Hedi Slimane's Celine Decoded

The time for Hedi Slimane to present his vision for Celine, née Céline, is nigh, and the Frenchman has, accordingly, been teasing details of his redesign via artful news-generating strategies. First there was Lady Gaga’s social coup. The longtime supporter of Slimane published a series of Instagram posts of her carrying a black top handle bag with minimal gold hardware bearing the new house logo.

Then Céline became Celine. The brand’s accent-less future takes its cue from the original version of the logo that existed in the 1960s. Slimane found the simplified typography more balanced, and so nixed his predecessor Phoebe Philo’s choice of grammar. Every post dictated by Philo’s team was also deleted from the feed as Slimane flexed his muscle at social-media marketing.

The three Insta videos declaring the new #CELINEBYHEDISLIMANE logo against a set of gold lamé curtains were followed by our first glimpse of Celine ready-to-wear. Yes, the model has his or her back turned to the camera. Yes, it’s basically a backwards head shot. But, there are certain Slimane traits we can take away from the photograph.

It’s black-and-white, the preferred format of the keen photographer. The shiny long paillettes on the jacket are in the same vein as the flashy metallic curtains posted previously. Read: disco-ready. If Slimane’s 50th birthday pictures from Paris’ legendary Le Palace nightclub are anything to go by, his devotion to the gritty rock‘n’roll aesthetic that inspires his world shows no sign of wavering. It was the most refined type of debauchery imaginable – a zeitgeist that millennials, who Slimane has previous success targeting, buy into.

Finally, the model. The ambiguity of Slimane’s chosen poster person for the brand is in line with the fact we know he will present both menswear and womenswear at his Paris Fashion Week show on September 28th. Couture and fragrance will also bolster Celine's new categories, but we are yet to see Slimane's plan for these lines filter onto social.

Mark 8pm in your diary to see Slimane take Celine into the night and away from the staunchly pared-back mood of Philo.

Chanel Announces A Return To New York

Last year, Karl Lagerfeld took Chanel’s ambassadors, including Kristen Stewart, Lily-Rose Depp and Tilda Swinton, and obliging fashion press to his birthplace, Hamburg, to stage his Métiers d'Art show.

For the 17th iteration of the annual spectacular, which honours the craftsmanship of its artisan collaborators, the house will return to New York. Though few details have been confirmed, apart from The Metropolitan Museum of Art location, the occasion will mark the third time Chanel has shown in Manhattan. Lagerfeld presented his 2005 Métiers d’Art collection at the brand’s 57th Street boutique, and Chanel’s Resort 2007 cruise show in Grand Central Terminal.

The moving tribute to the illustrious workshops that supply Chanel with everything from fine embroidery to lace and buttons is part of its charm and luxury status in the fashion world. Before last year’s Hamburg show in the Elbphilharmonie opera house, there was Paris, Saltzburg, Dallas, Edinburgh and Mumbai – each as elaborate as the last.

It is not the first time Chanel has showcased the small specialist ateliers, whose traditions it preserves, in the Met, either. The brand was the subject of a major exhibition in 2005, which homed in on the early designs of the brand's founder, Coco Chanel. New York held a place in the designer’s heart as US department stores were among her first supporters, and the sentiment has been passed down to her successor. “Karl Lagerfeld is also very attached to the American mega-city whose energy and light he has always loved to capture,” the brand told WWD. Expect nothing short of a blockbuster return come December.

Céline Unveils A New Logo

What’s in an accent? Merely the potential for refinement, according to Hedi Slimane. The designer, who was appointed artistic, creative and image director of Céline in January, has performed a little cosmetic work on the house logo. His work aligns him with George Bernard Shaw’s observation, from the preface to his play Pygmalion, that “many thousands of [British] men and women…have sloughed off their native dialects and acquired a new tongue.” Last night the house unveiled the new Céline logo – and the “É” is missing.

“The new logo has been directly inspired by the original, historical version that existed in the 1960s,” Céline revealed on its Instagram account, in a caption to a video post of a slow pan across a softly fluttering gold lame curtain. All previous posts on the feed, dating from the Phoebe Philo era, have been deleted.

