Alber Elbaz - Designer

[Nymphaea]

esquire singapore sept19 digital edition

 

[Nymphaea]

 

[eugenius]

Even if they're totally not "me", I do have to say, those Tod's shoes are really cute. Although, I admit, I'm totally biased towards the designer. Had any other designer's name been attached to it, like Donatella or Alessandro or JW (What does JW even stand for anyways? Dont' answer that), I probably wouldn't think such warm happy thoughts towards them.

 

[fashionista-ta]

Alber in the video is hilarious! Perhaps it's my general feeling of meh! toward Tod's that's influencing my feelings about this capsule.

 

[reese06]

If you told me those shoes and video were J.Crew, I would believe you.

It's a no for me.

 

[gazebo]

I got these exact silver mirror men's by Lanvin

 

[style_expert]

Alber Elbaz and Richemont Are Launching a New Fashion Venture. They Have Their Work Cut Out for Them.
The former Lanvin creative director has inked a partnership with the Swiss luxury conglomerate.

Businessoffashion

Alber Elbaz is Back! What We Know So Far About His New Richemont Deal

After his abrupt departure from Lanvin in 2015, Alber Elbaz has been sorely missed in the fashion industry. Save for a couple of collaborations and some speaking engagements here and there, he’s been keeping a low profile—until today. Hours ago, news broke that the beloved designer is forming a joint venture with Richemont, the Swiss luxury conglomerate that owns Chloé, Yoox Net-a-Porter group, Cartier, and Van Cleef & Arpels, among other brands.

Known as AZ Fashion, it will be “an innovative and dynamic startup, meant to turn dreams into reality,” according to a release. “Upon hearing Alber Elbaz describe his vision for fashion and the projects it inspires in him, I was again struck by his creativity and insight,” Richemont chairman Johann Rupert stated. “His talent and inventiveness, with his sensitivity towards women and their wellbeing, will be of great value to our group and its maisons. We warmly welcome Alber to Richemont and look forward to an exciting partnership.”

Elbaz added: “I am very happy to partner with Richemont and establish my ‘dream factory,’ which will focus on developing solutions for women of our times. I am extremely excited to collaborate with good people, talented and smart individuals and look forward to also having a lot of fun with this new adventure.”

vogue.com

 

[dior_couture1245]

Curious to see the results...although “AZ Fashion” is a horrible name.

 

[Lola701]

We want you to save Dior or Chanel and you do this to us?

 

[Scotty]

Oh Lord.. AZ Fashion sounds cheap.

 

[Salvatore]

I wonder if it is actually a label or if it is some type of "service" to fashion, like consultancy or something. I'm very curious either way.

 

[YohjiAddict]

AZ Mode would have been a bit more chic...

 

[TaylorBinque]

AZMode, AZAtelier, A-Z, just AZ anything but not AZfashion. That sounds like an ailing fast fashion brand. Anyway, I'm excited to see this unfolds and wish him the best. However, I still think he's the best person to rejuvenate Dior.

 

[bc collector]

Could it be that AZFashion is just the name given to the partnership legal agreement, rather than the actual label?

 

[Lola701]

The name reminds me of those « edgy », underground French magazines from the 80’s...
Terrible!
That being said, I find it weird that Richemont takes chances with Alber. He has a signature and is really talented but I don’t really see him having his own line as crazy as it sounds...

From Laroche to YSL, from Krizia to Lanvin, his work has always been consistent but I don’t know if it’s enough to have his own line today. He can be like Dries but I think I was excited about him going at Dior because that combination can produce fireworks....

And it’s so weird to release statements that are beyond vague. Like you are announcing a partnership and yet, nobody gets what it’s all about.

 

[style_expert]

Slightly more information in this article by Vanessa Friedman

Alber Elbaz Is Back in Fashion
The former Lanvin designer has a new deal with Richemont and a new brand.

Alber Elbaz is ready for his comeback.

On Friday, Richemont, the Swiss luxury group, announced that it had entered into a partnership with Mr. Elbaz, the former Lanvin designer whose abrupt firing in 2015 after a falling out with the owner of the brand became for many a symbol of what was wrong with the fashion world.

Now Mr. Elbaz is aiming to set things right.

Called AZfashion, the company will be that rare thing in the European high-end fashion space: a new brand. With, possibly, a new approach to the industry.

“It’s a start-up,” Mr. Elbaz said on the phone from Paris. “I just signed an hour ago. My heart is still beating, and I haven’t even had any Champagne.”

