The future of fashion collaborations is cross-sectoral To remain relevant, brands will have to move away from their usual path
A few days ago Virgil Abloh announced that he will collaborate with Mercedes-Benz on a limited edition artwork inspired by the Mercedes-Benz G-Class, a partnership of which no further details are known but that unequivocally reveals in which direction the fashion industry is moving, as well as its most distinguished representatives.
Always the founding value of the streetwear world, which later became the prerogative of the luxury sector, in the last fifteen years the concept of collaboration has always taken on new aspects, until it became empty of its original value. After decades of collaborations that have left an indelible mark on the fashion industry - and on the perception of the same by the public - as well as many partnerships of questionable value, partnerships that were without meaning or a real reason to justify their existence, the path to follow for many fashion brands to remain relevant and to open up to a new public goes beyond industry, and it consists on experimenting in areas and territories that were once unexplored.
The dream of a democratic fashion industry
In 2004, H&M inaugurated a series of collections designed by the most prominent designers of the moment, starting with Karl Lagerfeld. On one hand, one of the most influential creatives of all time, but still tied to an elitist, exclusive vision of fashion, proved to be in step with the times, accepting a partnership capable of opening (him and) Chanel to a new, vast slice of public; on the other, the collaboration guaranteed H&M a certain dignity, a sort of improvement in the reputation that had always been lacking in the circles of the highest fashion. There have been few collaborations able to generate that level of interest and success - at least in the mainstream fashion - in addition to the attempt to at least partially realize the dream of a democratic fashion and therefore accessible to many.
This is undoubtedly a requirement dictated by that saturation of the market mentioned above, but most of all it is the result of an evolution of the role of brands. Today, a fashion house is required to do more than just sell clothes: what the consumer is looking for is a narration, an imaginary, the idea of belonging to a specific cultural and market space, which will have to be translated into operations and partnerships that cross the boundaries of the fashion industry. One of the sectors in which fashion brands have always ventured is that of food and hospitality, industries in which it is easier and more immediate to translate aesthetics and imagination. Jacquemus was only the last in order of time to be added to the list of fashion brands that own restaurants and clubs, following the successes of Prada with Marchesi, Armani with the hotels of the same name, Burberry and Ralph Lauren with restaurants stand out and coffee.
Providing an experience is today one of the fundamental requirements for building a solid and lasting brand reputation, an experience that goes beyond mere purchasing, but which also extends to other areas of daily life. Virgil Abloh has already dictated in which direction the trend will move, it remains to be seen how many will follow it.
