Designers Switching Houses & Moving to New Brands

[andrew]

This must be the most uninspiring decade in our history. Industry led by brain dead people catering to other brain dead people. Just one huge brain rot that's progressing every ear.

well they say fashion is a reflection of the zeitgeist

 

[jeanclaude]

Drunk Carine.
She is a bit ridiculous but I guess it’s refreshing. She has nothing to prove or no image to keep anymore.
Doing whatever in her Avenue Montaigne Apartment.

Only drunk??? Wow! I can´t imagine how she would look like if she smoked crack...

 

[PDFSD]

Puck news
What do you think is going to happen now that all the designer changes are done?
Well, they’re never over over. (See: Versace.) I suspect there will be more turnover at companies where the recent appointments are duds that have no chance of taking off. Gone are the days where weak creative directors get three years to make it work. More like one… especially if sales keep dipping.
Everyone learned a lesson with Sabato.
The test begins this spring, when the product lands in stores. We’ll know then whether the industry is totally screwed.

 

[nationalsalt]

Puck news
What do you think is going to happen now that all the designer changes are done?
Well, they’re never over over. (See: Versace.) I suspect there will be more turnover at companies where the recent appointments are duds that have no chance of taking off. Gone are the days where weak creative directors get three years to make it work. More like one… especially if sales keep dipping.
Everyone learned a lesson with Sabato.
The test begins this spring, when the product lands in stores. We’ll know then whether the industry is totally screwed.

Who do people think are the duds in danger? 👀

 

[brandon J pierre]

Who do people think are the duds in danger? 👀

Many, but no Matter what it takes 3 years to know if a designer's going to be successful, it doesn't matter what the internet says what experts says , what business people say , it takes three years.

 

[reese06]

Who do people think are the duds in danger? 👀

DEMNA - His Gucci so far feels extremely surface level with lots of noise, buzz, and immediate excitement, but the actual product feels subpar and lacking long desirability.

Daniel Lee - it seems they are just waiting for his contract to expire. They don't even try to act like they care about the runway collection or him in their communication channels.

Alessandro Michele - one trick pony. S/S 2026 was a step in the right direction but not enough to bring the brand to the front. All of the bag releases have been reductive versions of other brands. Pre-fall 2026 was back to his old tricks and he doesn't understand the energy, essence or lifestyle of the Valentino woman.

PPP - Bland designer and the ultimate dad trying to be cool and down with "the kids". So corny and the excitement for his collection was only fueled by people's disdain for Demna.

 

[jeanclaude]

Who do people think are the duds in danger? 👀

All of them!!

 

[Lola701]

Many, but no Matter what it takes 3 years to know if a designer's going to be successful, it doesn't matter what the internet says what experts says , what business people say , it takes three years.

Beyond that, some brands are in danger. The whole Kering group is in danger.

Chanel, Dior are well oiled machine. Bottega Veneta proved that it can perform without much noise (even if it’s a small growth it works). The rest of Kering is in danger.

Tbh for me Jil Sander too could be in danger.

I have more faith in the success of Glenn at Margiela than the new guy at Jil Sander.

Daniel Lee leaving Burberry could also switch things up in the landscape.

 

[brandon J pierre]

Beyond that, some brands are in danger. The whole Kering group is in danger.

Chanel, Dior are well oiled machine. Bottega Veneta proved that it can perform without much noise (even if it’s a small growth it works). The rest of Kering is in danger.

Tbh for me Jil Sander too could be in danger.

I have more faith in the success of Glenn at Margiela than the new guy at Jil Sander.

Daniel Lee leaving Burberry could also switch things up in the landscape.

Dior is a well or a machine, But i'm not sure about jonathan at all. We'll know once we see the first couture show. Matthew is okay. Still waiting on the couture show.

But Some of these big old brands need to die off. These older houses with the switching of designers around are sucking up creativity energy and press , and no one ever really promotes new designers and new brands and new fashion shows , there's no new ways of thinking. And Fast fashion is here to stay. I could care less about Burberry. I did a little window shopping in Miami where I'm from and the Jil Sander accessories room was absolutely beautiful. Wonderful bags and shoes , but that I care about their fashion shows is a stretch. Do They even need it? And the mcqueen in midtown looks like a very sad place since sarah left.

 

[brandon J pierre]

All of them!!

Literally all of them , it's not even funny. No one is safe except Karl Lagerfeld And hes gone

 

[Thefrenchy]

^ Agree with you Lola on all those mentioned. Even though I'd be more inclined to think that performance at BV is temporary and will rely purely on MB's era LGs (just like they were still riding on DL's coat tail at the very beginning when Blazy was failing at coming up with a signature bag -shout of to those of us who remember that heinous bucket bag-), and start crashing once they've rolled out Trotter's full POV. Most of their brand ambassadors' contracts are ending and will quite certainly be vacuumed by Chanel (because their Head of VIPs is there now) and others. She doesn't strike me as having a strong vision on that front either, so let's see. Although. she was the one who suggested Tyler The Creator for their dumb hand campaigns in the end, so.

