Paris Fashion Week: How a family constellation brings real life to fashion

Was for family! Of all the fashion shows for spring and summer 2024, in the end, only one impression remains: how the family presents itself, but at the same time, how it does not flaunt itself, but argues very meaningfully. . Just so you realize, the production only works because you know everything is at stake. So we have to be grateful to Demna, his mother and brother for a great season.

But from the very beginning. In Paris it’s rarely about everything, it’s usually just about profit. And when you see how successful big brands are, you understand why they stick to the tried and true in their collections. In the first six months of this year, Hermès generated as many sales as it did in all of pre-pandemic 2019. In 2022, Chanel’s sales exceeded 17 billion. And LVMH founder Bernard Arnault, with his more than 60 brands, is consistently the second richest man in the world after Elon Musk.

Then why should you change your business model? The vintage piece looks so beautiful: the exquisite collection from Hermès; Dior has a feminist manifesto that can be wonderfully used for capitalist purposes; Fashion, almost unremarkable in terms of wearability from Chanel; Miu Miu creates designs for almost every occasion; and a beautifully embellished collection at Saint Laurent, where Anthony Vaccarello draws on the house’s traditions with safari jackets and the myth of Paris against the backdrop of the Eiffel Tower.

Back to the past

The transition from longtime Gucci designer Alessandro Michele to Sabato De Sarno illustrates the new style well: with split skirts, voluminous jackets and microminis, it follows the tradition of the house, namely the time when Tom Ford made everything shorter there. . Phoebe Philo’s new brand, launching at the end of October, is also like taking a time machine to a better past. Louise Trotter showed how good it can look. In her first season for Carven, the British designer presented a beautiful, playful collection that revived Madame Carven.

Other news this season also gives us hope. Chemena Kamali, who grew up in Germany and trained in Trier and St Martins, will replace Gabriela Hirst, who said goodbye to Chloe with great fanfare. This latest appearance, or rather trip, showed that she never truly understood the understated charm of the brand founded by Gabi Aghion. You can expect more from Kamali, who most recently worked with Anthony Vaccarello at Saint Laurent: She began her career at Chloé, where she worked with Phoebe Philo. “I am honored to take on this role and continue the vision that Gabi Aghion and Karl Lagerfeld defined at the beginning of the house’s history,” she said with good historical awareness. “I hope I can capture Chloe’s emotional connection and spirit today.”

Even more emotional than Gabriela Hearst’s final gallop was Sarah Burton’s final performance for Alexander McQueen. It’s not surprising, since the former assistant embodied the brand after McQueen’s suicide in 2010 as if she had never done anything else. She gained worldwide fame in 2011 thanks to Kate Middleton’s wedding dress and her sister Pippa’s bridesmaid dress. So she could really allow herself to get emotional after her performance – and a total of 26 years at Alexander McQueen.