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LIVE: Alexander Wang x H&M launch

Fashion
By FashionUnited

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As fans across the world gear up for Alexander Wang x H&M, FashionUnited reports live from the collection debut in London.

3:45 pm

Now that most fashion fans have managed to get their hands on the Alexander Wang x H&M collection, FashionUnited closes this live blog.

2:45 pm

After the mad dash for the collection online earlier this morning, H&M has closed its web shop for 'maintenance'. The site is expected to be back up and running by 3 pm.

2:20 pm

More happy customers share their experience shopping the Alexander Wang x H&M collection with fans around the world.

1:45 pm

Almost all the womenswear collection for Alexander Wang x H&M is sold out, with only a few selected items left, such as the leather joggers.

1:20 pm

A scuba jacket from Alexander Wang x H&M for sale on eBay has received bids of over 100,000 pounds.

12:30 pm

The queues outside Oxford Circus have come to an end as the last eager shoppers for the Alexander Wang x H&M collection exit the store.

11:55 am

Even the packaging for the collection is admired by shoppers online.

11:45 am

FashionUnited spotted some happy customers outside the Oxford Circus London store.
FU: I see you have a lot bags, did you find everything you were looking for?
Customer: "It was crazy busy, but I had several shopping baskets and took a lot of pieces off the rails where I could, then I edited it in the queue to the changing room."
FU: That's quite a strategy, what did you buy?
Customer: "I bought two parkas, as I know I will sell one on. I also bought a grey sweatshirt, the athletic one with the logo. I got the sport socks, glasses and some tops. My favourite are the boxing gloves. Someone left a pair by the changing room so I took them."
FU: You may be cursed for that! Can I ask how much you spent?
Customer: "Just over 500 pounds. But it's worth it."
FU: You got yourself a wardrobe, congrats.

11:38 am

Back in the UK, disappointed shoppers lament not being able to get their hands on the collection in time.

11:32 am

Across the Atlantic, Alexander Wang fans continue to line up outside H&M stores.

11:24 am

Alexander Wang has left the building. At least at Oxford Circus.

11:15 am

Happy shoppers share their purchases online.

11:10 am

"There is only one drop of merchandise for the store," the floor manager informs FashionUnited next to the empty shelves. "This is an exclusive collection and it's really first come first serve."
FU: But surely it is not so exclusive with hundreds of stores selling the same pieces?
"It's exclusive for each major city as this is all we'll be getting for London. Other stores around the world will have their chance to sell the collaboration too, but once the products have sold, that's it."

11:05 am

After just over two hours, the Alexander Wang x H&M collection seems to be sold out across London, with some hopeful customers still looking to nail their chosen piece.

11:01 am

The queue outside of H&M's Amsterdam flagship has come to an end, as the shopping craze draws to a close in the Dutch capital.

10:52 am

For those willingly to pay the extra price for their perfect piece, sellers are now flooding eBay with auctions for soldout items from Alexander Wang x H&M collection, such as this leather backpack.

10:52 am

SOLD OUT!!! One drop, one day, one chance only. The men's has sold out all but a few vest tops at 19.99 pounds and leather jackets at 199.99 pounds. The rest has gone, the shelves are empty.

10:45 am

Online, some customers start to question the price range for the items leftover, such as this crocodile-textured jumpers, retailing for 180 pounds.

10:45 am

Just spotted a die-hard with 6 bags. Think these will end up at eBay?

10:43 am

Nobody's shopping H&M's regular ranges.

10:35 am

Inside the store the queues are continuing. Only those with pink wristbands are allowed on the top floor, where the women's and accessory collections are displayed.

10:30 am

Men hoping to score something from the Alexander Wang x H&M collection in H&M's London stores are out luck it seems.

10:27 am

Customers advise other Alexander Wang x H&M shoppers to try using H&M's app instead of their online store to complete their purchases.

10:25 am

The sought-after scuba sweater for men is already sold out online.

10:23 am

Journalists from all over the world are here in London to cover the launch.