The problem the industry has right now is that many CDs have been chosen because they were easier to "manage". Especially at OTB. MMM is their strongest brand in the portfolio and allegedly RR is betting on Marni, more than any of his new hires, to take second spot. I don't have much faith for Jil Sander, and I'm slowly hearing things about their CD that make me wonder if he was indeed the right pick. Time will tell, but allegedly there are quite a few departures over there as well. And from what buyer friends told me, the prices are quite high, for clothes that aren't particularly exceptional and as we've seen the silhouette is a drastic change from what their clients have been used to seeing for almost a decade. If they don't work on strong brand amplification, we all know how that will end.

I've said it multiple times here but with the exception of Blazy and Anderson (and now maybe WB at Hermes?), I doubt that most of the 2025 hires will have their contract reconducted. What I'm very curious about is going to be the whole alleged transfer of PM @ Versace (when confirmed), then who's going to carry Alaia. They've invested so much in that brand that I'm curious to see what strategy they'll go for if it's confirm they'll lose him.

Then there are the deathbeds one: McQueen, Burberry, Valentino to name a few.
Pretty sure Mugler and CK won't last long either. Very big question mark on Céline from a mid-term perspective.

Five I'm curious about are: Loewe (LVMH needs to media train them) because it felt like JWA left overs but since theyre advertisers they didn't get dragged in the mud too much, Givenchy (personally found it disastrous from day 1), Tom Ford (not impressed but I'm not a client there either so that's fine), Hermes Womens (she feels a bit out of breath, I wonder how hers and WB's world will contrast).

Finally, there'll be a big question mark on what will be the future of Armani once the (no pun intended) dust will have settled. That's quite the beast to take over.

 

[tricotineacetat]

Tbh for me Jil Sander too could be in danger.

I have more faith in the success of Glenn at Margiela than the new guy at Jil Sander.

I don't think anyone really feels enticed to return to this ultra-austere 'performative minimalism' that Jil Sander herself never played by, either - at the worst you think of the cadet-style dressing of Raf Simons' first two Sander shows but the fact that noone really talks about it at all is quite telling.

 

[Kennnnn]

In the 80s and 90s, everyone knew the big brands like YSL, Gucci, Celine, etc. People who loved fashion didn't care about them, because of how over licensed, stodgy and boring they were. They had huge stores in the big cities but you would walk past them without looking twice in the window. We've had a good two to three decades of revived interest and excitement in luxury fashion, but we've returned to the same point - everyone knows the brands like McQueen, Valentino, Prada and all the above, but I don't even bother now to look in the window, let alone walk in to buy anything.

 

[tricotineacetat]

In the 80s and 90s, everyone knew the big brands like YSL, Gucci, Celine, etc. People who loved fashion didn't care about them, because of how over licensed, stodgy and boring they were. They had huge stores in the big cities but you would walk past them without looking twice in the window. We've had a good two to three decades of revived interest and excitement in luxury fashion, but we've returned to the same point - everyone knows the brands like McQueen, Valentino, Prada and all the above, but I don't even bother now to look in the window, let alone walk in to buy anything.

Agreed 100% - I would go a step further and mention the very essence of our today's cultural landscape emphasizes too strongly on the authority of audience reach, deeming artistic positions worthy when it's represented by the amount of followers and reach on social media platforms. Algorithms have taken over the influence editors have previously held.

Compared to that, the 90s and early 00s profited greatly from the existence of subculture - With magazines like The Face or i-D playing an important role to showcase 'underground' talent.

 

[Lola701]

Dior is a well or a machine, But i'm not sure about jonathan at all. We'll know once we see the first couture show. Matthew is okay. Still waiting on the couture show.

I’m more talking about commercial performance than critical reception. Both were received with rather contrasted reactions but the goods are there. Jonathan is a great merchandiser so they will figure it out and Blazy is helped too by the fact that the 25 is selling extremely well.

They can use the first 3 years more calmly than the others.

Demna and PPP!
I actually wonder if people are really going to jump on the nostalgia on one hand and on the classicism not really affirmed on the other hand. It’s weird.

^ Agree with you Lola on all those mentioned. Even though I'd be more inclined to think that performance at BV is temporary and will rely purely on MB's era LGs (just like they were still riding on DL's coat tail at the very beginning when Blazy was failing at coming up with a signature bag -shout of to those of us who remember that heinous bucket bag-), and start crashing once they've rolled out Trotter's full POV. Most of their brand ambassadors' contracts are ending and will quite certainly be vacuumed by Chanel (because their Head of VIPs is there now) and others. She doesn't strike me as having a strong vision on that front either, so let's see. Although. she was the one who suggested Tyler The Creator for their dumb hand campaigns in the end, so.

