CELINE Vs. Céline

On the 28th of September 2018, Hedi Slimane unveiled his inaugural SS19 collection for LVMH fashion brand CELINE at Hôtel des Invalides. The anticipated runway show sparked controversy and divided fans of the brand. Therefore, it is dubious whether its new direction will result in greater commercial success.





The French designer has revolutionised the wardrobes of men worldwide, as 17 years ago in his work at Dior Homme, he widened the perspective of what constitutes ‘masculine clothing’ to include the sharply tailored, skinny-fitted aesthetic he championed for the brand. During his 2012 to 2016 tenure at Yves Saint Laurent, his rebranding ushered a 150% increase in sales and a near threefold rise in profits. Banking on his commercial success, in January 2018 LVMH appointed him Creative Director of CELINE. Shortly after, Slimane announced the brand would now sell menswear.





Echoing his YSL rebranding (in which “Yves” left the logo), on the 3rd of September 2018, Céline became CELINE. This sparked outrage amongst worried CELINE fans who were concerned Slimane would design to his personal aesthetic rather than the brand’s. Their newest posters were defaced worldwide with the “E” turned back into “É,” causing painters to be hired to repair the logo with white paint.





CELINE fans’ fears were realised on the runway, as Slimane rehashed his work at YSL, marking a departure from the modern female design philosophy the CELINE was known for under Creative Direction by Phoebe Philo. Backlash from the show has spurred numerous online articles and driven over 60,000 followers to @oldceline, an Instagram archive of Philo’s work.





However, Bernard Arnault, France’s wealthiest man and CEO of LVMH, “loved” the show, suggesting unwavering faith that Slimane can double or triple CELINE’s turnover as expected of him. Maybe it’s true that any publicity is good publicity.





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