10:12 am

Queues across the country continue to vary, from Manchester to Stratford.


10:08 am

The menswear part of the collection appears to be in high demand in London, with the entire line selling out in 5 minutes.

10:03 am

For some Alexander Wang lovers, just having a bag from the collection launch is more than enough.

10:00 am

Apparently the last pair of boxing gloves has been sold at Oxford Circus. The store has only been open one hour and the queues are not moving.

9:58 am

While chaos descends on H&M's stores throughout London, the H&M stand by Selfridges seems to be less packed, giving shoppers time to share their appreciation for the collection.

9:55 am

Whilst some shoppers have been waiting in line for hours for the chance to get their hands on the coveted Alexander Wang x H&M collection, other shoppers snub the idea of waiting in the cold for the collection.

9:50 am

One shopper manages to complete her online order before the collection is sold out.

9:45 am

One shopper enquired if she could have the black & white stripe sweater off the mannequin #itsgoingfast.

9:40 am

The men's rails stand empty in H&M's flagship store in Amsterdam, nearly all the menswear items for the Alexander Wang x H&M are sold out.

9:35 am

UK customers continue to struggle to get onto H&M's website, with some desperate fans using multiple windows and devices in the hopes of making their purchase.

9:30 am

We are speaking with the first customer who came out with a purchase, Jay from the US.

FU: Did you manage to find all the pieces you wanted?
Jay: "I had a strategy, I came with a friend and I went to the women's section for the accessories and he went to the men's."
FU: There appears to be a queue inside too?
Jay: "That's only for the men's. In the women's section I was given a wristband. I bought boxing gloves, a keychain, sunglasses and logo sweater. Hopefully my friend will get me a parka!"
FU: Was it worth queuing for?
Jay: "For me yes, I'm a huge fan of Alexander Wang and the styles are very cool and within my budget."

9:22 am

Shoppers happily share pictures of items they managed to get their hands on, such as Joey from London, who teases friends on Twitter with a photograph of his new shoes.

9:20 am

The first customer has made it out of the Oxford Circus store in one piece with his purchase intact.

9:18 am

Some lucky UK shoppers have managed to get onto H&M's website for the collection debut, only to be placed in a queue.

9:15 am

H&M UK tweets out an apology for their site being down.

9:14 am

The first customer tried to leave the store but his bags were beeping and security was on him asap.

9:10 am

The first wave of shoppers is still inside and the queue continues to snake around Oxford Circus. Nobody is getting in.

9:05 am

The Oxford Circus store is already full. Security outside has stopped people from entering, to ensure foot traffic flows.

9:02 am

Some excitable fashion lovers are unable to contain their joy as the door open for the collection debut.

9:01 am

The doors have opened! Alexander Wang x H&M is officially available.

9:00 am

H&M's website has already been overrun with visitors trying to get online to place their orders. Let's hope its up and running again soon.

8:56 am

The music is pumping. The staff is getting ready for CRAZY shoppers!

8:50 am

10 minutes to opening. Security is rife. Men in black everywhere. Better safe than sorry after last night's Guy Fawkes' demonstrations.

8:48 am

The doors of H&M's flagship store on the Dam, in Amsterdam have already opened for the waiting lines and staff are racing across the shop floor to make sure the collection is refilled as fast as possible. The next group is waiting outside for their turn to spend ten minutes shopping, whilst security reportedly were fighting to keep the crowds under control.

8:45 am

Surprisingly, the queue is 50 - 50 male/female. Shows Alexander Wang has a broad appeal.

8:35 am

Across the seas in New York City, the first eager fashion lovers have already set up camp in front of H&M.

8:30 am

Everyone is hoping to snap up some affordable designer threads, but will they still be available by the time they get inside? The queue is quite insane, with logo'd coffee cups strewn everywhere, presumably handed out to those who came in the early hours.

8:20 am

Not only has Alexander Wang fever taken over the citizens of London, but the fever has spread to Dublin as well as the lines continue to grow.

