In the whirlwinds of today's gig economy, where touch-and-go, freelance, and under-employment are realities facing many of fashion's youngest creators, it's hard to imagine having spent the majority of one's adult life working for any one company. That's the reality CHRISTOPHER BAILEY will leave behind when he steps down as chief creative officer and president of BURBERRY in March 2018, after which he'll have spent 17 years—most of his life as a fashion designer—at the company known for British heritage, nova check, and the trench coat. With a company as sprawling and international as Burberry, it's difficult to point to any single cause for stalled business, but sure, Burberry had lost some edge over the last few years. Is this a failure of creativity or of marketing and strategic positioning? There's no doubt Bailey was integral to the brand's turnaround and rise through the 2000s. The length of his tenure at the label is something rarely realized in fashion now, and if there's been any theme to recent success from fashion's big players, it's a synergistic relationship between creative director and CEO. Bailey's time overlapped two now-legendary executives at Burberry: ROSE MARIE BRAVO and ANGELA AHRENDTS. Under Ahrendts, Burberry became known for being at the forefront of technology, once partnering with APPLE on a runway pre-release of the IPHONE 5S. When Ahrendts left for Apple in 2014, Burberry didn't maintain the brand aesthetic with its image of driving toward innovation. So what now? It could be good for the label to get back on the trajectory of pushing innovative retail along with its creative push. The spring/summer 2018 runway show felt like a turning point, with its cheeky play on the "chav" interpretation of the brand's nova check—an aesthetic once seen as "downmarket" and something the label made great strides to distance itself from years earlier. Just give it a decade or two: fashionable taste turns inside out. I thought the collection was great. Yet the label should approach the street-meets-luxury aesthetic with caution. It's maturing. Much respect to Bailey and best wishes on his future moves. BLOOMBERG cited sources that Bailey is open to moving on to a role outside of fashion. Speculation has begun that current CEO MARCO GOBBETTI might try to bring in PHOEBE PHILO, whom he worked with at CÉLINE. Wait and see... UNDER ARMOUR is having a tough time... 10 outerwear brands on HIGHSNOBIETY's radar... @ebaybae... The WORLD SERIES MVBs, that is, its "most valuable barbers."