Designers Switching Houses & Moving to New Brands

[Salvatore]

Excuse me
What

 

[LadyJunon]

Tom Ford left his own brand with final FW 23 collection

 

[Mathewthew]

I just saw on IG there's rumor Jacquemus is going to Givenchy.

 

[Tchi]

Well that sounds like an unpromising project.
What happened to the Julien Dossena rumors?

 

[style_expert]

Wasn't that rumor already debunked last week?

I think the wisest thing for Jacquemus would be to dedicate himself to his own brand solely, which seems to be quite the commercial success. Despite his limited actual design talent you have to admit that he has done quite an amazing job there.

 

[susseinmcswanny]

I wonder how much of that success is measured in speculative value, because that brand is actually so so bad. He's only still "relevant" because everyone in that circle continues to spoon-feed him to the media. "Oh yeah it's Jacquemus he's so good let's just keep saying his name to make him a staple in the community". To be fair, I can understand the vibe he's trying to emanate, but it's so low effort that it's unremarkable. There's no reason he's still a well known name besides for the fact that Lucien Pages does his PR. He's the Hailey Bieber of fashion. Like many others these days

 

[LadyJunon]

I wonder how much of that success is measured in speculative value, because that brand is actually so so bad. He's only still "relevant" because everyone in that circle continues to spoon-feed him to the media. "Oh yeah it's Jacquemus he's so good let's just keep saying his name to make him a staple in the community". To be fair, I can understand the vibe he's trying to emanate, but it's so low effort that it's unremarkable. There's no reason he's still a well known name besides for the fact that Lucien Pages does his PR. He's the Hailey Bieber of fashion. Like many others these days

He kinda fell off the media since the pandemic. I only really remember his existence when he announces a new show.

 

[Nimsay]

Jacquemis is very much a nobody. Only the telfar crowd likes him and they have no money. That opening ceremony customer who spends every penny they have on clothes isnt enough to support a brand like Givenchy. Its not happening.


That whole NY scene look with tattoos like stickers and a nose ring isnt gonna sell to a rich b*tch in Gstaad. She may call the Gendiarme.

 

[Lola701]

Today nothing can surprise me but Jacquemus has been very vocal about wanting to grow his own brand and so far, since he is obviously enjoying the fruits of his labor, taking a brand like Givenchy today won’t do anything special for him.

‘His brand is already successful and he is free. He has created a system that works for him and it’s good for him…
I’m not sure how long it’s gonna last because in France his work is very criticized from a creative and product POV.

I wouldn’t call him a nobody tho. He is extremely lazy as a designer but he is very good in marketing. He has created an identity for his brand.

However he hasn’t secured his place as a credible designer.

 

[perhydrol]

I honestly don't believe the Jacquemus rumor at all. I can remember what was happening when CWK left the brand, there was the strongest rumor of Matthew Williams being hired and then, the news about Dossena and the Meiers resurfaced out of the sudden, almost as if Givenchy had tried to distract the audience from their decision before the official announcement. That's why I'd rather believe in Nensi Dojaka being hired.

 

[kikifoz]

Jacquemus' survival is based on marketing. If he goes to another brand, he will have a similar fate as Alexander Wang bc his lack of design talent and range will be exposed.

 

[fenty]

The only thing thats keeping the lights on at Jacquemus are the impressions the brand receives on social media. Plus he has an amazing marketing team

 

[Deleted member 7575]

Lauren Sherman confirmed in her newsletter that Jacquemus is NOT going to Givenchy.

 

[LadyJunon]

Jacquemus' survival is based on marketing. If he goes to another brand, he will have a similar fate as Alexander Wang bc his lack of design talent and range will be exposed.

I believe biggest factor in Wang's failure was the r*pe allegations. His brand was still going really well post-Balenciaga up to that point. I believe now that he has sold a minority share to a company in Asia.

The only thing thats keeping the lights on at Jacquemus are the impressions the brand receives on social media. Plus he has an amazing marketing team

I believe that Jacquemus admits that he was struggling up to 2016/17, when he had released that trio of hit collections along with the first edition of the Chiquito bag.

 

[LadyJunon]

I believe biggest factor in Wang's failure was the r*pe allegations. His brand was still going really well post-Balenciaga up to that point. I believe now that he has sold a minority share to a company in Asia.

Here's the exact information (quoting Vogue Business

Alexander Wang has secured his first-ever outside investment, a significant move for his hitherto family-owned brand as it attempts to recover from sexual assault allegations made against the designer in 2020.

The deal has been in the works since just before the pandemic and is now coming together despite the impact of the allegations. Wang has confirmed the undisclosed minority investment from two China-based entities: venture capital fund Challenjers Capital and Youngor Group, an institutional investor whose main activities are clothes manufacturing and property development.

 

[donyan]

It looks like Lutz Huelle is to continue his collaboration with AZ Factory. The whole concept is still not clear to me though

Lutz Huelle, who nailed his first collaboration with AZ Factory in October, is back for an encore, and a recurrent role helming pre-collections, WWD has learned.

His next product story, to be unveiled next month for the pre-spring 2024 season, also comes with a heightened commitment to sustainability, with the aim of creating half the collection from deadstock materials.

Predicated on “joy,” the collection is to expand on themes from Huelle’s first effort, which perfectly captured the offhand couture look pioneered by AZ Factory’s late founder Alber Elbaz.

“The first collaboration with AZ Factory was the most fabulous and inspiring experience, and I’m overjoyed at being able to continue to collaborate with this incredible team,” Huelle told WWD. “The spirit and values of AZ Factory have always been an integral part of my own work, and I can’t wait to start working on this next chapter.”

