By Helen Reid
PARIS, July 6 (Reuters) – In a coup for Parisian fashion house Christian Dior, both Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wore Haute Couture designs by creative director Jonathan Anderson for their wedding in New York, handing the label an edge in its intensifying rivalry with Chanel for fashion’s most coveted celebrity endorsements.
While no photographs have yet emerged from the tightly controlled Madison Square Garden celebration, designing Swift’s gown — no doubt the biggest bridal commission of the decade — is a big win for 41-year-old Anderson, eager to prove himself just a year into his role leading the French luxury house.
Chanel creative director Matthieu Blazy, also new in his role, has reinvigorated the brand and made his haute couture bridal debut with pop star Dua Lipa’s intricately beaded gown for her Sicily wedding in June.
But the extraordinary media attention surrounding Swift’s wedding is likely to deliver far greater exposure for Dior, one of LVMH’s flagship brands, as it seeks to revive demand in a sluggish luxury market. Swift’s 273 million Instagram followers and loyal global fanbase give the label a level of visibility few marketing campaigns could match.
“The commission ensures that Dior, and by extension Jonathan Anderson, are commemorated for years to come in the history of pop culture,” said Thomai Serdari, luxury brand strategist and marketing professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business.
Dior said the couple’s wedding looks were created in its ateliers at 30 Avenue Montaigne in Paris and designed by Anderson in close collaboration with the pair.
“SHE’S ON THE BALL”
At Dior’s haute couture show on Monday in Paris, the front row was abuzz with talk of Swift’s dress.
“When she picked Jonathan I thought, someone was advising her correctly,” Sheila Hicks, a 91-year-old American textile artist who co-designed a Dior bag with Anderson last year, told Reuters at the show. “It projects that she’s on the ball – that she’s working with the right people.”
Swift’s dress “shouldn’t be overwhelming, but it should definitely have a very strong personality,” Hicks added.
Speculation over Swift’s dress was feverish in the weeks leading up to the ceremony. Stella McCartney, one of the singer’s preferred designers, and Givenchy’s Sarah Burton were widely tipped as contenders.
While Swift wears many high-end labels, she rarely attends fashion events and has often championed smaller or lesser-known brands. Her engagement ring, for example, was created by independent jeweller Artifex Fine Jewelry. Known for her all-American style, she wore Ralph Lauren for her engagement shoot, but ultimately turned to French couture for the main event.
Anderson, a Northern Irish designer who spent 11 years at the helm of Loewe before Dior, has already had a busy bridal season. In the past month alone, Dior unveiled two other haute couture wedding gowns designed by him, worn by Chinese model Ming Xi and Brazilian influencer Elisa Zarzur.
Of course, designing bridal gowns for the rich and famous is not a guarantee of success for luxury brands, especially as they grapple with weaker consumer demand.
Lauren Sanchez wore a custom Dolce & Gabbana gown for her wedding to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos at a lavish three-day celebration in Venice last year. The Italian label has been looking for ways to raise money and is carrying out a debt renegotiation with banks.
Valentino, which designed a column dress for Nicola Peltz’s wedding to Brooklyn Beckham in 2022, reported a loss last year and is also renegotiating with creditors.
(Reporting by Helen Reid in Paris, Additional reporting by Danielle Kaye in New YorkEditing by Ros Russell and Deepa Babington)
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