When legendary designer Phoebe Philo stepped down from her decade-long tenure as the innovative director of Céline over the holidays, conjecture promptly went to two things: where she’d go next as well as who might potentially fill her shoes at the brand she turned into a powerhouse. It looks as though Philo is taking a break from style at the moment, however over the weekend, we discovered out LVMH’s response to the second question: Hedi Slimane, most just recently the designer who turned Yves Saint Laurent into Saint Laurent.
Slimane as well as Philo share few similarities when it comes to style sensibility, which is likely poor news for Céline devotees who were hoping LVMH would appoint somebody to bring on Philo’s vision. What the two have in common, though, is the proven capability to surprise as well as pleasure shoppers, even if, historically, their target audiences are different people. Philo has always tended to take a more sensitive as well as practical approach as well as target an older shopper—one who has kids, for example—while Slimane’s bread as well as butter at Saint Laurent were the celebration girls, with their barely-there spangly gowns as well as motorcycle jackets. (Personally, I’m dubious of Slimane’s appointment, however indication me up for a Céline leather moto.)
I have a difficult time imagining exactly how Slimane’s arrival will impact Céline’s present purse lineup, however at YSL, he tended toward dark colors as well as generous utilize of the brand’s famous logo. Céline lacks that type of iconic monogram, as well as as we’ve seen from other brands in recent years, devising a new logo that can be utilized in bag hardware is an extremely precarious pursuit. ideally that means Slimane will stay with the logo-free track at Céline—after all, his biggest accessories success at Saint Laurent was the Sac de Jour bag, whose popularity didn’t need any type of outward brand markers at all.
In general, though, my biggest hope for Slimane’s visit at Céline is that he answers one of the more fascinating concerns his work has always made me question about: what occurs when the celebration woman grows up?