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Close your eyes and picture the word Valentino. Chances are, youre seeing a very specific shade of red. This visual imprint is part of the creative legacy left behind by the Italian fashion designer Valentino Garavani, who died at home on January 19 at the age of 93. Throughout his career, Garavani became synonymous with redso much so that a myth that his signature brand color, Valentino Rosso, was once patented with universal color matching company Pantone has become part of fashion canon. While other designers, like Jason Wu, Richard Nicoll, and Kate Spade have indeed made custom brand colors with Pantone, the company says Garavani never turned Valentino Red into an official Pantone hue. Pantone swatch or no, though, one thing is certain: Valentino mastered the art of the brand color. Garavani founded his eponymous fashion house, Maison Valentino, in 1960, alongside his business partner Giancarlo Giammetti. From that year to his retirement in 2008, Garavani wowed the fashion world with his romantic silhouettes and sharp tailoring, designing iconic looks for stars including Princess Diana, Sophia Loren, Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, and Jackie Onassis (who famously wore Valentino on her second wedding day in 1968). Amidst a career packed full of visionary moments, perhaps Garavanis most enduring impact on fashion design will be his approach to color. From the earliest days of his career, Garavani established his own signature shade of reda move that many modern brands make official through collaborations with Pantone. For an haute couture fashion house, it was an ahead-of-its time branding approach that made the Valentino name unforgettable. [Photo: Eric Vandeville/Gamma-Rapho/Getty Images] Red all the way down Garavanis love affair with red began even before he founded Maison Valentino. He debuted his first red dress, called Fiesta, in 1959, featuring an orange-leaning red tulle with a skirt full of rosettes. In the 2022 book Valentino Rosso, Garavani wrote of the color, “I think a woman dressed in red is always wonderful, adding, she is the perfect image of a heroine. From 1959 onward, he would include at least one red dress in every one of his collections. View this post on Instagram A post shared by @vintagefashionguild In 1985, Giammetti explained this pattern to Vogue: Valentino has superstitions that became status symbols. He did red once, and now you have red in every collection. Most of our statements came to be because we are romantic; we dont like to throw away things we like or that bring good luck. Natalia Vodianova, Valentino, Natalie Imbruglia, and Eva Herzigova. Moscow, 2008. [Photo: Chris Jackson/Getty Images] Despite the ubiquity of Valentino Rosso, the shade isn’t actually an official Pantone color. According to Laurie Pressman, vice president of the Pantone Color Institute, the company has no record of creating a custom Valentino redthough, she adds, the color mix he used was reportedly a combination of 100% magenta, 100% yellow, and 10% black. After Garavani’s retirement, Valentino did get its own Pantone color in 2022 under then-creative director Pierpaolo Piccioli, who used a custom pink to establish his imprint on the brand. An emperor of fashion, and master of brand color In many ways, Garavanis obsession with his signature color presaged the modern era of luxury branding. Over the course of the past two decades or so, brands including Bottega Veneta, Tiffany & Co., and Herms have made their own keystone colors (green, blue, and orange, respectively) more prominent in their branding. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal in 2022, Pressman explained that newer companies are leveraging color to stand out in a crowded digital market. Rather than waiting to develop a signature brand color over time, theyre looking to establish one as soon they come to market: Now what took years doesnt [anymore], because were seeing it on a phone every day, she told the publication. Garavani instinctively understood the power of color to send a message, long before it was a necessity for digital communicationand his lucky hue became his brands biggest asset. It has such vitality and allure that I dont just like seeing it on clothes, but on houses, in flowers, on objects, in details,” he wrote in Valentino Rosso. “It is my good-luck charm. “That red is a bewitching color, standing for life, blood and death, passion, love, and an absolute remedy for sadness and gloom,” Pressman says. Valentino did not respond to a request for comment.
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E-Commerce
The day after French President Emmanuel Macron wore a pair of Henry Jullien Pacific S 01 aviator sunglasses during his speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, the world wanted to know more about his eyewear. Search interest for Macron’s shiny, reflective sunglasses spiked Wednesday, and the French luxury eyewear brand’s website is down at time of this writing. All it takes is one world leader sporting a ready-to-wear garment or accessory for a brand to get a global spotlightand just maybe become a meme. Like interest shown to the Nike tracksuit Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro was pictured wearing earlier this month after he was seized by the U.S., interest in Macron’s shades is just the latest example of a newsmaker driving attention to a piece of fashion, and parlaying a news item into an internet meme. Before you could buy a “Make America Great Again” hat on President Donald Trump’s website back in 2016, he wore one himself. Watch the news and shop the look. Macron’s shades, which cost 659 euros, or $770, weren’t worn primarily as a fashion statement, but to prevent something more unsightly, according to the explanation from his press office. Macron’s office told Reuters he wore the sunglasses because of a burst blood vessel in his eye, and he was indeed spotted last week with one bloodshot eye. While Macron’s sunglasses hid his eye, they also had the added benefit of sending a visual message that accompanied the contents of his speech. Macron called out U.S. tariffs during his address and urged “more stability” in the world and respect over bullying while wearing a more-than-a-century-old French luxury brand. Online, some people thought Macron’s sunglasses looked cool, whereas Trump mocked him. “I watched him yesterday with those beautiful sunglasses. What the hell happened?” Trump remarked during his Wednesday address in Davos. But if Macron hadn’t worn the sunglasses, everyone would be talking about his red eye. Instead, they’re talking about his expensive aviators. The sunglasses drew attention to Macron’s speech, but they also made him look like a French Top Gun fighter pilot at a moment when he needed to communicate that he meant business. They also recalled former President Joe Biden at a time when the West feels unmoored as the U.S. shrinks from its post-World War II leadership under Trump. This wasn’t the type of speech one could wear Oakleys to. Macron’s choice of sunglasses for such an important speech was just right.
