BCBG Max Azria signs to Carrefour

Groupe Carrefour, the French retail giant, has signed a deal with BCBG Max Azria for the fashion label to supply a women's ready-to-wear collection to the international chain. The company hopes to further develop its presence outside the food sector.

Under the terms of the agreement BCBG Max Azria will design, produce and supply women's collections for Carrefour's chains of hypermarkets in France, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Portugal and Greece. The debut Fall/Winter 2007 collection will hit shelves in Carrefour stores during the second semester of next year. The deal is latest in a growing trend that sees name designers create specific collections that retail solely in giant retail chains, rather than department stores.

The Carrefour-BCBG collection will be designed in the fashion house's Los Angeles headquarters, where Azria's proximity to Hollywood has seen him design an impressive cluster of music and screen stars, including Sharon Stone, Halle Berry, Beyonce Knowles, Keira Knightly and Eva Longoria. Expect casual t-shirts and jeans, sophisticated sportswear and dresses.

Carrefour, which currently employs over 400,000 people and last financial year earned over EUR 93bn, aims to build a global synergy between two well-known international brand names. For the cut-price retail chain it's also a cunning way of raising its profile and positioning among consumers.

" Col laborating with an internationally renowned fashion company such as BCBG Max Azria Group is integral to Carrefour Group's strategy to further develop its sales in the non-food sector," the chain said in a press release. Azria's design and retail expertise "will help Carrefour reinvent their fashion offering, breathing new life into the category through both the product and the in-store environment." BCBG stands for the French term 'bon chic bon genre,' in other words, good attitude, good style.