Excerpt: BALENCIAGA FALL 2024 - PARIS FASHION WEEK

 

"Fashion designers, like most creatives who are lead by high stake margins, which Kering, who owns the Balenciaga brand name, as the holding company is as ruthless as you can get.  Can at times issue adverse remarks that are akin to being hypocritical.  Demna Gvasalia would have to rank as the one of the main contenders in this field.  It is, and always has been, all about the money.  And François Pinault, the owner of Kering, current net worth is at $31 Billion USD, has sucked up as many luxury brands as one could under the Kering stronghold.  And the reality is, with two major conglomerates such as Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton and Kering battling it out for the mega luxury market of Asia, more so China.  Independent designers, even ones who have aspired for an acquisition at some point in the future, are fading out one by one, to the point there are close to none left in the Fashion world.  Sarah Burton who was the Creative Director at Alexander McQueen (owned by Kering), after 26 years has left, to be replaced by an unknown young man, by the name of Seán McGirr.  Which makes all the Creative Directors at Kering, young, white men.  Of course controversy has not being new for Kering, in lieu of Demna's Christmas 2021 and Spring 2022 ad campaigns for Balenciaga.  But, the not so subtle power plays of a public held company such as Kering leaves a bitter taste, after asking Alessandro Michele to step down at Gucci, due to pressure from institutional investors to revamp the Gucci brand name.  Particularly, when the Fashion Industry is transfixed on a Chinese economic recovery. That could very well be on shaky ground..."

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Full review: chiasmusmagazine.blogspot.com/2024/03/balenciaga-fall-2024-paris-fashion-week.html 

(A.Glass 2024)