Dior and Swarovski to take part in fashion phone war

After fragrance, sunglasses, watches and handbags, now fashion designers want to add mobile phones to the 2008 list of fashion must-haves with a series of launches to cash in on a multimillion-pound market. The The Independent reports.

Dior and Swarovski will be the latest luxury giants to unveil handsets next year, while Swiss watchmaker Tag Heuer is expected to be the first timepiece maker to release one early next summer.

Demand for the Apple iPhone, a Christmas favourite for generous gift-givers, is proof of the growing appetite for stylish handsets. Experts predict that in the next three years non-traditional brands, including fashion designers, will grab 20 per cent of the global market, selling around 200 million handsets a year.

Despite steep initial price tags, such phones are proving popular. Prada has sold around 500,000 of its LG phone since its launch last spring, while D&G's limited edition gold MotoRAZR V3i phone for Motorola, which cost around £275, clocked up sales of $256m (£128m) in 12 months, or around 465,000 phones.

Fashion and the mobile phone industry first collided two years ago when Motorola's bright pink V3 clamshell was a Christmas bestseller. Other hits since then have included Cath Kidston's designs for Nokia and Anna Sui's for Samsung. Analysts believe fashion and mobiles make perfect bedfellows because with a new product every three months, the handset industry is one of the few able to keep pace with the world of fashion.