“The modernist typography used dates from the 1930s,” the statement continued. “The accent on the “E” has been removed to enable a simplified and more balanced proportion, evoking the Celine collections of the 1960s where the accent wasn’t used often.”

“The spacing between the letters has been balanced out and the letters have been brought closer together. The 1960s version of the logo including the word “Paris”, will be reinstated within the clothing and on packaging, however “Paris” will not appear beneath the logo on campaigns.”

Slimane, as we know, has a smoothing touch. As creative director of Saint Laurent, he caused controversy when, in 2012, he dropped the “Yves” from Yves Saint Laurent and killed the mythical 1961 logo by French-Ukranian painter Adolphe Mouron Cassandre, replacing it with a less romantic Helvetica typeface.

A keen typography enthusiast, Slimane told Wallpaper* at the time that he was paying close attention to visual communication, an aspect of the fashion industry that was once neglected but has now became as, if not more, important than the product itself: “Concentrating on the base before approaching the form. The fundamentals, the signs, the language, before the fashion,” he said. Riccardo Tisci clearly agrees: last month he unveiled a newly trim Burberry logo, designed in four weeks by Peter Saville.

Both his menswear and womenswear will debut at Paris Fashion Week in September. The countdown is on.

MatchesFashion.com Launches Its New Townhouse In Collaboration With Prada

Just on the corner of Mount Street, directly facing The Connaught and right round the corner from The Ritz, is 5 Carlos Place: a 7,000 square foot townhouse that now plays host to MatchesFashion.com’s new physical iteration. Having undergone some pretty major refurbishment spanning everything from freshly-installed terracotta flooring to meticulously-restored fireplaces, the six-storey Georgian building finally opens on September 4 with a large-scale Prada takeover. Comprising a 110-piece capsule collaboration and a custom-designed pinball machine alike, it promises to set a new standard for curated consumer experiences, and one which speaks to the very heart of the brand.

MatchesFashion.com has long been a retail trendsetter: after all, its first boutique, situated in the leafy suburb of Wimbledon, was Prada’s first UK stockist. Back then, its shop staff were always remarkably open to my teenage self flicking through the rails, happy to offer a cup of tea and a changing room in spite of my clear lack of purchasing power, and long before a glass of champagne was de rigueur in a designer store. 31 years down the line and they are upscaling that sensibility – hoping that Gen Z shoppers will pop into Mayfair and get some stickers from their Prada vending machine, take some selfies in front of the banana-print wallpaper and get a coffee from a Marchesi café transplant – while making some pretty impressive margins to boot (there might be novelty merch on offer, but there are crocodile skin handbags for The Connaught’s residents, too).

Besides rail upon rail of the aforementioned collaboration (“we don’t like the term "exclusive" anymore,” says Chief Brand Officer Jess Christie), which will be the focus of the fortnight before Marine Serre and young designer initiative The Innovators move in for London Fashion Week, there are four enormous personal shopping suites artfully decked out in tonal palettes and designed for those set to shop up a storm.

There are fitting rooms for customers to try on requests made through their 90-minute delivery service (select your picks in the office and then nip down a few hours later to flick through the rails and see if they fit), a tropical garden for those who need a breath of fresh air after making their purchases, and a café space that will play host to a rotating calendar of chefs (first: the renowned, Prada-owned Marchesi, all pastel-hued sugared almonds and Milanese patisserie; later, the likes of Paris’ wellness-centred hipster hangout, Maisie Café). In the evenings, the venue will play host to a series of talks, workshops and supper clubs that will be turned into podcasts or livestreams and shared globally through their new broadcasting hub.

