USP - those three letters are surely familiar to any working adult who has yawned through a boardroom Powerpoint presentation, but they're relatively new when it comes to describing a fashion collection. Until now, that is. At the ongoing women's Autumn 2010 collections in New York, London, Milan and Paris, USP spelt a trend as leading designers presented collections focused on each fashion house's unique selling point, a.k.a its heritage and individual characteristics, which they refined, renewed and repackaged.

The reason for this serious focus? The recent global economic meltdown. With the fashion houses grappling with losses in profit and market share, each has had to relook its position and do some major soul-searching: What is the purpose of these expensive semi-annual fashion presentations? What, in fact, does fashion even mean?

And so it was that each label's collection ran close to the core of what it does best. Missoni, for example, left no doubt that it was all about elaborately-woven artisanal knits of refined Italian yarn and El Greco colours. Romantic, luxurious and earthy, the entire collection felt fresh and youthful.

Sticking to the company USP also worked well for Burberry Prorsum, which is known for being the makers of very English and stylishly rugged outerwear. Creative director Christopher Bailey played with proportion, turning out military-inflected coats and parkas - and every hybrid thereof - that looked fresh and desirable in every variation. Some had cosy volume, others an exaggerated shape, and many were daringly cropped and swaggered out with strap and buckle details. The collection was practical and desirable, and the focus on the outerwear was so keen that you remembered little of the slim nothings beneath. Perhaps that was the point.

Of all the fashion houses, Dolce & Gabbana had perhaps the best reason to revisit its roots. Designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana were celebrating the 25th anniversary of their collaboration, and they delivered a collection that reminded the world why they are where they are. D&G's strength is in clothes for the sensual woman, featuring sharp tailoring with a Sicilian twist - as summarised in the show's title Sartorialita, Sicilianita, Sensualita (Tailoring, Sicilian, Sensual) - and that's what sashayed down the runways.

The clothes were predominantly black, with trademark leopard and rose-print accents, and starred the signature underwear-as-outerwear concept which the designer duo pioneered. The finale of 75 models in variations of the black jacket, worn over black lace and satin, reinforced the heritage message of curvy tailoring and lacy lingerie that is the heart and soul of the brand.

Not unexpectedly, Prada used its house USP to send out a thought-provoking collection. Founder and designer Miuccia Prada focused on voluptuous 1950s lines which she called 'classic, forever shapes' that referenced the first collections she sent out in the 1990s: matronly pleats, proper coats, prim cable knits that were served perverse streaks of challenging prints, fabrics and colours.

At Dries Van Noten, too, the clothes were similarly subverted in a beautiful collection that juxtaposed combat greens and sweat-shirting against formal tailoring, and that touched on the ethnic in the form of a batik-print sleeve or a splash of embroidery. The effect was charming, uncontrived and chic, which is all you can expect from a Paris show.

But the USP formula didn't work as well for some labels, which sent out clumsy collections of 'best of' designs that were not unlike dull, dated compilation albums. At Chanel, for example, half-tux half-cocktail dresses looked clumsy and difficult, while a series of brief black jacket dresses decorated with sheer panels that might have been afterthoughts appeared oppressive rather than liberating. (Do powerful women care to look like anonymous office drones? Isn't this vision of empowered, dynamic women an old caricature?)

Beyond the USP trend, the shows also displayed a move away from elaborate, runway-friendly avant garde fashion towards more wearable clothes, resulting in one of the least hyperbolic seasons in recent memory. There was an absence of flashy design and decoration, and less reliance on novelty accessories such as heavily-embellished status handbags and crippling hoof-like platform shoes. This season, designers are making polished, mature clothes, clearly for adult women with careers who are concerned with looking accomplished, and not like fashion plates or ladies who lunch.

At Fendi, for example, Karl Lagerfeld showed a beautifully grown-up collection. Everything in this elegant array seemed timely and there was a judicious use of fur to frame and line coats in a patchwork pattern that was artful but calm, collected and not vulgar. The references, from the Jazz Age to Geoffrey Beene, never felt heavy-handed or fussy, but glamorous and sophisticated.

Simultaneously, the trend showed up in sharp and sexy ebony-leather trouser suits at Bottega Veneta, while at Gucci creative director Frida Giannini scraped off most of the hardware decor - so predominant in past collections - switched from boho prints to beige, and turned the Gucci rock chick into a Stepford Wife. The rampant sexuality of the original Gucci Girl, who for many years looked like she was just returning from an all-nighter, was set aside in favour of a new look that would suit a day at the office. Dresses did not figure much in this collection; instead, practical separates such as neatly tailored pants dominated.

For some labels, paring down their designs meant a return to 1990s minimalism. Creative director Raf Simons of Jil Sander, for one, revisited the chic severity of that era (a period that Jil Sander herself helped define) with precise, clean-cut ensembles in muted hues with a splash of colourful tweeds.

But while the season's looks are attractive, one wonders if the general bid to appeal to more women and to 'dumb down' fashion will work to grow business. After all, street-level design at high-end prices is really not what we need more of from fashion houses - for that, there are the fast fashion retailers.

All is not lost, however. One exception at the shows was Balenciaga, whose creative director Nicolas Ghesquière pursued a dynamic, streamlined wardrobe popping with colour, texture and punch. Okay, so it seemed as though Ghesquière might have taken inspiration from a recycle bin at times, but the high-tech collection in man-made materials combined with luxury fabrics was a vision of fashion's future - and a glimmering indication of more fabulous times to come.

btnews@sph.com.sg

This article was first published in The Business Times.