Fashion House Taps U.S. Designer -- WSJ

Louis Vuitton selects streetwear proponent Virgil Abloh as it seeks to rejuvenate brand

By Matthew Dalton

This article is being republished as part of our daily reproduction of WSJ.com articles that also appeared in the U.S. print edition of The Wall Street Journal (March 27, 2018).

PARIS -- French fashion house Louis Vuitton named American designer Virgil Abloh as creative director for menswear, hiring a leading proponent of streetwear as brands across high fashion are embracing the segment to appeal to a younger clientele.

Mr. Abloh, 37 years old, founder of the Off-White brand, will take the helm immediately at the menswear department of Louis Vuitton, part of luxury conglomerate LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton. He will present his first collection at Paris men's fashion week in June, LVMH said.

The appointment highlights how the luxury industry has moved to rejuvenate decades-old brands with streetwear inflections, such as sneakers, track pants, synthetic fabrics and T-shirts. Those designs have proved to be a hit for some of the top-selling brands in luxury fashion, including Gucci, Balenciaga and Louis Vuitton itself.

The storied French brand -- known mainly for its signature handbags -- collaborated last year on a collection with New York-based Supreme in one of the most high-profile marriages of luxury fashion with streetwear. The collection produced lines around the block at pop-up stores opened to sell the clothes.

High-fashion designers who can navigate the streetwear aesthetic have been in high-demand. Dior Homme recently snagged Louis Vuitton's previous menswear designer, Kim Jones, who led the brand's collaboration with Supreme. Burberry PLC this month hired Riccardo Tisci, who excelled at blending streetwear with luxury fashion while at Givenchy, to help revive the British brand's fusty image.

Mr. Abloh has becomes one of the few black creative directors at a European luxury fashion house, joining Olivier Rousteing at French couture house Balmain.

Mr. Abloh has floated in between the worlds of fashion and art, presenting Off-White shows at Paris fashion week, designing collections with brands ranging from Jimmy Choo to Nike and working with Japan's Takashi Murakami on an exhibit for the Gagosian Gallery in London.

"I find the heritage and creative integrity of [Louis Vuitton] are key inspirations and will look to reference them both while drawing parallels to modern times," Mr. Abloh said.

Corrections & Amplifications Dior Homme recently hired Kim Jones, Louis Vuitton's previous menswear designer. An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that Saint Laurent hired Mr. Jones. (March 26)

Write to Matthew Dalton at Matthew.Dalton@wsj.com

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March 27, 2018 02:47 ET (06:47 GMT)

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