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E-Commerce
The Trump administration is dropping its appeal of a federal court ruling that blocked a campaign against diversity, equity, and inclusion threatening federal funding to the nation’s schools and colleges. The Education Department, in a court filing Wednesday, moved to dismiss its appeal. It leaves in place a federal judges August decision finding that the anti-DEI effort violated the First Amendment and federal procedural rules. The dispute centered on federal guidance telling schools and colleges they would lose federal money if they kept a wide range of practices that the Republican administration labeled as diversity, equity, and inclusion. The department did not immediately comment. Democracy Forward, a legal advocacy firm representing the plaintiffs, said the dismissal was a welcome relief and a meaningful win for public education. Todays dismissal confirms what the data shows: government attorneys are having an increasingly difficult time defending the lawlessness of the president and his cabinet, said Skye Perryman, the group’s president and CEO. The department sent the anti-DEI warning in a Dear Colleague Letter to schools last February. The memo said race could not be considered in decisions involving college admissions, hiring, scholarships and all other aspects of student, academic, and campus life. It said efforts to increase diversity had led to discrimination against white and Asian American students. The department later asked K-12 schools to certify they did not practice DEI, again threatening to cut federal funding. Both documents were struck down by U.S. District Judge Stephanie Gallagher in Maryland. In her ruling, she said the guidance stifled teachers’ free speech, causing millions of educators to reasonably fear that their lawful, and even beneficial, speech might cause them or their schools to be punished. The challenge was filed by the American Federation of Teachers. ___ The Associated Press education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find APs standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org. By Collin Binkley, AP education writer
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E-Commerce
The U.S. stock market is steadying following its worst day since October, though some signs of fear remain on Wall Street Wednesday about President Donald Trumps desire to take Greenland. The S&P 500 rose 0.6% after Trump said in a speech before business and government leaders in Europe that he would not use force to take the piece of ice. The potential de-escalation in rhetoric, which had ramped up earlier with talk of tariffs crossing the Atlantic, helped the index recover some of its 2.1% drop from the day before and pull closer to its all-time high set earlier this month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 336 points, or 0.7%, as of 11:45 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.5% higher. Treasury yields also eased in the bond market, a day after jumping in a potential signal of worries about higher inflation in the long term. They got help from a calming of bond yields in Japan, which surged earlier on concerns about the size of its government’s debt. The value of the U.S. dollar also held steadier against the euro, Swiss franc and other currencies after sliding the day before. But some nerves seemed to remain in the market, and the price of gold rose another 1.7% and topped $4,800 per ounce for the first time. Trump himself acknowledged how his desire for Greenland led to Tuesdays drop in the U.S. stock market, but he called it peanuts compared to what its gone up in the first year of his second term and said it would go up further in the future. While saying he would not use force to take Greenland, he called for immediate negotiations for the United States to acquire it from Denmark. Trump has a history of making big threats that send financial markets sliding, only to pull back later and reach deals that are seen as less bad for the economy or for inflation than his initial suggestion. On one hand, the pattern has given rise to the TACO acronym suggesting Trump Always Chickens Out if financial markets react strongly enough. On the other, has ultimately struck deals that outsiders may have earlier considered unlikely, ones that he’s crowed about later. The most obvious example is Trump’s announcement of high tariffs on Liberation Day, which eventually led to trade deals with many of the world’s major economies. Helping to lead the U.S. stock market Wednesday was Halliburton, which rose 4.9% after the oilfield services company reported a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. United Airlines climbed 2.9% after likewise reporting a better profit for the end of 2025 than expected. CEO Scott Kirby said that the airlines strong momentum in revenue is continuing into 2026. They helped offset a 4.8% drop for Netflix. The streamer sank even though it reported a stronger profit than expected as investors focused instead on its slowing subscriber growth and its lower-than-expected forecast for profit in the current quarter. Kraft Heinz sank 5.4% after Berkshire Hathaway warned investors Tuesday that it may be interested in selling its 325 million shares in the food giant that former CEO Warren Buffett helped create in 2015. Berkshire took a $3.76 billion write-down on its Kraft-Heinz stake last summer. Buffett said last fall that he was disappointed in Kraft Heinz plan to split the company in two, and Berkshires two representatives resigned from the Kraft board last spring. In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury eased to 4.27% from 4.30% late Tuesday. But it’s still above the 4.24% level where it was at on Friday. That’s before Trump threatened to impose 10% tariffs on Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Finland beginning in February for opposing U.S. control of Greenland. That would be on top of a 15% tariff specified by a trade agreement with the European Union that has yet to be ratified. In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed in mostly modest movements across Europe and Asia. Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.4%. The country’s prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, has called a snap election for Feb. 8, which had sent yields of long-term government bonds to record levels. The expectation is that Takaichi, who is capitalizing on strong public support ratings, will cut taxes and boost spending and increase the government’s already heavy load of debt. The yield on the 40-year Japanese government bond pulled back to 4.05% Wednesday, down from the 4.22% level that it had surged to on Tuesday. Stan Choe, AP business writer AP Business Writers Chan Ho-him and Matt Ott contributed.
