even though the news that Alexander Wang is the next innovative director at Balenciaga has had the weekend to sink in, it doesn’t feel rather like reality. Wang increased to fame mainly on the wearability as well as fairly easily accessible cost point of his downtown-cool sportswear as well as handbags, while Balenciaga’s departed designer/genius Nicolas Ghesquiere earned a track record for industry-leading innovation, outstanding technical skill as well as an accept of fashion’s intellectual side. (Oh, as well as a decade-plus of Motorcycle Bag success didn’t hurt, either.) The two have seemingly bit to make with each other.
To me, Wang seemed (and to a specific extent, still seems) like an improper option to fill Ghesquiere’s shoes; the two guy are totally different brand leaders in both aesthetic as well as approach. It seems like providing Wang the nod indicates that PPR desires to take the French home in a a lot more consumer-friendly direction; after all, Wang has verified himself an professional at figuring out precisely what high-end clients want to buy, which can be a weakness of designers who are a lot more focused on abstract concepts as well as exacting execution. discovering both those high qualities in one designer is rare, to state the least.
The a lot more I’ve believed about it, though, the a lot more the two designers’ aesthetics seem to converge in an area that’s not only extremely crucial to those of us at this site, however to the general monetary health and wellness of nearly any type of fashion brand: handbags. I’ve gotten as well as brought several bags from both brands, as well as although I hadn’t truly believed about it before this news emerged, the two are not all that different.
Both Wang as well as Balenciaga do a lot of of their accessories service by selling slouchy leather bags with tough, industrial-inspired hardware. The bags from both lines are then reissued in new colors as well as hardwares every season; the most successful styles have their shapes modified a bit in later seasons to supply consumers several options. a lot of brands integrate a few of those methods into their accessories strategies, however the similarities are a lot more many than you’d expect when you look at the bag lines side-by-side, especially thinking about exactly how divergent the rest of the two brands are.
On top of that, Balenciaga as well as Wang’s seasonal bags have begun to share aesthetic similarities in recent seasons. Wang’s Pelican line from autumn 2012, for example, has the taut leather as well as clean edges that define lots of of Balenciaga’s recent non-Motorcyle bags. Both of those moves may be attributable to larger accessories trends, however they’re significant because, improbably, both brands now have their accessories collections structured the exact same method – a foundation of casual, simple carry bags as well as satchels with edgy hardware, integrated with seasonal lines of tight, contemporary totes as well as satchels.
Ultimately, that must assist Balenciaga bag enthusiasts breathe a little sigh of relief. The Motorcycle bags, with their seemingly limitless popularity, are likely going nowhere, at least in the instant future. Not only would it be a poor service step to end the line ideal now, however it the bags likely won’t be in contrast to Wang’s aesthetic vision at Balenciaga; after all, they’re quite much in sync with it already.
What are your feelings on Alexander Wang’s step to Balenciaga? What do you believe the link will be like?