Valentino Finally Enters the World of Online E-tail!

A sign of the times, the conservative fashion house of Valentino recently teamed up with Neiman Marcus Direct to offer Valentino for sale online.

Hardcore Fashionistas, get your credit cards ready, set, go...Valentino Collection is now but a mouse-click away at their newly re-tooled e-commerce website.

The site, which until recently was merely informational, is now a full-fledged e-tail site, complete with Collection, as well as the Valentino Roma, and R.E.D. Valentino lines. The French house teamed up with Neiman Marcus Direct, who has also launched a number of other fashion retailers online, including ritzy jeweler David Yurman, Salvatore Ferragamo, Baccarat, Elie Tahari, St. John & Zegna. (They're currently in the process of getting Michael Kors & Juicy Couture on the web.)

"The luxury customer has become a very informed, active e-commerce spender," Brendan Hoffman, president and ceo of Neiman Marcus Direct, told WWD. "We see that, with these brands, people go on the Web sites, and they're expecting to shop. We're partnering with the brands to enable the customer to not be disappointed and to be able to have access to the merchandise wherever they live."

To lay hands on Valentino, expect to lay down some serious cash. Boots are around $1,200-$1,500, dresses are priced anywhere from $2,500-$5,500, and a full-on gown will set a shopper back around $10,000 & up. For the budget-challenged, the sunglasses & fragrances make for a more affordable option. "E-commerce is one of the easiest ways to make Valentino accessible," explains Graziano de Boni, president and chief executive officer of Valentino North America. "It's a way to communicate with the consumers."

However, they're not just about the bottom line, but how the website will help build and establish the Valentino brand. "It's a new channel of distribution, a new way of doing business for us. It's important to be in this channel of distribution, more than how much we will make here."