Lanvin’s last show on the Paris calendar was in March 2023 under previous artistic director Bruno Sialelli, who exited in April 2023.
It marks the next step in Lanvin’s reboot, spearheaded by Shukla over the past three years, which has involved a rethink of its product and marketing. Last month, the house unveiled the third “chapter” of its ‘Character Studies’ campaign, a series of portraits lensed by American photographer Steven Meisel that came out in three instalments, the latest one being in October. Shukla calls it “an important visual metronome of what is to come, in the sense that Lanvin should be a house of elegance, sophistication and French chic… This is about reframing the identity and making it not just nostalgic about the past of the oldest couture house, but also very much looking ahead.”
Copping’s first show for Lanvin comes at a time when the French heritage house, which is owned by China’s Lanvin Group (formerly Fosun Fashion Group), is feeling the impact of the luxury slowdown — sales in the first half of 2024 were down 15.4 per cent to **€**48.27 million.
The designer will bring his talent for feminine and elegant creations. He began his career at Sonia Rykiel before spending over a decade at Louis Vuitton with Marc Jacobs as head of womenswear. He was subsequently creative director of Nina Ricci from 2009 to 2014 and of Oscar de la Renta (as de la Renta’s successor) from 2014 to 2016. After that, Copping served as head of VIP and special projects at Balenciaga. “It will be the first time you’ll see a fully elaborated world of menswear from him,” Shukla notes.
The executive sees an opportunity in the current context. “What does today’s customer want? Maybe they actually want something that feels confidential again. There is something about rediscovering an attitude of French elegance. As Jeanne Lanvin used to say herself, it’s a return to le chic ultime, the ultimate chic. I love that because the clothes were embroidered, the robe de style [Lanvin’s iconic silhouette] was a fantastical silhouette, she was not demure. It’s not about maximalism, as some houses today might be coming back to. I think this is going to feel novel.”
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