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Behind the paywall in today’s issue:
Very Important Clients weigh in on the “Great Reset,” one year in.
How buying Chanel has become a blood sport.
“I felt very over it,” said one devoted buyer of Matthieu Blazy’s Chanel on the latest show.
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🎙️ New on the Back Row podcast: Fashion journalist and New York Times bestselling author Dana Thomas joined me for our Spring 2027 Fashion Month Awards! We hand out arbitrary prizes for Biggest Sophomore Slump, Most Unwalkable Shoes, and more. We also discussed John Galliano’s Zara drop plus Virginie Viard’s explosive book.
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Loose Threads
Gwyneth Paltrow officiated Rob Lowe’s son’s wedding wearing a floral column gown. People are coming for her because the dress had some white on it, but of all the things to come at her for, this seems like one of the least bad.
Kim Jones is relaunching his brand, Kim Jones.
I taped a podcast with the fabulous Audie Cornish today (episode will be out in a few weeks!) and she told me she’s been playing around with Daydream, the AI shopping tool, to help her sort through the ever-growing landscape of fashion slop. I’ve been playing around with it and like how you can give it prompts like “good blazer for a panel talk” and it spits out useful ideas.
Why is Anthony Vaccarello really leaving Saint Laurent? Per Reuters, a Barclays note said his successor will focus on “currently under-represented product categories, such as women's daywear and menswear.” Those clear men’s shoes would like a word.
Alexander Skarsgård in full Saint Laurent. (Photo: Laura Rose/Dave Benett/WireImage)
Here’s a headline that manages to be both good and terrible PR at the same time: “Uniqlo owner set to overtake H&M as retailer pursues fast fashion dominance.”
Ahead, today’s big story…
Cracks in Chanelmania
A year ago, around 15 major fashion brands debuted collections by new creative directors. The industry termed this collective transition “the Great Reset.” Clients, as previously reported in Back Row, were not terribly impressed. “This whole ‘great reset’ was a bunch of bullshit,” said one who had spent six figures on Chanel ready-to-wear that year but didn't want a single thing from Matthieu Blazy's first collection.
With many of these creative directors entering their sophomore year, I wanted to hear from VICs (very important clients, or the 2 percent of buyers who account for 40 percent of luxury fashion sales) about the collections, particularly Chanel. Since I last surveyed them for their thoughts, Chanelmania has parted many from large amounts of hard-earned money. Even first-time Chanel buyers rushed to the boutiques to buy a pair of shoes or whatever they could afford — or find. Acquiring Chanel, I heard again and again, has become a blood sport, where the winners employ sourcers and make sure to order pieces hot off the runway.
Yet, after doing these interviews, I'm not sure how much longer Chanelmania can last. Clients are already feeling fatigue and questioning the hype.
Ahead, interviews with six of them (edited and condensed for clarity).
The West Coast VIC Who’s Best Friends With Her Chanel SA
Across the board, I spend probably around $300,000 to $400,000 a year on designer pieces. Around $120,000 with Prada, and the rest is a pretty even split between Chanel and Hermès.
I’ve always loved Chanel ready-to-wear, but I was never into the bags. They looked too traditional for me. Chanel had never really been on my radar until Matthieu Blazy, I think because it’s more androgynous now. Now I own a bunch of ready-to-wear and several bags.
The new spring-summer collection, I’m not…
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