Huelle’s raw-edged tailoring, cocktail dresses, billowing poplin shirts and crisply cut denim pieces are currently selling briskly on the AZ Factory online store, according to Mauro Grimaldi, a Richemont executive.
“It’s performing very well,” he enthused, noting that the spring 2023 collection was also wholesaled to about 30 top international retailers including Selfridges and Matchesfashion in the U.K., Saks Fifth Avenue in the U.S., 10 Corso Como and Sugar in Italy, Printemps in France, and I.T in China.

Huelle recently made personal appearances for his AZ Factory effort at specialty store Andreas Murkudis in Berlin, and Bongénie Grieder in Geneva, where the designer returns regularly as head of the fashion and accessories design department at art and design school HEAD.

AZ Factory is a joint venture between Compagnie Financière Richemont and Elbaz, billed as a creative hub for smart, solutions-driven fashions that care.

So far, it has clocked eight collaborations with guest “amigos” including Thebe Magugu, Ester Manas, Cyril Bourez, ShelterSuit and Tennessy Thoreson. Molly Molloy and Lucinda Chambers, the duo behind the Colville label, created an AZ Factory range for fall 2023 retailing.

Huelle was the first seasoned, established talent to work with the creative studio Elbaz had assembled before dying from COVID-19 in April 2021.

Grimaldi, a strategic adviser to Philippe Fortunato, chief executive officer of fashion and accessories maisons at Richemont, said establishing pre-collections, which offer a longer full-price selling window, lays a more solid commercial foundation for AZ Factory after an initial period of experimentation.

The brand plans to continue participating in Paris Fashion Weeks, inviting mainly absolute beginners to take a a crack at couture, and a rotating cast of “guest amigos” for the main women’s ready-to-wear runway showcases.

Its studio also continues to turn out product stories, with a range of printed silk pajamas due out this summer.

Grimaldi lauded that Huelle fully embraced the AZ Factory opportunity, which he sees as a “creative exchange” between a guest designer and AZ’s studio and atelier.


“It really resonated with what Alber had in mind — to do fashion that is practical, and that empowers women in an environment that is joyful,” Grimaldi said. “The real beauty of this project is that what comes out is something greater than just the sum of the two creative teams.

“We are a factory; we are a laboratory,” he continued. “This is a place where you can experiment with new ideas and you can do something that you might not consider in your own brand.”

Grimaldi stressed that AZ Factory is not looking for tributes to Elbaz’s design legacy, and therefore does not search for guest talents whose fashions resemble what the Israeli designer became known for at a succession of European houses, including Guy Laroche, Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche and Lanvin.

“We think the best tribute to Alber is supporting people who are super creative, and at the same time have values, but not necessary clothes, in common with him.”

Grimaldi said he’s unfazed that the guest designer strategy keeps proliferating, with Lanvin the latest to announce it’s establishing a Lanvin Lab for “creative partnerships.”

The executive noted that most European players who invite rotating guest creatives, such as Jean Paul Gaultier, play the heritage card, whereas “we are much more into the experimental and
unpredictable side of the curation.

“We are not a heritage brand. Alber did not have time to create codes,” he explained. “We underline more and more the identity of being a factory.”

Grimaldi sidestepped questions about the precise duration of the recurrent collaboration with Huelle, characterizing it as open-ended. “Let’s say that it’s as long as both sides consider that it is joyful to do that,” he said with a smile.

Huelle and partner David Ballu founded the Lutz brand in Paris in 2000 and it has been a mainstay of the Paris calendar. Over the years, Huelle has also consulted for brands including S’Max Mara, Brioni and Delpozo.

A Central Saint Martins graduate, Huelle cut his teeth at Maison Martin Margiela, which he joined in 1995 and where he became responsible for the development of its knitwear and Artisanal lines. He won France’s prestigious ANDAM fashion award in 2000 and 2002.
/QUOTE]

WWD

 

[LadyJunon]

It looks like Lutz Huelle is to continue his collaboration with AZ Factory. The whole concept is still not clear to me though

Good for him. He's good at what he does and he deserves it after the f*ckery that was Delpozo.

 

[LadyJunon]

There's rumours going around about Alessandro Michele designing for a Walter Albini relaunch.
Sources: Vogue and BOF

 

[jeanclaude]

I can´t picture Michele at Walter Albini...his style is more 80s trashy for a revival of a 20s/30s art-déco inspired brand (kind of an italian version of Biba).

But I can totally picture Catherine Baba as a stylist there, I think she would fit as a glove!

 

[susseinmcswanny]

"We are honored to have unearthed this hidden jewel of Italian high fashion and are currently studying Walter Albini’s vast heritage to set the foundations for the future of the eponymous brand. Walter Albini deserves to claim its rightful place amongst the top luxury brands on the global stage,"

? This has gotta stop. It's like cancerous at this point. My eyes have rolled out of my skull. If we have to be stuck in the corporate capitalist whatever whatever nightmare, I would really like to just see a brand of someone as themself??? No group has the f*cking balls to invest in a person and their vision of fashion. Zero attempt at even trying to cover up that its core subject matter is making money. In terms of what's considered to be pop culture or the somewhat mainstream fashion narrative, our history will never ever have someone going toe to toe with another Dior, YSL, Balenciaga, when we're just gonna have either short term dissolvable stimulatory candy (that tastes like sh*t) or ride on the coattails of people who have paved their own path for e v e r.