A good thing?
Imagine you’re the creative director of one of the biggest luxury brands on Earth, and just before Paris Fashion Week, someone steals your collection. It seems like the plot of a fashion-forward action movie, maybe the storyline for the next installment of Ocean’s 8. Well, Olivier Rousteing, creative director of Balmain, didn’t have to use his imagination.
Two weeks before Balmain’s SS24 Paris fashion show, the DHL transfer containing their looks was hijacked, and over 50 pieces were stolen. No one has divulged details concerning the investigation or shared any plausible motives. Although I can imagine that stolen Balmain pieces would sell for quite a bit at an auction, don’t you think?
But that’s not the point. The point is that months of hard work and yards upon yards of creativity were devastatingly robbed from the Balmain team and that they were left with the near-impossible challenge of creating a collection from scratch in two weeks. Because, of course, the show must go on.
Which brings us to the question: was the burglary a stroke of luck? I’ll go as far as to say: hell yes. The show was an utter success, diverging from Balmain’s typical style, and giving us something fresh and truly innovative. It pivoted from the sharp, fierce, neutral-ridded Balmain. Instead, intricate and feminine designs took over the runway, allowing the brand a breath of fresh air.
I am in awe of Rousteing and his seamstresses. What the Balmain team pulled off should push us to consider the unthinkable, trust our creativity, and reach for the impossible.
Love,
an admirer
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