Calvin Klein is a very complicated brand, in the sense that they have this gigantic commercial mainstream side and a high fashion side.. and the two of them just can't work together. They're in two very different universes. I never thought the idea of combining Collection and Jeans/Underwear under the same creative direction was good. They need to let Raf work on FASHION the way it's supposed to be, and someone else work on jeans and underwear like it's supposed to be! You could definitely feel a sense of pressure to be slightly commercial, to be kinda middle of the road in the Raf's collection's, and I'm sure he doesn't appreciate that. Hopefully they can find a middle ground where all the different sectors of the brand are well served.
But the worst thing about this was the CEO's "strategy": "Social media... Instagram... influencers... millennials... Gen Z......."
Gross.
True, and I agree with you! Before Raf it used to be like that. Costa and Zuchelli oversaw their separate campagns, and at times had to collaborate on one campaign for CK Collection. The rest were all under different creative control. But remember, one of the reasons Raf decided to leave Dior was over the lack of creative control. He could oversee the mainline campaign, but not perfume, makeup, spokesperson hires, store design, nor the showroom. With that in mind, it's very easy to assume it may have been one of his terms when Calvin Klein negotiations kicked off. It's a tricky business. I understand why he would've wanted that. Well, most of it stems from ego of course, but he probably wanted CK Collection, CK Calvin Klein, CK Jeans, underwear, watches and perfumes to have a seamless visual feel. He probably didn't want a g*ngb*ng campaign for CK Jeans next to his Texas Chainsaw Massacre-lite mainline campaign. But then the question must be posed - how can you as a designer control those markets when you don't have direct creative input in the development of the products? Perfume I have no problem with because perfumes are often associated with the current design aesthetic of the brand's collections anyway. Jadore for instance is synonymous with Galliano's extravagance. But even there I'd say tread carefully. But jeans, underwear and watches are unique, individual markets and you can easily muck it up if you don't understand how they operate or what approach to follow. It should be handled individually because it's very much likely that the person buying a denim may have no interest in buying into the mainline. I think Raf bit off way more than he could chew, and now fingers will be pointed to him. Because the irony is that historically CK Collection always generated the LEAST revenue for the brand. Always. It's only there to keep the brand in the same conversation as other luxury players. A marketing effort, in plain words. And what's happening now is that the advertising directive is being funneled from a little platform who very few actually buy into, or understand. With that in mind, it baffles me that CK By Appointment was even greenlighted.
As for CK Jeans, I think his designs are way too ambitious for such a commercial brand. There too, the audience is vast. How is he expecting to sell a denim shirt, pants and jacket set in egg yolk-yellow to a hipsters in LA and young professionals in the Middle East? Because that's how diverse the jeans demographic is.
This is why some brands don't like to cede complete creative control to designers. Phoebe had it, so of course Hedi will as well. But Celine is a small label. Maria Grazia, Alessandro and not even Karl does (we all know he would gladly load the makeup, jewellery and No.5 directives on his plate.) And there's a reason for that. Sublines can be converted into big earners because they often court unique consumers, and it's probably better to put together a generated team who can focus solely on that, AND liase with the CD to make sure the direction is not too far off from his. That should be the short term solution for CK, I think.