He also didn’t have too many details about exactly what shape the new brand would take, other than to say it would be “project based.”

“We are not going to do pre-collections, collections, post-collections,” he said. “It’s going to be about things I believe are relevant to make. We are just beginning now. And we are beginning really, really small. I like the idea of starting small today.”

The company, which is described as a joint venture, — though Mr. Elbaz said Richemont was the majority owner — will be based in Paris.

“I didn’t want to call it Alber Elbaz, because it’s not about me, myself and I,” he said. “It’s going to be about we and us. And it’s going to go from A to Z.” (He means that literally and metaphorically: The name is composed of the first and last letters of his name, and also refers to his approach.) It is also going to be about luxury, but, he said, “today luxury is not just about price.”

Mr. Elbaz, 58, who during his 14-year tenure at Lanvin became synonymous with a certain grace and generosity of aesthetic, and who was widely beloved in the industry both for his skill with a seam and his willingness to embrace and express his own neuroses, has been largely off the fashion map for the last four years.

Though he became active on Instagram after leaving Lanvin (he has about 124,000 followers), did the occasional collaboration — with LeSportsac and, more recently, Tod’s — and though his name was often raised in speculation when top designer jobs became available, he often seemed ambivalent about re-entering the modern fashion industry, one driven by social media, influencers and a constant stream of product. Indeed, he has been one of its most vocal critics.

Which makes it interesting that he chose to make his comeback via a deal with Richemont, one of the big three global luxury groups, along with LVMH and Kering, but one that is focused on watches and jewelry. (Richemont owns Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Piaget, among others.)

AZfashion will be one of only a handful of clothing brands in the conglomerate, along with Chloé, Alaïa and Dunhill. (Richemont also owns Yoox Net-a-Porter Group.) Though Richemont is often viewed as being less comfortable with fashion than with jewelry, and has struggled with some of its ready-to-wear brands, the company also has a tendency to treat them as jewels unto themselves.

In a news release, Johann Rupert, the chairman of Richemont, said: “Upon hearing Alber Elbaz describe his vision for fashion and the projects it inspires in him, I was again struck by his creativity and insight. His talent and inventiveness, with his sensitivity toward women and their well-being, will be of great value to our group and its maisons.”

Mr. Elbaz, who said he “knew almost no one from Richemont” in his previous fashion life, said he had met Mr. Rupert in August, and the deal had come together very quickly, based on “mutual respect and trust,” qualities he noted he had learned were very important after his Lanvin experience.

“Time, for all of us designers, is the most important ingredient: time to think, to dream, to see, to produce, and that’s what they are going to give me,” he said. “Plus some resources.”

Neither Mr. Elbaz nor Richemont provided any details about when the first of the AZfashion projects would appear, or what form they would take. Still, one thing is certain: Given Mr. Elbaz’s reputation, everyone will be watching.

If he does succeed in disrupting the system, either in the way he shows his work or in how he defines a collection, it could have a domino effect on other designers, freeing them up to experiment with different structures and expectations. And freeing up their backers to believe that starting a new brand with a talented creative is a worthwhile bet, rather than simply trying to match a designer with a heritage house.

At the moment, however, “it is time for me to go back to work and realize my dreams and hire some people,” Mr. Elbaz said.

nytimes

 

[Lola701]

I don’t know why but his project gives me Stefano Pilati’s RANDOM IDENTITIES vibes...
And even if it’s not really discussed here, it’s a honest and clever way to think fashion. The products are good, well made and well priced...Even if it’s a bit underwhelming given the talent and the possibilities of Stefano.

It’s a bit sad that the way to disrupt Fashion has more to do with everything except the clothes.

 

[orchidee]

AZFashion sounds like a youtube channel that does slideshow countdowns of "The Top 5 Designers in History"

 

[jeanclaude]

It’s a bit sad that the way to disrupt Fashion has more to do with everything except the clothes.

This sentence condenses fashion industry in this era of marketing designers.

 

[Lola701]

This sentence condenses fashion industry in this era of marketing designers.

Can you imagine the type of people he may hire on that « start-up » mentality!
A ton of people like the guy at Lanvin who believes that their best assets are their youth?
I’m around that mid 30’s age range but I find it so stupid! I can see old Alber trying to speak to a generation of customers that doesn’t necessarily cares about him and seeking validation from a team of designers who thinks that all that matters is a great IG strategy....

He really should have went to Dior.