In an industry where events that occurred a few hours ago become “yesterday’s news” faster than you can swipe up,
the impact of last year's major events is often overlooked,
the boldness and gravity of decisions made in seasons prior mostly eclipsed by the ritz and razz of what’s next, or more specifically WHAT’S NOW.
In the case that you have been living under a rock, here is everything major that changed in 2023:
An All-New Lineup
2023 saw major shakeups in the industry with several key players taking the bench.
The crowning of a “New Generation” of directors,
while certainly exciting, was not met without controversy, with more than a couple commentators raising their brows to what has been described as a “stunning lack of diversity.”
Despite the somewhat cookie-cutter nature expressed by a majority of the more prominent hires, there continues to be an air of excitement with regards to what we can and should expect from the new main characters at each respective house.
SABATO DE SARNO
Appointed new creative director of Gucci in January
PHARRELL WILLIAMS
Appointed new creative director of Louis Vuitton Men’s in February
NAO TAKEKOSHI
Appointed Wolford’s new creative director in February
LOUISE TROTTER
Appointed new creative director of Carven in March
PETER DO
Appointed new creative director of Helmut Lang in April
MICHELLE OCHS
Appointed new creative director of Hervé Léger in June
PETER HAWKINGS
Made his Tom Ford debut in September
FUTURE
Debut his first Lanvin Lab capsule collection
CHEMENA KHAMALI
Appointed to Chloe
SEAN MCGIRR
Stepped up to take the reins at Alexander McQueen
MATTEO TAMBURRINI
Becomes the figurehead of TOD’s
WALTER CHIAPPONI
now leads Blumarine
PHOEBE PHILO
revealed her eponymous label
DAVIDE RENNE
who was appointed to Moschino for only 10 days before his mysterious passing was succeeded by
ADRIAN APPIOLAZA
and last but certainly not least
ANGELINA JOLI
announced her namesake brand Atelier Joli
Altruism
While a strong case can be made against fashion’s global impact, and in spite of a growing resistance against greenwashing practices – “Sustainability” continues to be the prevailing word of the day,
with platforms such as the Vestiaire Collective outright banning fast fashion from their listings and removing over 100,000 items from brands such as Gap, H&M, Zara, Mango, and Uniqlo as part of their “Think First, Buy Second” campaign.
Prada joined forces with the Italian reforestation initiative Forestami to launch the “Forestami Academy” which offers educational urban reforestation programs to all citizens interested in the subject matter.
Perhaps in response to being snubbed by Vestiaire,
H&M powered up “Pre-Loved,” a resale platform that offers H&M customers the opportunity to shop secondhand pieces (an incentive previously pioneered by fashion rival Zara)
Coach joined forces with GenZ climate activists and creatives to bring light to circular fashion and the birth of their eco-subsidiary “Coachtopia”
and British Vogue released a Braille copy of its May editorial.
Collaborations
Collaboration, a word once faced with skepticism continued to dominate the marketing agenda with strong pairings between celebrities and Luxury Houses taking centre stage:
Versace tapped into Donatella’s friendship with Dua Lipa while Moncler picked up Alicia Keys.
Cross-label collaborations were also prominent, with H&M partnering up with Mugler as well as Rabanne (previously Paco Rabanne). Louis Vuitton invoked Yayoi Kusama, while Pharell William’s Joopiter archive found itself the recipient of star-studded new wardrobe. Swarovski blinged out Skims and Nike receiving the TIFFANY & CO treatment.
Less obvious but nevertheless relevant collaborations came in the form of rare red carpet and concert outfits. Beyonce took center stage during her Renaissance tour in a one of a kind Jacquemus suit, Rihanna fans were seeing red during the Superbowl where the artist donned a one-off jumpsuit compliments of Loewe and Kendrick Lamar lorded over Glastonbury in a never before seen Tiffany & Co. adorned crown.
Print & Magazine
Condé Nast acquired Chioma Nnadi to be the new editor of Vogue.com in addition to being the new Head of Editorial Content for British Vogue as well as a co-host for the Vogue Podcast.
In perhaps the biggest shocker of the year, Karlie Kloss acquired i-D magazine from Vice Media (who have been fighting their way through bankruptcy). It will be curious to see the changes brought to the publication under Kloss, and while the acquisition seemingly came out of left field, the pairing seems to somehow just make sense.
Beauty
Kering launched Kering Beauté under the guidance of Raffaela Cornaggia (of Estée Lauder fame) the move looks to develop beauty and cosmetic verticals for Kering brands such as Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga, and Alexander McQueen.
The house formerly known as “Paco Robanne” re-emerged as “Rabanne” with a new logo, that pays tribute to the house's founder and was inspired by the brand’s 1968 Calandre fragrance.
Final
To conclude, 2023 was a great year for fashion, and despite profit margins having been projected to decline in the coming seasons houses are reporting new highs – fashion is as strong as ever (it seems), with increasing accessibility and inclusivity nurturing a new generation of fashion die-hards who are just as eager as previous generations to leave their legacy.
New verticals are being discovered daily, and exciting opportunities are being manifested in the realms of sport – where LVMH plans reign supreme as the official sponsors of the Paris Olympic games, scheduled for later this year.
Grazi.
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