Status: 02/15/2023 12:40 p.m
It is one of the most important posts in the fashion industry: US musician Pharrell Williams becomes chief designer for men’s fashion for the luxury brand Louis Vuitton. It is not the first collaboration with the label for the all-rounder.
French luxury brand Louis Vuitton has named hip-hop artist and designer Pharrell Williams as its new menswear creative director. The 49-year-old has established himself “over the past 20 years as a universal cultural icon,” said Louis Vuitton. The company said it was “delighted” about the staff.
Williams’ first collection is set to debut at Paris Men’s Fashion Week in June. He follows star designer Virgil Abloh, who died unexpectedly in November 2021 at the age of 41. Louis Vuitton made Abloh creative director of the men’s division in March 2018.
fashion, music and art
Williams is best known as a musician. He rose to fame in the 1990s with the hip hop group The Neptunes. Since then, in almost three decades in the music industry, the star has earned 13 Grammys and two Oscar nominations – including for the song “Happy”.
In an interview with the Financial Times last fall, Williams said fashion and music are like time and space – and you can’t have one without the other. In the announcement, Louis Vuitton described Williams as a “visionary whose creative universe stretches from music to art and fashion.” In the fashion industry, he has made a name for himself with his style. For years he has sat at fashion shows around the world world in the front row.
Other foundations and collaborations
Williams already has extensive experience in the fashion industry. He played an important role in the rise of so-called streetwear by founding the Billionaire Boys Club label together with the Japanese designer Nigo in 2003 and launching collaborations with Adidas and the luxury brands Moncler and Chanel.
Last year, Williams also launched the auction site Joopiter, which auctions his own fashion pieces that he’s amassed over the years. In 2020, the music producer founded the unisex skin care brand Humanrace, which he himself did not describe as a beauty company, but as a product company. The idea is to create products that are necessary, useful and beautiful to support everyday practice. It also fits that the musician started a collaboration with the sports goods manufacturer Adidas last April via Humanrace for clothing. The musician is also involved in social projects and founded the non-profit educational organization “Yellow”.
Previous collaboration with Louis Vuitton
Williams and Louis Vuitton have had joint projects in the past. In 2004, he collaborated with Louis Vuitton designer Marc Jacobs, designing eyewear for the label, and in 2008 jewelry and sunglasses for the luxury brand. “His creative vision, which goes beyond fashion, will undoubtedly lead Louis Vuitton into a new, very exciting chapter,” said CEO Pietro Beccari of the new designer.
luxury is running
Louis Vuitton’s business has been doing very well since the pandemic. Bernard Arnault, owner of the parent company LVMH, has also become the richest man in the world thanks to the luxury brand. In January, the Louis Vuitton parent company cracked the mark of 400 billion dollars on the market – and is currently by far the most valuable company in the euro zone.
LVMH is a conglomerate of fashion, jewellery, cosmetics and spirits. 75 luxury brands are united under the umbrella of the French group – whether Dom Pérignon, Tiffany & Co. or Bulgari, they all belong to the group. But among the group’s many brands, Louis Vuitton is the most important. The figures from the past year show the attraction the brand exerts on customers: With more than 20 billion euros – according to the company for the first time – it alone was responsible for a quarter of the group’s sales.
Problems with the competition: While Louis Vuitton is making record profits, things have recently been mixed for Gucci.
Image: dpa
Competitor Gucci with problems
The competition is also positioning itself with new personnel decisions in the important luxury market. At the end of January, Louis Vuitton competitor Gucci appointed Sabato De Sarno as the new creative director. According to LVMH, the parent company Kering, to which the Gucci brand belongs, is one of the largest luxury groups in the world. However, things are not going as smoothly there as at LVMH.
With its problems in China, the core brand Gucci continues to cause difficulties for the luxury goods group Kering. The turnover of the Italian luxury brand fell in the fourth quarter on a comparable basis by 14 percent. In addition to China, the controversy surrounding an advertising campaign by the fashion brand Balenciaga with children also caused trouble in the group. Balenciaga had a difficult December, it said. The bottom line is that profits climbed 14 percent to 3.61 billion euros.