The problem the industry has right now is that many CDs have been chosen because they were easier to "manage". Especially at OTB. MMM is their strongest brand in the portfolio and allegedly RR is betting on Marni, more than any of his new hires, to take second spot. I don't have much faith for Jil Sander, and I'm slowly hearing things about their CD that make me wonder if he was indeed the right pick. Time will tell, but allegedly there are quite a few departures over there as well. And from what buyer friends told me, the prices are quite high, for clothes that aren't particularly exceptional and as we've seen the silhouette is a drastic change from what their clients have been used to seeing for almost a decade. If they don't work on strong brand amplification, we all know how that will end.

I've said it multiple times here but with the exception of Blazy and Anderson (and now maybe WB at Hermes?), I doubt that most of the 2025 hires will have their contract reconducted. What I'm very curious about is going to be the whole alleged transfer of PM @ Versace (when confirmed), then who's going to carry Alaia. They've invested so much in that brand that I'm curious to see what strategy they'll go for if it's confirm they'll lose him.

Then there are the deathbeds one: McQueen, Burberry, Valentino to name a few.
Pretty sure Mugler and CK won't last long either. Very big question mark on Céline from a mid-term perspective.

Five I'm curious about are: Loewe (LVMH needs to media train them) because it felt like JWA left overs but since theyre advertisers they didn't get dragged in the mud too much, Givenchy (personally found it disastrous from day 1), Tom Ford (not impressed but I'm not a client there either so that's fine), Hermes Womens (she feels a bit out of breath, I wonder how hers and WB's world will contrast).

Finally, there'll be a big question mark on what will be the future of Armani once the (no pun intended) dust will have settled. That's quite the beast to take over.

Daniel Lee should be at Jil Sander tbh. Renzo should jump on him the moment he becomes a free agent.

Yes those shapes will be a drastic change for what Jil Sander has been indeed. Are people really going to go for that? I do think that the couple introduced a totally new clientele to Jil Sander. I kind of feel like the new shapes from the new guy are a way to pander to the old JS customer. Does the old JS customer really spending that kind of money at JS?
Maybe Rosso jumped too soon on the hype…

I didn’t think about that for BV but indeed, Jacob and Julianne are Matthieu’s people, they are quite interesting as actors for Chanel too.
Yes the bucket hat was so odd but then he launched the Andiamo and the Hop. Weirdly when I went to the Parisian store, they told me that the new re-issue bag will replace the Hop gradually.

I fear that BV may become too bourgeois again. The fun that Lee brought and the pragmatism of Blazy added something. I’m afraid that Louise may take it to a more classic road.
I’m trying to remember great bags from her show and maybe the alligator ones were fantastic. But clearly, they will be for the 0.01%.


Mugler can work if L’Oreal put money on the marketing. The clothes aren’t bad but they need a push.

Celine is good. I like what MR is doing. It’s not original but it’s right for the house.


We will see with the shows in March but the prefall season is already for me such a good indication of what things might be.

 

[LadyJunon]

Between Blazy's Chanel and JWA's Dior, which one do you think will last longer/do better?

 

[Norden]

I think jwa has a better chance to find his footing. The more I see of mb, the more I’m convinced he’s wrongly cast and he has lacking management behind him. With jwa there’s atleast some thinking, some interesting conceptual play with Dior codes. Like most people noted, mb is doing bottega at Chanel.

 

[PDFSD]

Many, but no Matter what it takes 3 years to know if a designer's going to be successful, it doesn't matter what the internet says what experts says , what business people say , it takes three years.

Based on what metrics is 3 years???? the optimal time line to measure success ? :-)

While for some it's a instant hit that kick starts a hype seasons of good sales and for others its an instant clear misalignment of talent with the house from day one!

There is no standard measure timeline, if you want to give time to judge you can say 3 collection because you can see if feedback of press and audience is taken into consideration versus market adaptation or if your dealing with someone that is just a few seasons too late with his or her ideas as there is no momentum etc for their new vision.

It's different if your dealing with one's own brand where its all new anyways so your growing with the designer's vision and development at a existing house it does not work that way because the codes are there already to be used , twisted or ignored of course and time is money if the house /brand has already 100x stores to feed.

 

[nationalsalt]

Between Blazy's Chanel and JWA's Dior, which one do you think will last longer/do better?

I would guess JWA, if for no other reason than his longstanding relationship with LVMH / the Arnaults. Surely they aren't going to want to admit their favourite child was wrongly appointed in a hurry.

His vision for Dior is also starting to make a bit more sense and distinct from his Loewe - whereas, as others have said, MB continues to do Bottega-lite at Chanel.

 

[jeanclaude]

For me it´s a draw. Chanel does not look like Chanel, it looks like Blazy. And Dior does not look like Dior, it looks like JWA.

Both are making the same mistake: making the brand adapt to their own respective styles; instead of both of them adapting their styles to the brands they work for.
So, obviously, the result is BV with a Chanel tag, and Loewe with a Dior tag.