeeman’s provocative launch of its new line, he’s relieved that an oversight led to no press attending the FRANK show. “They would have felt they’d been taken for a ride,” he explains.

Shock
He says people in the show’s audience were visibly shocked by the revelation that the creations were just Zeeman’s new line. “They were expecting an exclusive fashion brand,” he says.

He describes the clothes in the show as “looking really quite nice”. Although he goes on to add that “there were some ghastly frocks - but that’s the case with a lot of designers”.

Vetting
Mr Maussen is at pains to point out that his organisation did not vet the FRANK creations. Apparently, while the work of independent designers is judged beforehand, no demands are made of companies which cough up the full fee of 15,000 euros for a show with lighting and make-up thrown in.

“We’re just pleased to get the money,” Mr Maussen admits. “But maybe we should be a bit stricter in future.”

Cheap and good
Zeeman, meanwhile, has posted a video of the FRANK show on YouTube. It’s in Dutch, but the shocked reaction of the fashion cognoscenti can be seen in the last minute when the cheap brand name, Zeeman, appears writ large over the catwalk. Some look angry, staring at the well-known brand in disbelief, while others simply scream - not all with laughter.

A spokesperson for the budget chain says: “We just wanted to show that good clothes don’t have to be expensive”.

(imm)