Celebrity fashion lines falling off the radar

By: Anne Robinson

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What do Sarah Jessica Parker, Jessica Simpson, Jay-Z, Lauren Conrad, Carlos Santana, Patrick Dempsey, Mandy Moore, and about a thousand other celebrities have in common? Well, for starters, they all have their own line of clothing/accessoriers/perfume or cologne.

Is it just me or does it seem like celebrities feel the need to be a part of everything? Singers become actors and vice versa, they design their own clothing labels, they run for political offices....what's next? Will they continue until they've mastered every field possible?

So, how did this fad of celebrities needing to integrate into the design world start and is it really coming to end due to the bad economy?

In general, people tend to be drawn to celebrity collections. They are often much less expensive than other high-end designers and they design their clothes and accessories with their fans in mind. You can buy their collections at stores like Kmart, Target, JCPenney, and other relatively cheap and very accessible stores.

It can be a win-win situation for retailers and celebrity designers. In the case of Miley Cyrus designing for Wal Mart, both reap benefits. Miley already has a following of fans who will undoubtedly buy items from her collection, which benefits Wal Mart. Wal Mart is now sponsoring her upcoming tour, when benefits Miley. What a nice working relationship...

However, it is not always a successful business venture. Many celebrities overestimate how well their collections will sell to people outside their fan base or simply lose interest in the design process after a short time.

So, are they on top of the game or losing steam? Celebrity clothing lines are definitly taking a hit this year, many have halted production or shut down all together.

Both Mandy Moore's and Lauren Conrad's collections were put on hold last Spring. Jennifer Lopez recently halted production on her line, Sweetface. Sarah Jessica Parker's line, Bitten, has an unknown future after the only store that carries the line, Steve & Barry's, filed for bankruptcy.

So, you decide. Should celebrities dive into the design wolrd or leave it up to the true designers who have been doing this for years...as a career...and not a short lived new hobby.