Fendi x Skims and more – WWD

This year marked a record number of fashion collaborations between historic fashion houses and some of today’s biggest celebrities. While each are unique, they have collectively made a big impact in the fashion world and resonated with fans for their high fashion factor.

The year saw two big haute couture mashups that the industry had never seen before. First, the highly anticipated Hacker Project between Gucci and Balenciaga debuted during the spring 2022 season, where Creative Directors Alessandro Michele and Demna Gvasalia, respectively, created their own logo featuring the signature designs of each. designer mark. The collaboration was then followed by a similar creative exchange between Versace and Fendi, where Donatella Versace and Kim Jones created lines for each other’s brands during the pre-fall 2022 season.

Celebrity partnerships also remained as popular as ever in 2021. Crocs had an important year of celebrity partnerships, teaming up with Justin Bieber, Diplo and Bad Bunny for a range of colorful clogs and Lil Nas X took to the skies. partnered with fashion brand MSCHF on a controversial sneaker collaboration called the ‘Satan Show’.

Kim Kardashian West also celebrated a milestone in 2021 with her shapewear brand Skims, embarking on the brand’s first collaboration with Fendi.

Here, WWD takes a look at the 11 biggest fashion collaborations of 2021. Read on to find out more.

Simone Rocha x H&M

H&M released its latest designer collaboration in March, this time in collaboration with Irish fashion designer Simone Rocha. The collection included options for women, men and children and was inspired by the history and fashion of Ireland and Hong Kong, which represent Rocha’s dual heritage.

The collection included a variety of feminine dresses with lace and tulle details in floral and tartan prints, as well as beaded-embellished pieces, which were a nod to the recent spring 2021 ready-to-wear collection by Rocha.

The collaboration has been successful with consumers, especially in China where an unprecedented level of online traffic crashed H & M’s server, causing the retailer’s website, app and mini to crash. -WeChat program on social networks.

Lil Nas X and MSCHF

Fashion label MSCHF and rapper Lil Nas X embarked on the most controversial collaboration of the year in March when the two released their “Satan Shoe,” which was a reimagined version of the Nike Air Max 97 style designed for present biblical images and a drop. of human blood in the sole air bubble of the sneaker.

The style received mixed reactions on social media when it was released, with some praising the style while others taking offense at Biblical references and human blood. Nike, while not involved in the collaboration, received a backlash for the style and responded by taking legal action against the fashion brand for trademark infringement, misappellation of origin, brand dilution, infringement. common law trademark and unfair competition on sneakers.

A few weeks after filing the complaint, Nike revealed that it had reached a settlement agreement with MSCHF whereby the fashion brand would buy back any “Satan Shoe” at the original retail price in order to remove the styling from the circulation.

The Gucci and Balenciaga Hacker Project

Gucci and Balenciaga have embarked on one of the biggest collaborations in the haute couture world with their Hacker Project, which debuted in the spring of 2022.

The first iteration was the Gucci series where the cross-branded Gucci products featured the Balenciaga signature. The Balenciaga series was then launched, which combined Gucci patterns and its signature colourway with Balenciaga structures and style.

The Hacker Project was shown to the public in 74 pop-up stores around the world this fall, including in London, Paris, Geneva, New York, Houston, Atlanta, Tokyo and Seoul.

Heron Preston for Calvin Klein

Fashion designer Heron Preston teamed up with Calvin Klein for a collection of essentials in April, consisting of denim, underwear, t-shirts, hoodies and shorts. The collection is gender neutral and sustainable. The collaboration is part of Preston’s role as a creative consultant at Calvin Klein. He was approached earlier this year to “wake up” the brand.

Preston and Calvin Klein brought in Kaia Gerber, Ashley Graham, Jordan Alexander, Lil Uzi, Renell Medrano, Stevie Williams, Sabrina Fuentes and Nas for the collection campaign.

The collection featured oversized silhouettes and a color palette of Preston’s signature pale yellow, brown, light gray and orange. The pieces included straight-legged joggers, bras, long-sleeved crop tops and leggings.

crocs

Crocs continued their string of successful collaborations this year with several new projects that resonated with fans, including collections with musicians like Justin Bieber, Diplo and Bad Bunny, as well as an haute couture collaboration with Balenciaga.

