The Art of Rebranding a Luxury Fashion House
The creative director musical chairs & what it means for fashion art direction
Hi everyone,
Today I’m excited to share a really in-depth article that serves as both multiple case studies, a how-to art direction 101 and a preview of next week’s guided art direction briefing. I wanted to provide very detailed information for when I share next week’s briefing for paid subscribers, to put this knowledge into it. For those that are now, I ‘host’ guided art direction briefings for paid subscribers to get feedback on their presentation and ideas and put their art direction knowledge to practice. I truly believe that learning by doing is extremely powerful and important and especially learning how to set up industry-standard presentations to sell your idea.
Also I am giving away 4 portfolio reviews (this can also be a look at a cover letter, CV, Instagram pages or website portfolio). 3 for paid subscribers and 1 free subscriber. You will automatically enter if you restack this post <3
That said today we are talking on how to rebrand a luxury fashion house.
A big era for rebrands
Every few years, the luxury fashion industry plays an intense game of musical chairs. And I feel like now and it’s more prominent than ever, somehow? Creative directors come and go, reshaping the brands they take over, sometimes with groundbreaking reinventions, other times with more subtle shifts. These transitions can be chaotic like Gucci’s abrupt shift post-Alessandro Michele or Daniel Lee’s brief tenure at Bottega Veneta, but they also mark a pivotal moment for fashion houses. A new creative director means a new vision, and that vision dictates how a brand positions itself in the cultural landscape.
Right now, we’re in another major reshuffling period. Glen Martens has just been announced as the new creative director of Maison Margiela. Alessandro Michele made his return, this time at Valentino. Matthieu Blazy’s Bottega Veneta had finally settled into a clear identity, and then he was announced to leave. And then there are the brands still searching for their new direction like Lanvin in my opinion or Gucci, each in need of a creative revival.
Rebrands like these are fascinating to analyse because they show us why fashion houses evolve. Sometimes, it’s out of necessity, a brand stuck in an identity crisis. Other times, it’s about staying relevant in a shifting cultural landscape or capitalising on new consumer behaviours.
Today, I want to explore the why behind luxury rebrands in detail. We’ll break down the core reasons a house might need a new identity, analyse case studies of how past creative directors have successfully (or unsuccessfully) rebranded legacy houses, and look at the different approaches to a rebrand, whether it’s a complete reinvention or a refined evolution. See this as your 101 to luxury house rebranding. It will be a long read, but a lot of important information as next week I will be sharing the second guided art direction briefing for paid subscribers. The coming few weeks we will be working on rebranding a luxury house yourself (from the pov of another designer or yourself), how to present a rebranding and (optionally) think of putting your own DNA into it if you were to reshape a luxury house today, for the ones who have done the 30-days art direction DNA course.
Consider upgrading to paid if you are interested in more in-depth information, a 30 day course on shaping your art director’s DNA, the entire art direction archive: including visual playbooks, concept design examples, lots of inspiration and any post older than 3 weeks.
You can also claim your 1 free post to do so, I’d really recommend it, because I spent weeks researching to make this article happen. It’s likely the most in depth one than I’ve written before!
Below the paywall you can expect:
The different why’s behind luxury houses
When a luxury brand loses relevance or sales
Adapting to a new era
The influence of a new creative director
Three case studies of preservation vs. reinvention
Upcoming rebrands to watch and what might happen?
The 4 different approaches for a luxury house rebrand for reinventing signature items, re-introducing archives, remixing heritage codes and cultural reinvention.