The Biggest Fashion News Stories of 2021 So Far – WWD

Because the coronavirus pandemic prolonged into 2021, main manufacturers and firms strove to bounce again from its impression on enterprise with new initiatives and shakeups that dominated the 12 months’s information cycle.

Whereas last year’s biggest news stories centered across the fast impression of the pandemic, 2021 noticed main design homes change their buildings with new chief government officers and inventive administrators — like at LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, which expanded its partnership with designer Virgil Abloh — and embark on main new ventures, resembling Gucci and Balenciaga’s “The Hacking Project,” to proceed their enterprise’ restoration.

The 12 months additionally noticed a number of historic moments within the fashion world, resembling at President Joe Biden’s and Vice President Kamala Harris’ inauguration, which put a spotlight back on American fashion, and on the latest Paris Couture Week, which noticed Pyer Moss designer Kerby Jean-Raymond make history as the primary Black designer to earn a spot on the coveted calendar.

Right here, WWD breaks down all the most important style information tales of 2021 by month thus far. Learn on for extra.

January 2021: President Joe Biden’s Inauguration Places a Highlight on American Style

Biden’s and Harris’ historic inauguration had a huge impact on American fashion.

Each First Woman Jill Biden and Harris chose emerging American designers for their meaningful sartorial looks. The primary girl wore a customized blue Markarian coat, costume and matching face masks for the ceremony, which have been embellished with Swarovski pearls and crystals positioned in a floral sample. The colour blue was chosen to “signify belief, confidence and stability,” in line with Markarian.

Harris seemed to Christopher John Rogers for her inauguration look, which consisted of a purple coat and costume accessorized with a David Yurman American flag pin. The colour purple, which was additionally worn by former First Woman Michelle Obama and former Secretary of State and First Woman Hillary Clinton, had a significant meaning at the inauguration, because the hue “represents a mixing and coming collectively of the purple and blue, that are the 2 colours that signify every of the main political events within the U.S.,” in line with Laurie Pressman, vp of the Pantone Colour Institute.

Harris’ look additionally gave a nod to Shirley Chisholm, the primary Black girl elected to the U.S. Congress, who ran for president in 1972 and used purple as certainly one of her marketing campaign colours.

February 2021: Rihanna Pauses Fenty Style Model

Rihanna and LVMH introduced on Feb. 10 that they’d be pausing the musician’s Fenty fashion label almost two years after its debut. The indefinite pause was introduced on by challenges spawned by the continuing pandemic and the model’s problem to find its footing upon launch.

The musician made historical past when she launched the model in 2019, because it was the primary time LVMH had created a model from scratch since establishing Christian Lacroix in 1987. Rihanna can be the primary Black girl to be on the head of a model below the conglomerate.

March 2021: Teen Vogue’s Editor Controversy, Elsa Peretti Dies  

Teen Vogue was embroiled in controversy in March 2021 over its newly appointed editor in chief, Alexi McCammond, whose historical past of racist and homophobic tweets got here to mild after her appointment. Lots of McCammond’s tweets focused the Asian American group, which was experiencing an increase in anti-Asian hate crimes. After weeks of backlash over the appointment, McCammond announced she would no longer take on the role.

The month additionally noticed the passing of famed Tiffany & Co. jewellery designer Elsa Peretti, who died on March 18 at the age of 80. Peretti began her profession as a mannequin, serving as one of American fashion designer Halston’s many muses. She later joined the positive jeweler and created a few of its most well-known items, together with her minimal silver jewellery changing into a core a part of the model’s identification.

April 2021: Alber Elbaz Dies, Gucci and Balenciaga’s ‘Hacking Undertaking’, Modifications at Ferragamo

The style world was in mourning in April when former Lanvin clothier Alber Elbaz unexpectedly died at the age of 59 after battling COVID-19. His demise got here simply months after Elbaz revealed his new fashion venture, AZ Factory, which he launched with Richemont.

April additionally noticed Gucci have fun its a hundredth anniversary with its “Aria” collection, which unveiled the design home’s “Hacking Undertaking” with Balenciaga, the place the 2 manufacturers interpret one another’s logos, motifs and well-known kinds of their items.

Earlier in April, Salvatore Ferragamo introduced that creative director Paul Andrew would be exiting the brand the next month. WWD was the first to report the news in January when market sources indicated Andrew’s contract was ending in February.