It is, essentially, the embodiment of modern retail: one that targets consumer lifestyles as well as consumers' wallets, understanding that a holistic experience does wonders for bottom lines. “We’ve got these great relationships that we’ve developed with designers through our capsule collections,” explains Christie. “But now we can add another creative element to it all: whether it’s Grace Wales Bonner who wants French Caribbean music and food, or Hillier Bartley holding a pub quiz… it’s like looking inside people’s heads, peeping into their worlds.” Buying Director Natalie Kingham concurs. “It’s about creating a community. We really enjoyed the travelling residencies that we did,” she says, referring to the anniversary series of events Matchesfashion.com staged last year, with designers including Erdem and Isabel Marant, in LA, Paris, New York and Hong Kong. “We wanted to make a permanent living space where we can always do those sorts of things.” Any member of the press who’s ever attended a MatchesFashion.com dinner will tell you they’re the friendliest sort of fashion occasion; now, they’re opening those doors to anyone who signs up in time on their site. As Christie says, exclusivity has fallen out of fashion. Now it’s about presenting limited-edition pieces and experiences within a thoroughly welcoming framework, and building steadfast loyalty within the ever-competitive digital marketplace.

But, back to the Prada collaboration. An evolution of the autumn/winter 2018 collection, it takes the runway as the starting point and then has re-structured or re-coloured favourite pieces: those iconic flame-heeled shoes, for example, now come in gold; tweeds appear in new variants; nylon dresses are printed with archival neons. Then, Linea Rossa is launching upstairs in the shopping suites: this is the only place it can be found until it launches in Prada stores later this month. British set designer Robert Storey has designed everything from the rails to the immersive video installations, and Miuccia Prada quotes and archive runway footage flash up on big screens.

It’s a complete package and it makes sense: Prada is a big seller for MatchesFashion.com. “We can look at what’s been performing, what’s done well, and develop from there,” Kingham explains – data capture has long been a focal point, with the company being diligent in determining its customers’ proclivities from day dot. “There are a lot of different customers who appreciate Prada; those who go for classic shapes and beautiful tea dresses or top-handle bags, and then those who really appreciate the modernity, the fashion pieces. We’ve gone high/low: we’ve got the trainers and the nylon, but also the croc… and [Miuccia Prada] does that mix really, really well.”

“That’s when you know a collection is going to work: when it’s appealing to the 21-year-old as well as the 45-year-old,” continues Jess Christie. Clearly, that’s when a retailer works, too – and if a whistle-stop tour around Carlos Place is anything to go by, it is certainly set for success.

Browns Is Moving To LA In Collaboration With Fred Segal

Browns, one of London’s favourite boutiques and arguably one of the nicest designer retailers on the planet, is setting up camp on US soil. Its first international bricks-and-mortar venture is in partnership with Fred Segal, the experiential retailer, which has been making waves in Los Angeles since 1961. It was its pioneering approach to showcasing fresh talent within innovative shopping spaces that made it a natural partner for Farfetch-owned Browns.

Indeed, the semi-permanent store within Fred Segal’s Sunset Boulevard residence, which opened its doors in 2017, has been in Browns’ expansion plan for some time. After the launch of Browns East – the company’s first augmented retail concept and the debut incarnation of Browns Nomad, the retailer's response to the pop-up shop model – the move overseas became logistically feasible.

“The synergy between what Fred Segal is doing both locally and globally aligned with the concept, and we couldn’t think of a better partner for Nomad 2.0,” Browns CEO Holli Rogers told Vogue. “Both brands have flown the flag for a wave of talent who now lead the fashion pack. And, respectively, we have been part of the fabric of our cities for so long.”

Rogers went on to praise LA’s status as an important player that has quietly aligned itself with the major fashion capitals. “The creative culture there has exploded into an intensely dynamic hub of art, fashion and design resonating with that of London. As a business we feel that LA’s laid-back approach to luxury is very much aligned with our own ethos.” Indeed, LA's scene is influencing Browns’ customers too. “We’ve received some incredible feedback from friends and clients who’ve relocated to LA over the past year, saying that Browns edit differs from anything else in the local market. With this amount of positive feedback we couldn’t think of a better place to bring Browns to.”

Browns Nomad 2.0 will be housed in Fred Segal’s revolving pop-up area, with temporary fixtures and furniture constructed from recycled materials; rails fashioned from heavy-duty trolleys; and industrial shelving installed to showcase the gender-fluid ready-to-wear, footwear and bags. Among the 60 brands that "Fred Segal Loves Browns" will launch with on September 4 are exclusive capsules from Conner Ives, Ambush, Edward Crutchley, Martine Rose, Molly Goddard and Wales Bonner.

