Late last week when LVMH announced that it had taken a controlling stake in the business of young British shoe designer Nicholas Kirkwood, a good portion of the buzz surrounding the sale centered on which other young company might be next. Even before that sale, rumors flew about LVMH and British ready-to-wear and menswear brand JW Anderson, and now those rumors have come to fruition. Not only does LVMH now own a minority stake in the brand itself, but founder/designer John Anderson will be taking over the creative helm at LVMH-owned Loewe.
Yesterday’s announcement of the simultaneous moves helps bring into focus some of the last bits of a game of designer musical chairs that started when Reed Krakoff left Coach months ago. Emma Hill then left Mulberry, and speculation was rampant that either she would go to Coach, or Marc Jacobs would leave Louis Vuitton at the end of his contract and move on to the American contemporary giant. None of that came to fruition; instead, Stuart Vevers left Loewe out of the blue to take the Coach helm, and although no one knows when he’ll actually start at Coach (or when Krakoff will make his exit final), that left Loewe without a designer. With the brand’s recent momentum, it seemed likely that LVMH wouldn’t want to let Loewe linger without a creative director for long, and sure enough, here comes Anderson to take that spot.
JW Anderson first rose to prominence for his menswear, and as his profile expanded, so did his brand, specifically to women’s wear. Considering his story and background, his aesthetic is approximately what you’d expect – very modern and often a bit sporty, with a note of British traditionalism peeking out every one in a while. Much of it (expect perhaps the men’s shift dresses) is very wearable and fits well with the industry’s current interest in streetwear, but with a more thoughtful finish. It will be interesting to see what kind of marriage it’ll be between the young Londoner and the old Spanish leather goods brand in particular. Here’s hoping that an influx of LVMH money also expands Anderson’s eponymous brand to include handbags is well.
To both invest in JW Anderson and appoint him the head of one of its brands, LVMH must see quite the future for John Anderson. It’s the same kind of setup the conglomerate bestowed upon Marc Jacobs over a decade ago.
Is there any designer brand that LVMH doesn’t own?
Hermes, but, ya know, they’re trying to remedy that.
They even bought/are buying RM Williams!
I’m not sure how I feel about this yet, I just love Stuart Vevers at Loewe. His past, say, four or five collections won me over, specially the ss13. It’s probably my favorite runway collection of all.
I hear of LVMH constantly and they’re never really positive things. Can someone explain why? -clueless-
Well, LVMH is a huge conglomerate, and huge conglomerates in any business tend to seem kind of evil and Death Star-y. The company is immensely powerful and self-interested, so it has the ability to bulldoze its way through delicate situations if it sees fit. (Example: All those Hermes shares it keeps gobbling up while pretending that it’s totally not doing that, at all, never.)
But this is a positive thing, I think! Both JW Anderson and Nicholas Kirkwood are phenomenally talented young designers and it’s great to see a powerful company step in to support and grow their businesses. I’m really looking forward to seeing what these two can do with the kind of resources and funding that LVMH came provide.
Ahhhh I see, I see. Thanks for the explanation!