Weekend Briefing: Phoebe Philo’s new collection is almost here

Phoebe Philo’s big return comes tomorrow, after her six-year absence from fashion when she left Celine in 2017. She announced her new namesake brand in 2021 but a series of delays meant that it’s only now, sometime on Monday, that we’ll get our first official look at what she’s been cooking all this time.

Across the fashion sphere, speculation has been heavy. Business of Fashion’s Imran Amed wrote on Friday that the new brand may look completely unalike Philo’s previous aesthetics at Celine, citing her ability to change aesthetics in the past. Jess Cartner-Morley writing for The Guardian called Phoebe Philo’s hiring of Patrik Silen from Asos as managing director a potential sign that the brand will be targeting a more mass audience than Philo’s previous brands.

One notable difference between old Philo and new Philo that is certain is that the new brand is entirely digital. The showcase tomorrow will be a virtual one on the Phoebe Philo website, with no indication of any in-person fashion show happening anytime soon. Similarly, the brand has not announced any plans for physical stores as of yet.

But physical stores and in-person runway shows are hallmarks of how luxury fashion works. While Philo herself is a legendary name in the business and the brand has the backing of LVMH, her move this week is still an attempt to launch a new luxury brand from scratch. That prospect has been difficult even for big names like Rihanna, who shuttered her own attempt at creating a luxury maison after less than two years in 2021.

My own two cents is that the brand may end up operating more like luxury startup brands including Telfar or Coperni, which have flourished by combining traditional luxury elements like runway shows with innovative pricing and shopping models. Those brands seem to offer the best model for how a new luxury brand can survive without 100 years of history behind it.

Shein x Forever 21

Two of the biggest, and fastest, names in fast fashion signed a partnership last week. Authentic Brands Group — the holding company that owns dozens of brands, from Brooks Brothers to Aeropostale — signed an agreement licensing its brand Forever 21 to Chinese fast fashion giant Shein.

The terms of the agreement stipulate that Shein will design, manufacture and sell a line of Forever 21 apparel. This comes not long after Shein acquired a one-third interest in SPARC Group, the joint venture between Authentic and Simon Property Group.

Shein has been the subject of a number of controversies and scrutiny, including the infamous influencer trip, which did the complete opposite of its goal of cleaning up Shein’s image. While Shein is still massively popular, it does have a reputation for poor environmental and worker safety practices which has alienated some conscious consumers. Being able to sell under the Forever 21 name may be a way for Shein to escape some of that negative stigma.

The Adidas-Ye controversy

The New York Times published a deep dive on Friday into the Adidas-Ye controversy. While Adidas executives last year that Ye’s anti-Semitic comments crossed a line of acceptability, the Times reported that leadership knew of his various problematic outbursts and activity for years before they were made public. In one of the very first meetings the company had with him, he expressed his disapproval of some fabric swatches Adidas had presented him by drawing a swastika on them, for example.

It’s not a good look for Adidas, and it comes just as the company was seeming to leave the bad taste of Yeezy behind. Earlier this month, we discussed on the Week in Review podcast how Adidas was recovering from the Yeezy fallout. But it’s clear that the PR fallout is ongoing, especially as revelations about the relationship continue to roll out.