The label that has emerged this year remains subversive but is more cheeky, more willing to giggle at itself as well as the world’s fashion victims. It’s Different, Balenciaga’s recently revealed ad campaign, is Apple-like in its minimalist efficiency and humour. “Probably not what you’re looking for,” taunts bold copy on a stark white page faced by a photo of cartoonishly bulky lace-up boots made of EVA, or ethylene-vinyl acetate, a type of plastic. Mr Porter is currently selling them for $1,400.
“Demna has a good sense of what people are going to want to buy,” Charbit says.
Charbit is guiding Balenciaga into new categories. Haute couture, which the brand prefers to call merely “couture”, debuted in 2021: Demna feels the “haute” sounds too high-minded for a house whose leading inspiration is the streets. There’s a perfume coming, though he declines to share the deadline for its debut, noting that developing scents is “very hard”. One’s mind boggles at the potential for Demna’s inspirations — asphalt and rubber rather than vetiver and musk?
A new line of ski, snowboard and hiking gear is selling best in China, the US and South Korea. The skis — white, with “Balenciaga” splayed across the tips — are priced at $6,290. The line wasn’t Demna’s idea, but when Charbit proposed it, the designer accepted the challenge on the condition that the apparel and equipment be technical and not just fashion. The house hired an equipment brand for the technical design, but the line is no collaboration, Charbit says. “When in doubt, you go to the best partners. I won’t say the name, but it’s a French company.”
The American streetwear-inspired fashion collection Balenciaga revealed in Hollywood on Saturday afternoon was heavy on the accessories that Charbit sees as the brand’s leading growth opportunity. It introduced two Le Cagole totes, exaggerations of the label’s iconic Cagole. The Le City bag, first designed by former creative director Nicolas Ghesquière in 2001, will be introduced next year as well. The show also revealed actress Nicole Kidman as the label’s newest ambassador, wearing a long couture jacket.