8:15

This is the queue, growing by the nanosecond.

8:05 am

People waiting in the queues in London were given Alexander Wang x H&M foam hands while they wait.

8:01 am

Girl in queue no 79: "I arrived at 6 this morning, but the people in front camped over night."

8:00 am

An estimated 300 people in the queue.

7:55 am

Fashion lovers are out en force. Will this prove to be one of H&M's most successful collaborations?

7:45 am

Twitter fills up with tweets about the collection drop in London. Apart from massive queues forming infront of H&M's stores on Regent and Oxford Street, police vans were also present to control the hysteria.

7:30 am

It's a crisp morning in London - cold, damp and with the promise of winter coming - but that hasn't stopped the fashionistas from setting their alarm clocks to queue for the launch of it's collaboration with Alexander Wang, which launches today. We are reporting live from the front lines.

6:00 am

eBay is already flooded with offers for several items from the Alexander Wang x H&M collection, including the logo jacquard tights for women and long sleeved t-shirt. A number of the items come for designer preview events around the world, as well as official H&M sales in Australia, however bidders beware! Some of the garments up for bid are being offered on pre-sale, with several sellers dashing to H&M stores today to ensure their auction is successful.

5:30 am

Predictions: Despite warnings of a wet morning, H&M stores across London, Manchester, Birmingham and Edinburgh will open their doors to queues of eager fashion fans waiting for the chance to spend ten minutes shopping the Alexander Wang x H&M collection. Although the collection will unlikely attract the same volume of crowds as the designer collaboration line with Isabel Marant, its sportswear appeal combined with the celebrity boost given when Rihanna was spotted wearing the collection around town, will undoubtedly make it the most anticipated high street collection launch of the year.

5:00 am

One die hard fan has been queueing outside an H&M's store since 10:30 pm Tuesday night for the Alexander Wang x H&M collection launch in Singapore. Wayne Phua, claimed the 30 hour wait was worth the limited-edition Alexander Wang x H&M back pack and stool, selected items which will be given to the first 10 customers in line.

4:00 am

H&M surprised Londoners earlier this week by setting up an enormous, interactive cube in St. Christopher's Place piazza in London. 'The Box of Wang,' features a giant clock counting down the time until the collection launch as well as a live tweet wall and a hidden wall covering ten items from the H&M x Alexander Wang collection. In order to see which garments were hiding in the box, visitors had to send a tweet including their location, with the hashtag #AWxHMreveal. Then once the tweet had been received, a panel would move to unveil one item from the collection.

3:00 am

Not only will H&M be unveiling its tenth designer collaboration today, but the Swedish fashion chain will also launch its designer collaborations commemorative book tomorrow, entitled “The First Ten Years.” The book will feature never before seen images from the past collaborations, as well as ad campaigns, quotes and interviews with the celebrated designers. In honour of the book's launch, Stylight has complied a list of facts from all the designer collaborations which have hit H&M stores around the world.

Image by STYLIGHT.co.uk

2:00 am

Alexander Wang and Margareta van den Bosch H&M's creative adviser, join forces with a number of celebrities to kick off H&M x Alexander Wang Collection launch in Shanghai, China. Chris Lee and K-Pop group 2NE1 perform in LAN Wave, a industrial space located along the Huangpu River. “I am so excited to launch the Alexander Wang x H&M collection in Shanghai. I’ve been wanting to do something here, and this is the perfect occasion,” said the designer himself.

1:00 am

Selected guests, like Ellie Goulding, enjoy an exclusive shopping event at H&M's flagship store on Regent Street in London the night before the launch to celebrate the debut Alexander Wang & H&M collection.

However for those shoppers not invited to the event, fret not! The chosen invitees were limited to purchasing one piece per style.

00:00 am

H&M kicks off its tenth designer collaboration with New-York based designer Alexander Wang with this advertisement campaign, starring English footballer Andy Carroll and model Joan Smalls:

The designer stresses that his looks are to be worn “on the street, in the gym and at the club.”