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E-Commerce
Labor unions, faith organizations, and local businesses in Minnesota are calling for a statewide collective pause this Fridayin which they urge residents not to go to work, school, or do any shoppingin protest of the Trump administrations aggressive deployment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in the Twin Cities and beyond. The action, called the Day of Truth and Freedom, is planned for January 23, and includes plans for a march in downtown Minneapolis at 2 p.m. Here’s what to know. What’s the situation with ICE in Minnesota? On January 6, the Department of Homeland Security announced it was deploying 2,000 officers to the Minneapolis area to conduct what it called the largest immigration operation ever. The next day, an ICE agent shot and killed Minneapolis resident Renee Nicole Good. Residents and officials, including Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, called for ICE to leave the state immediately. Since then, the crackdown has only continued. ICE agents are reportedly conducting door-to-door raids. They have shown up at local schools, prompting districts to switch to remote learning, and have dragged workers out of a Target store and broke into a home to force a man who was wearing just shorts and Crocs outside into the freezing temperatures. How have Minnesota residents responded? Minnesotans have been protesting this aggressive presence of ICE. Now, a collection of unions, faith groups, community organizations, and local businesses are calling on them to take collective action on Friday, January 23. Working people, our schools and our communities are under attack, Chelsie Glaubitz Gabiou, president of the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, said in a statement about her groups support of the Day of Truth and Freedom. Union members are being detained commuting to and from work, tearing apart families. Parents are being forced to stay home, students held out of school, fearing for their lives, all while the employer class remains silent, she continued. Our labor federations are encouraging everyone to participate on January 23rd. Its time for every single Minnesotan who loves this state and the notion of truth and freedom to raise their voices and deepen their solidarity for our neighbors and coworkers living under this federal occupation. Along with the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation, AFL-CIO and a slew of local businesses, labor groups including the Saint Paul Regional Labor Federation, the West Area Labor Council, the North East Area Labor Council and the East Central Labor Council are in support of the statewide action. A group of faith leaders and clergy members have also come out in support of the action, announcing that places of worship across the state will participate and demanding ICE leave Minnesota. Silence in the face of oppression is not neutrality. It is permission, one faith leader with the nonprofit Isaiah said in a recent press conference. That is why on January 23 we are standing with more than 100 organizations across Minnesota. What are the demands of the Minnesota anti-ICE economic blackout? Organizers of the economic blackout have created a list of demands from their action. They are calling for ICE to leave Minnesota; for the officer who killed Renee Good to be held legally accountable; for the upcoming Congressional budget to give no additional federal funding to ICE and for ICE to be investigated for human and Constitutional violations; and for Minnesota and national companies to cease their economic relations with ICE and refuse entry to ICE agents. A group of Minnesota businesses have announced that they will be closed January 23 for that anti-ICE action. That list includes local restaurants, bars, book stores, and more. Minneapolis is also home to a number of Fortune 500 companies who have been silent about the ICE raids in the state. When Fast Company reached out multiple times in the wake of Goods killing to General Mills, Target, Best Buy, Cargill, UnitedHealth Group, 3M, and Land OLakes for comment, none of them responded. Those companies that have Minnesota retail locations do not appear on lists of businesses that plan to close for the one-day strike. The Trump administration has not indicated so far that it will stop its immigration raids in Minnesota. After Minnesota leaders filed a lawsuit saying the crackdown was unconstitutional in an attempt to end it, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has asked a federal judge to reject that bid. The DOJ is also investigating a protest at a St. Paul church in which residents confronted a pastor who they say is the acting field director of the St. Paul ICE field office. And it has subpoenaed at least five Minnesota officials, including Governor Tim Walz and Mayor Frey, as part of an investigation into whether they have obstructed ICE efforts.
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E-Commerce
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