H&M Announces “Flirtatious & Feminine” Collaboration With Colombian Designer Johanna Ortiz

Hot on the heels of H&M’s tulle-laden Giambattista Valli collection, the high-street giant has unveiled its latest collaborator: Johanna Ortiz. The Colombian designer’s work is defined by bold prints in unabashedly-bright colourways and structured ruffles. H&M’s brief? To channel all of that into a purse-friendly “flirtatious and feminine” edit for the masses. Ortiz has delivered.

An exclusive pre-drop of four H&M X Johanna Ortiz dresses will be released in select stores and at Hm.com on 3 December, and the main collection will follow in March 2020 (Valli opted for a similar formula of teasing select products). The first pieces are fresh and floral-heavy in flattering silhouettes. Think wrap mididresses with long sleeves that balloon ever so slightly, and high-neck silky styles that are cinched at the waist and then fall to the floor in tiers. The final offering will expand to include separates and swimwear using more patterns from the flamboyant fashionista’s archive.

Ortiz is the first Colombian designer the Swedish fast fashion titan has tapped for its much-hyped collaborations, and she’s “proud [to give] the world a little bit of our Latin flair”. “I’ve never lived for a long time in any fashion capital, but now I’ve been reached by H&M,” she tells Vogue. “They came down here to visit me to start working together. It feels like I’m doing things right.” Sixteen years after she launched her namesake brand in her hometown of Cali, Ortiz is finally about to go global.