Might 2021: IMG’s NYFW Style Alliance, Style and Media Gross sales

As COVID-19 restrictions have been slowly being lifted, IMG seemed ahead to September’s New York Style Week with a new initiative with 11 American designers that are committed to presenting at the biannual event by 2022. The alliance consists of manufacturers and designers Telfar, Rodarte, Proenza Schouler, Altuzarra, Brandon Maxwell, Prabal Gurung, Sergio Hudson, Monse, Jason Wu, LaQuan Smith and Markarian.

The month additionally noticed a number of main gross sales within the style and media areas. Verizon Communications began the month off by selling Yahoo and AOL to private equity firm Apollo Global Management for $5 billion. Hearst Magazines adopted go well with by selling Marie Claire U.S. to U.K.-based media company, Future, which already owns the U.Ok. model of the journal.

On the style aspect, Ralph Lauren introduced it will be selling Club Monaco to private equity firm Regent after 22 years with the model.

June 2021: Victoria’s Secret’s Rebrand, Yeezy Hole, Media Shifts

Victoria’s Secret debuted a brand new look in June 2021 after its father or mother firm, L Manufacturers, introduced it will be spinning off the lingerie brand into its own publicly held company. The lingerie model revealed its rebrand with a new marketing campaign that included a diverse range of models and a board made up virtually solely of ladies. The initiative comes after L Manufacturers founder and chairman, Les Wexner, announced in March that he was leaving the company.

There have been a number of main information tales to come back from heritage design homes in June, together with Burberry CEO Marco Gobbetti, leaving the English heritage brand for Salvatore Ferragamo, LVMH taking full control of Emilio Pucci, Richemont acquiring Belgian leather goods firm Delvaux and luxurious watch firm Tourneau changing its name.

Kanye West additionally revealed his Yeezy model’s extremely anticipated collaboration with Hole, releasing an image of a light blue puffy jacket made from recycled nylon.

June 2021 additionally noticed a number of media shakeups. The New York Instances’ longtime Kinds editor, Choire Sicha, left his role to join New York Magazine as editor at large. Shortly after, it was introduced that New York Journal’s longtime editor of style vertical The Reduce, Stella Bugbee, was leaving the journal to join the New York Times as its new Styles editor. It was additionally revealed that Attract editor in chief Michelle Lee could be leaving the Condé Nast-owned publication to join Netflix as its vice president of editorial and publishing.

July 2021: Virgil Abloh’s LVMH Position, Phoebe Philo’s New Assortment, Pyer Moss Couture

July 2021 noticed a number of main information tales amongst style and sweetness manufacturers. One of many greatest got here from LVMH, which revealed on July 20 that it was expanding its partnership with Abloh, Louis Vuitton men’s artistic director and Off-White designer, and elevating its stake in his model to 60 p.c. The deal additionally permits Abloh to launch extra manufacturers and seal partnerships throughout the conglomerate’s actions past the style division.

Moreover within the style area, it was reported that former Celine designer Phoebe Philo is planning a new collection, marking her first enterprise since leaving the style home in 2017. In response to an business supply, Philo had been engaged on her personal line when she left Chloé in 2006, however put the undertaking on maintain as soon as she accepted the Celine job. LVMH is a minority investor within the new enterprise.

Jean-Raymond made historical past in July as the first Black fashion designer to earn a spot on the Paris Couture Week calendar. He debuted his first Pyer Moss couture assortment on the Irvington, N.Y., property of worldwide hair care magnate Madam C.J. Walker — who can be the primary self-made feminine millionaire within the U.S. — and offered a group that paid homage to ignored Black American innovations and inventors.

Balenciaga additionally had an impactful second throughout couture week when designer Demna Gvasalia unveiled the design house’s first couture collection in 53 years. Gvasalia restored Cristóbal Balenciaga’s historic couture salon for the gathering.

August 2021: Reebok’s Sale, Sephora at Kohl’s

Reebok discovered a brand new proprietor in August 2021 when it was introduced that the Authentic Brands Group inked a 2.1 billion euro deal to buy the athletic brand from Adidas. The deal reunites Reebok with its star endorser, former skilled basketball participant Shaquille O’Neal, who has lengthy wished to personal the model. The sale offers ABG, which is a licensing powerhouse, a lift within the athletic class simply earlier than its deliberate IPO this summer season.

Moreover in August, Sephora and Kohl’s debuted their much-anticipated shop-in-shop initiative, the place the wonder large is bringing greater than 125 status magnificence manufacturers to 850 of the mid-tier retailer’s places throughout the U.S.

READ MORE HERE: 

Why Rihanna Is Pausing Her Fenty Fashion Label 

Who Are the Real-Life Characters in the ‘House of Gucci’ Movie? 

How Up Next Designer Is Finding the Next Big Thing in Fashion