Is this the new frontier? I examine the matter for Fashion United…
Peter Dundas was a Cavalli progeny having cut his teeth on the design team in the mid-aughts before moving to Pucci and then being invited back to Roberto Cavalli as creative director. Although it was hailed a homecoming, he was ousted last week after only 18 months.
Also last week, Donatella Versace announced the first rock star designer for her Versus line in Zayn Malik. He’s the one who left One Direction. He’s also Gigi Hadid’s boyfriend. The house has long associations with the music industry but generally artists such as Prince and Lenny Kravitz have provided the post-runway entertainment not the collections on the runway.
Donatella is upfront about her strategy, suggesting this will be the first of many such collaborations, and telling Vogue, “He can make me talk to his followers. I want to listen to the language, I want to learn. I want to know what they think, what they like. This is a new generation, [which] if I do not go through someone like Zayn I will never reach.” Please continue reading here…
Jackie Mallon 
I understand the marketing strategy. Still, positively weird.
Anch’io purtroppo
🙂 Wow, you really know your stuff, don’t you, my dear?! 😀
Have a very HAPPY week and greetings from rainy Vienna xo 🙂
Well, thank you for the compliment. Hello to Rainy Vienna. I’m sure you’re making the sun come out where you are 🙂
Jackie, committing to any relationship takes work….and time. How is someone supposed to effect change with a House when they are gone before they even got started. And someone who does NOT have the training and experience is not a helpful leader….who wants to keep a piece designed under a 7 day wonder? Not me.
I agree! I’ll not be clamoring for a Zayn for Versus T shirt 🙂 But they’re placing bets that perhaps millennial clients will. Or just gain them exposure on social media so that their customer base strengthens in general. Strange times xo
Very true — and I am not a millennial, but I probably have more disposable income~then again, maybe not.