At the 2015 Fashion Group International’s Night of Stars event, Alber Elbaz
in a profound 16-minute speech criticised the pace of the fashion industry:
stating: “I need more time. And I think everybody in fashion these days
needs just a little more time.” Whether this was a precursor to the events
this week, it has now become clear that Elbaz left the house of Lanvin
after he was forced out by the majority shareholders.
The amicable designer, who on Wednesday announced his shock departure from
the French luxury house, stated: “At this time of my departure from Lanvin
on the decision of the company’s majority shareholder, I wish to express my
gratitude and warm thoughts to all those who have worked with me
passionately on the revival of Lanvin over the last 14 years; express my
affection to all my wonderful colleagues in the Lanvin ateliers who
accompanied me, and who enriched and supported my work. I wish the house of
Lanvin the future it deserves among the best French luxury brands, and hope
that it finds the business vision it needs to engage in the right way
forward.”
Elbaz, who owns a reported 10 percent stake in France’s old fashion house,
had been at loggerheads with Lanvin’s majority stakeholder, Taiwanese
publishing giant Shaw-Lan Wang. Like so many designers who’s creativity is
compromised, Elbaz is said to have complained about a lack of a clear
strategy and targeted investment. More importantly he was not behind the
licensing vision which he saw as compromising the image of the brand in
Asia. In China there are countless of products under the logo umbrella of
Lanvin, not designed by Elbaz, nor typically associated with a luxury name,
noted WWD.
Lanvin is a relatively small operation compared to global players such as
LVMH, Richemont, Kering, Chanel or even Armani. Several sources estimated
Lanvin would need at least 100 million euros of investment to take its
development to the next level. Elba had been vocal about his boss selling
her stake in the company to make way for more strategic investment and take
the brand forward. His statement that he hopes Lanvin ‘finds the business
vision it needs’ is especially poignant in his departure.
Elbaz’s departure is the third major shakeup of a French fashion house in
one month, after Alexander Wang’s exit at Balenciaga and Raf Simons
surprise departure at Dior. The rumour mill that Elbaz will more to Dior is
in overdrive, as WGSN noted it would be a good fit. Elbaz, from his pre-Tom
Ford stint at YSL to his work at Lanvin, has been lauded for his strong
understanding of the luxury customer and the Dior shopper might seem
custom-made for him. If he did join, it would certainly not be a left field
appointment like the recent Balenciaga announcement of Demna Gvasalia of
Vetements as design chief.
Elbaz ended his statement thanking his contemporaries and customers: “I
also wish to express my profound and deepest gratitude to all of the
clients and friends, to the French and international press and to all those
business partners who collaborated with Lanvin, providing us with support
since 2001.”
In 2011, when Elbaz was asked if he would consider moving to another brand
from Lanvin, he told The Financial Times: ‘“How could I do that? The people
who work there enable me to do what I do. They are my orchestra. I can’t
say to them, ‘Oh, bye, Mummy’s leaving now.’ ”
At the Fashion Group International’s Night of Stars Elbaz continued: “We
designers, we started as couturiers, with dreams, with intuition, with
feeling.” Then, he said: “We became ‘creative directors,’ so we have to
create, but mostly direct. And now we have to become image-makers, creating
a buzz, making sure that it looks good in the pictures. The screen has to
scream, baby.” But, he said, “I prefer whispering.”
From a designer’s viewpoint, the fashion system appears to be broken.
Creativity has become nothing more than an unsustainable commodity.
Something that luxury houses tap into at demand, keeping the wheels turning
without ever giving the machine time to reload and reboot. If we look at
Raf Simons’s departure for “personal reasons” and John Galliano becoming an
alcoholic mess during his last years at Dior, the question if ‘the system’
is no longer possible to sustain in the way it’s being run, becomes more
and more applicable.
Image:Alber Elbaz