There’s swag and then there’s swag. To celebrate the opening of its 8-story flagship extravaganza in Tokyo, Gucci teamed up with Apple to give guests 1,100 logo’d 30 gig iPods that are doubling as press kits – complete with a mini movie about the Ginza store, looks from the spring/summer 2007 collection of clothes and accessories. "This is a breakthrough experience we are providing to the press and VIP customers for our Ginza opening and reinforces the commitment to creativity and innovation we have at Gucci," Gucci chief executive officer, Mark Lee, told WWD. Mary J. Blige will be in the house performing for the November 2 event. The specially etched iPods, nestled in their silvery La Pelle Guccissima cases, are representative of a few major trends: the need to devise ever more ritzy & glitzy swag to even be memorable to members of a typically swag-overloaded & jaded crowd; the continued intersection and interdependence of music & fashion; the influence of technology on fashion. Cellphones, laptops, blackberries, pagers, PDF’s, Sidekicks – gadgets are such a part of life that they’ve become fashion accessories. And what better than one that combines everything that makes a fashionista’s heart sing: flash, logos, and exclusivity…so exclusive, they’re not even for sale!

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