Will the Nomad retail concept continue the adventure onwards after California? “The beauty is that it’s a roaming shop, and part of the mystery is that you never know where or when it will appear next!” Rogers teases. Browns Loves Fred Segal will be open for eight weeks from September 4 on the corner of Sunset Boulevard and La Cienega in the heart of West Hollywood.

First She Gave London Chubby Hearts, Now Anya Hindmarch Is Introducing Chubby Clouds

When Anya Hindmarch announced that she would no longer be presenting her collections in line with the traditional London Fashion Week schedule, the industry sighed. Would there be no more human conveyor belts, fairground rides or giant dolls’ houses of presentations past?

Then in February, the designer oh-so-quietly suspended and squashed giant chubby heart balloons over and in London's famous landmarks. As her love letter to the capital and its residents she urged them to look up and around them. Giant inflatable emblems of happiness that floated from dawn until dusk on Valentine's Day were all the city needed to see London in a celebratory light again.

For her next trick, Hindmarch is continuing the “chubby” theme, and installing an experiential chubby cloud exhibition in Whitehall’s Banqueting House. Visitors will be able to climb on and sink into the world’s largest beanbag inspired by the cloud motif in her autumn/winter 2018 collection. And, just as Hindmarch’s hearts sparked a renewed appreciation of London’s landmarks, chubby heart beanbag dwellers will be able to observe the iconic Rubens ceiling – the largest surviving work by the artist still in its original location in Europe – above the giant squishy seat.

“We thrive on creativity and new challenges,” Hindmarch told Vogue of the concept. “Our chubby hearts over London campaign last season was a lovely way to engage the public beyond the runway. The chubby cloud continues this theme and is our first proper experiential event for the public during London Fashion Week, which coincides with the global launch of our autumn/winter 2018 chubby collection. We can’t wait to immerse people in this world, and hope that they will leave with big smiles on their faces.”

The three-day event from September 14th -16th will feature a series of talks and musical interludes. Bedtime stories will be read by Poppy Delevingne and Claudia Winkleman; Yana Peel will lead a discussion about body image in art with Marc Quinn and Victoria Sin; Radio 4’s Shipping Forecast will be read live to music and there will be guided morning meditations by Happy Not Perfect.

And what’s a giant beanbag without snacks? While on cloud Hindmarch guests will be able to enjoy chubby cloud-inspired cakes in the café, before visiting the pop-up shop, which will sell the new collection and products created exclusively for the event. Chubby cloud eye mask, anyone?

Why Mulberry’s AW18 Muse Is A Rebel And An Aristocrat

For autumn/winter 2018, Mulberry was inspired by a dynamic array of muses. In a suitably spirited shoot for Vogue, Greta Bellamacina plays The Runaway Muse. “Tomorrow true glamour is kindness,” the actress, filmmaker and poet says in a homage to the brand’s vibrant new collection.

Mulberry's roots may be based in British heritage, but it has been looking to a more contemporary aesthetic of late. The inspiration for autumn/winter 2018 came from the age-old adage of opposites attracting.

“This collection is an exploration of a different facet of British style. We’ve looked at the aristocrat, and the rebel – this woman is both,” says creative director Johnny Coca. “Britishness isn’t about one culture or one way of dressing. It’s about mixing elements together and creating something unique. It’s about being and looking different, about personality and self-expression.”

And here lies the art of this direction for Mulberry. The core may be familiar, but the result is surprising. Inspirations are fused to create a collection that is as bold and brilliant as the Mulberry woman herself. The juxtaposing references mean crystals accessorise daywear, chiffon accompanies spirited print, and an overall “eccentric sensibility” underpins the aesthetic.

As well as re-imaginings of classic styles such as the Amberley, expect eclectic new offerings. The Leighton, for instance, is a sleek and playful addition. The supple leather bag, with its oh-so-appealing slouch, keeps with the brand’s desire to offer “versatile femininity”, while its trio of straps allows for an instant switch up in styling.