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PARIS — Vogue — and French fashion — sought to position themselves at the heart of pop culture and sport, kicking off Paris haute couture week with a star-studded celebration Sunday linking fashion history, music and athletic excellence.
A month out from Paris’ first Olympic games since 1924, the magazine shut down the iconic Place Vendôme — home to Schiaparelli, Boucheron, and Van Cleef & Arpels as well as the Ritz Hotel where Coco Chanel lived for three decades — for the show, which was the third edition of its “Vogue World” event following editions in New York and London.
Looks by French fashion houses including Chanel, Dior, Balenciaga, Courrèges, Paco Rabanne and more were curated by fashion historian Alexandre Samson and styled by Carine Roitfeld and Ib Kamara.
Aya Nakamura and Bad Bunny performed, while a mix of sports stars and models circled the square’s central column wearing looks designed to evoke Paris’ fashion’s long love affair with athletics. A horde of young aspiring Olympians opened the show wearing all-white ensembles by Lacoste; models Gigi Hadid and Kendall Jenner rode the runway on horseback in the ever equestrian-inspired Hermès. Venus and Serena Williams wore ensembles by Marine Serre and Off-White, and “Espresso” singer Sabrina Carpenter strutted in a custom Jacquemus look inspired by glamorous mid-century swimwear. A breakdance team closed the show in Louis Vuitton jumpsuits by Pharrell Williams, who sat beside editor-in-chief Anna Wintour (John Galliano sat to her other side). Swimmers, footballers and champion fencers were also present.
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“It’s about going further than just fashion, and rather creating culture and events,” Eugénie Trochu, Vogue France’s head of editorial said. “It also helps us to create a lot of content, not just for Vogue but for other titles in Condé Nast,” she added.
Within an hour of the event, video snippets appeared on the Instagrams of various Vogue editions featuring a sportscaster like voice annotating the performance. Articles, too, proliferated on Vogue’s website: ”Olivia Munn and John Mulaney Enjoyed a Romantic Night Out at Vogue World: Paris;” “This tricolor dress by Alaïa at Vogue World: Paris paid tribute to a celebrated moment in fashion history.”
Vogue’s focus on sport comes amid the ramp-up to the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, as well as a broader explosion in sponsorship activity. Brands are increasingly drawn to famous athletes’ mix of high visibility and an aspirational image: the sports sponsorship market is set to grow from $63.1 billion in 2021 to $109.1 billion by 2030, a report by consultancy PwC found.
Shutting down the Place Vendôme required support from as high up as the Elysée, although President Emmanuel Macron and First Lady Brigitte ultimately did not attend: Macron’s Renaissance party was trounced by the far-right National Rally in recent European elections. Macron has since called snap elections in which far right parties continue to lead the polls, making for an uncomfortable background for Paris Couture week.
“In the past weeks we’ve worked to further reinforce diversity and make sure we are paying tribute to the open-minded spirit that makes Paris fashion run,” Samson said. That’s meant adding more non-white and Muslim models and performers, he said, as well as being careful about how much the French flag was visible at the event (the flag is less often used outside public institutions here, and could be mistaken for a conservative political statement).
