Fashion Law Journal
Fashion is an ongoing process and ever-changing phenomenon which leads the world and is there in every nook and corner of the world. There are several types of fashion like: high fashion, pret-a-porter, street fashion, punk, classic, fast fashion, etc. These influence each other and inspire other designers to create new powerful looks.
To know how high fashion and street style influence each other, let’s first understand what is high fashion and street style.
HIGH FASHION
As the name suggests high fashion is high dressmaking, in other words known as haute couture which requires high skills, high sewing and best materials to create garments for one specific individual. High fashion brands are the creators of new trends with intricate garments, unique accessories and styling. These garments scream luxury and elegance; hence they are sold in limited edition. Chanel, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Givenchy, Fendi, Prada, Ralph Lauren, Valentino, Issey Miyake, Balenciaga, etc are some renowned high fashion brands.
BALENCIAGA FALL 2023 READY TO WEAR
STREET STYLE
It is safe to call street style an urban culture as it is greatly influenced by hip-hop, skateboard and surfing. These addictive clothes focus on individualism and expressionism than focusing on current trends. Combining elegance and sports, street style targets younger generation (gen z mainly) who like to play with style and make a clear fashion statement. Milan, London, Harajuku (Japan cannot be left out when talking about street style), New York, Paris, etc are some places famous for its street style. Some famous streetstyle brands are: Supreme, Nike, Adidas, Undercover, Fear of God, Kith, Six5six street, Jaywalking, BISKIT, etc.
RANVEER SINGH IN INDIAN STREETWEAR BRAND JAYWALKING
Although high fashion and street style are two completely different types of fashion yet they influence each other in numerous ways. Luxury brands can be seen using bright graphic designs in their collections whereas street brands use the concept of limited edition and better production. The differences between high fashion and street fashion are blurred with the emergence of brand collaborations and its acceptance in the market.
All luxury brands are embracing streetwear — “the vibe of the time”
– Virgil Abloh
The earliest collaboration between JIL SANDER and ADIDAS in 1998 is an important milestone in building a bridge between two completely opposite styles of fashion.
JILL SANDER/ READY TO WEAR/ RUNWAY COLLECTION/ MEN/ SPRING SUMMER 1998
Many luxury brands started to collaborate with street fashion brands after its success, mention not, about the iconic fall winter collaboration between SUPREME and LOUIS VUITTON in 2017 which completely shattered the barriers between high fashion and street fashion.
LOUIS VUITTON x SUPREME FALL WINTER 2017
Entire fashion world was awestruck when models walked on the ramp at Paris wearing the reds and blues with classic monogrammed prints and accessories co-created by both the brands. This collaboration was greatly welcomed by people especially younger generation, hence there was an increase in LVMH’s annual income by 23% in the first half of 2017 to reach 23 billion dollars.
According to Bain, high end street wear helped boost global luxury personal goods by 5% in 2017 to an estimate of 309 billion dollars. A study from 2019 revealed that 67% of gen z purchased luxury items from collaborations, thus this increase in sales from streetwear opened doors to a new era in fashion and encouraged high fashion brands to embrace both fashion and sportswear.
Here is another prominent fall winter collaboration between UNDERCOVER and VALENTINO in 2019 at Paris fashion week:
VALENTINO x UNDERCOVER FALL WINTER 2019
From clunky running shoes to sleek leather bags and tote’s, this successful collaboration brings home several fun sci-fi prints (inspired from UFO, music, cinema, etc) designed by Jun Tukahashi (founder of undercover) and Valentino’s subtle layering, classy silhouettes and perfect tailoring. Intricate graphic prints and typography shows how luxury is influenced by street style and by the use of neutral colours and classic silhouettes depicts how high fashion can give a new creative twist to street fashion. This mesmerizing collaboration can never be kept UNDERCOVER!
French trend forecasting site revealed that streetwear market has the potential to reach 231.7 billion dollars by 2024, hence there has been a rise in the number of collaborations between streetwear brands and luxury brands in the recent years. Last but not the least, here is another legendary fall winter collaboration between luxury streetwear label FEAR OF GOD and Italian luxury fashion house ERMENEGILDO ZEGNA which was unveiled at Paris in 2020.
FEAR OF GOD x ERMENEGLIDO ZEGNA FALL WINTER 2020
Bringing together high fashion’s classiness, impeccable tailoring and street style’s ease and coolness, this collection with 39 looks features chesterfields, stylish suede shirt jackets, lambskin jerkins, etc with dropped lapel, jackets with Henley collar tops and pants with cummerbund or wide waist belt. This collaboration is another ideal example of how high fashion and street fashion influence each other, which results in creation of something new and fun for people without losing the essence of both street and luxury.
There are no limits for the collaborations between luxury brands and street fashion brands that are taking place, like GUCCI x ADIDAS (2022), DIOR x NIKE (2019 fall), KARL LAGERFELD x PUMA (2019), YEEZT x GAP x BALENCIAGA (2020), JORDAN BRAND x OFF WHITE (2020 and 2021), etc. Younger customers as their target, these collaborations blend the fine line between luxury and street.
Author -B. Swetha Lakshmi
