Beloved for its ultra-feminine aesthetic and romantic, bohemian designs, Chloé’s Parisian roots date back to the 1950s. Founded by Gaby Aghion during a time when men ruled the luxury fashion scene, the idea behind the brand was that it was for women by women, and Chloé has stayed true to its roots all this time.
Offering a sophisticated but uniquely free-spirited allure, the Chloé brand DNA is distinct. It is one of those rare brands that, despite changing hands, always offers the same specific vision.
Over the years, the brand has seen many of our time’s greatest female designers at its helm, like Stella McCartney, Phoebe Philo, and Clare Waight Keller. While the fashion world is, once again, largely ruled by Men, Chloé continues to follow its founder’s vision, appointing a young female designer to overtake design following Gabriela Hearst’s departure.
New Designer, New Chloe?
Late last year, it was confirmed that Chemena Kamali, rumored to overtake Chloé design, would indeed be filling Hearst’s shoes. Hearst, who will largely be remembered for her sustainability efforts, presented her last collection in September.
Kamali, who began her career at Chloé and previously worked as a design director at Saint Laurent, was a natural fit. Having worked under both Phoebe Philo and Clare Waight Keller, she’s well-versed in the brand’s DNA and curated aesthetic.
Time will tell what comes from Kamali, who will present her first collection for the House during Paris Fashion Week next month, but one thing is certain: her inaugural collection is one to watch in this largely male-dominated field.
Out With the Old?
Chloé, under the designers who came before Kamali, produced a slew of handbag hits, most recently, the fan-favorite Chloé Drew. The brand has released favorites like the Woody and the Tess in the last few years. However, it has failed to really knock it out of the park like it did before with the release of a true It-Bag.
While this can be attributed to the time’s changing trends, think the era of quiet luxury and 90s comebacks, Chloé’s girly bohemian aesthetic has the potential to stand out from the crowd. This new chapter for the brand has the possibility to be both incredibly powerful for the brand itself and exciting for its fans alike.
What do you wish to see from Chloé?
Hoping to see Chloe’s refined and differentiated take on the (kind of) trashy babycore and its more upper row cousin, balletcore, in the coming year. The prevalence of bows and ribbons is distinctly “divine feminine” which is very trending these days — but smacks of anti-feminism/going back to traditional values. However you feel about it, the current vibe is an expected response to the last two decades of the GirlBoss shadow we’ve been living under. What I love about Chloe, even though its bags never hold any resale value lol, is that it defines its own way without losing this idea of a “woman on her own terms.” While other brands feel like they push tastes onto you, Chloe for me has always felt as if it’s coming from a real, confident woman. Other brand that have this quiet, soft dignity for me are Isabel Marant and The Row.
Also, hoping the reporting standards increases on PB! This article felt basic/ChatGPT to me, like someone just fed GPT a prompt, “give me a reaction to the new Chloe CD appointment”. I want to see more opinion from our longtime writers who should have more developed perspectives at this point and not be afraid to ruffle some feathers with editorial. If you’re not going to be breaking news, be editorial – but the current approach is a little thin in the vast landscape of fashion media. Not enough just to be a hobby-blog anymore. This coming with love from a longtime reader who wants to see you guys succeed!
I wish to see Chloé with a fresh design. I must admit I absolutely loved their Paddington and Paraty back then.
I would also like to see Chloe make an impact with a fresh design, but I think they will most likely take a “safe” route by the reissue of a previous design. I think we might see the Silverado come back out. Or the Paraty. Would not be mad about either.