The shoe brand started the year with its second collaboration with Bieber and her fashion label Drew House in March. The collaboration offered a lilac-colored clog style paired with a pair of white athletic socks from Drew House. Crocs then teamed up with Diplo in June, releasing psychedelic-themed clogs designed in a paint-splatter pattern. The brand then worked with Bad Bunny in September for a pair of glow-in-the-dark white clogs.

Crocs launched its latest haute couture collaboration with Balenciaga this year, partnering with their second collection. The shoe brand worked with designer Demna Gvasalia on several styles that debuted at Balenciaga’s spring 2022 ready-to-wear runway, including a high-heeled Crocs clog, platform pool slides and styling. of rain boots in green, gray and black.

Nike x Louis Vuitton

One of his last projects during his key tenure at Louis Vuitton, late fashion designer Virgil Abloh teamed up with Nike for one of the biggest sneaker collaborations of the year, revealed during the collection. Louis Vuitton spring 2022 man.

The collaboration offered new versions of Nike’s iconic Air Force 1 sneakers in 21 colorways that blend design cues from both brands, such as the Louis Vuitton logo and monogram and Nike’s signature swoosh. The styles also featured the word “Air” in quotation marks, a signature of the Off-White brand from Abloh, who also previously collaborated with Nike.

Yeezy Gap

Kanye West and Gap unveiled the first item in their collaboration with Yeezy Gap, a $ 200 round recycled nylon jacket in blue, black and red, in June.

West and her fashion label Yeezy struck a deal with Gap in June 2020 for a new clothing collection released under the name Yeezy Gap. The line’s strategy is to offer modern and high basics at affordable prices. When news of the deal broke, Gap’s stock rose nearly 19% to $ 12.07 in one day.

Yeezy Gap released their second product in September, this time a 100% cotton double-layered hoodie.

Telfar x Liberian Olympic team

Libero-American designer Telfar Clemens has teamed up with the Liberian Olympic team for the Tokyo Summer Olympics to create their official uniform. Clemens created the first sketches in the collection while in Liberia, taking inspiration from the streets around him. The fashion designer was also the official sponsor of the Liberian team, offering them their first sponsorship deal since 2000.

Clemens then made the collection public on the brand’s website. The collection consisted of 70 gender-neutral pieces, such as long swimsuits, deconstructed tracksuits, sarong bottoms and spliced ​​tops in a navy blue, red, sand and white color scheme.

Versace x Fendi

At one defining moment, Donatella Versace and Kim Jones teamed up for a collaboration that merged the brand ethos of Versace and Fendi. The designers did a full creative exchange, Jones creating a line for Versace and Versace creating a line for Fendi for the pre-fall 2022 season.

Jones’ collection featured all of Versace’s signatures, such as safety pins, the iconic Baroque print, and sheared furs. Versace brought his sexy signature to Fendi, showcasing mini dresses, 70s denim pantsuits and shimmering dresses.

Both collections were featured on a cast of starred models during a joint fashion show. The models included Naomi Campbell, Kate Moss, Gigi Hadid, Amber Valletta and many more.

Fendi x Skim

Kim Kardashian West kicked off her first major fashion collaboration for her shapewear brand Skims in November, working with Fendi and her artistic director of women’s collections, Kim Jones.

The collaboration blended the ethos of the two brands for a line of shapewear, lingerie, dresses and other pieces in a neutral color palette, pink and black. The collection was co-signed by the two characters and was inspired by a 1979 Fendi collection designed by the late Karl Lagerfeld. The parts also featured a Fendi x Skims hybrid logo and their price ranged from $ 100 to $ 4,200.

Much of the collection initially sold out within 24 hours of release, apparently grossing $ 1 million in profit within the first few minutes of launch. The brands continued the successful collaboration with a second version released in December, which featured clothing and apparel similar to the first collection.

Supreme and Tiffany & Co.

Streetwear brand Supreme and jeweler Tiffany & Co. joined forces in November for their first collaboration. The collection centers around the Return to Tiffany line, which features the iconic Tiffany & Co heart-shaped charm or tag.

All of the pieces in the collection are crafted with the jeweler’s sterling silver and include styles like a key-shaped pocket knife, heart-shaped ear studs, and a pearl necklace with a silver tag.

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