Antoine Arnault, son of the Chief Executive Officer of LVMH, Bernard Arnault, once stated that “there is no room for eccentricity” in today’s fashion industry. That’s a point I reluctantly concur.
The industry has so rapidly matured into an enormous global trade in the past two decades – partly thanks to Bernard Arnault’s wolf-in-cashmere business acting – that the market is now commercially trim and not much more. Fashion is more commerce than art ever. Predictability, in part a natural market behavior and in part a result of PR efforts from a complex conglomerate of media and brands, is of critical importance as in most mature industrial sectors.
Innovators, unfortunately, have become the enemies.
Charles Jeffrey Loverboy, a seemingly fresh innovator in the industry, may be a good tester of my opinion. The beauty of his collections is that they carry a reasonable amount of commercial potential while they make waves. Given that borderline quality, he may help answer the question of how unconventional we as customers are willing to go.
Some reputable retailers now carry his lines, and that may be a positive sign. His upcoming shows and sales performance will definitely be interesting to watch. I’m hoping he and a group of new kids on the block may finally disrupt the current orders and fill in some fresh air.
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