Branding is everything. It gives us a definition, an edge. It’s why we choose to give our money to select fashion houses and wear their symbols with pride. Fashion is designed to help us be creative in expressing ourselves and who we are, and luxury brands help us achieve this. But aside from showing off our red soles, is the quality you get when buying high end clothes. The soft, durable fabrics, the timeless styles and lines, buying designer brands is about wearing a work of art.
As brands come and go, with new styles, ideas, fabrics, prints, or whatever their signature stitch may be, there are few that have truly weathered the storms and are left standing as the top designer brands on the market. With years of expertise in fabric quality and texture, professional design, and an eye for color, these top designer brands are really where you should be putting your money.
Gucci
The Italian luxury brand first started in Florence, Tuscany by Guccio Gucci and has been delivering high quality fabrics, clothing, and new trends for almost a century now. Starting in 1921, the Gucci House has shaped 21st century fashion with romantic, eclectic, and forward-thinking styles delivering only the finest Italian craftsmanship in every piece. There is a reason Gucci has been around the block for so long now, not only can they deliver the most sought after timeless fashion trends in the world year after year, but they do so with grace and elegance each time.
With a century of experience in fashion and design, Gucci is one of the oldest Italian luxury brands today. Like many iconic fashion houses, Gucci started on the same journey of luggage making, designing luxury travel goods for Italy’s upper class along with equestrian gear. It wasn’t until after World War II the brand started using cotton to create their goods which paved the way for fashion. It was during this time that the brand introduced their iconic double G logo that is still used today. From the 1950’s onward, Gucci created incredible success amongst wealthy travelers, Hollywood stars, and other A-list customers. Gucci was then and still is today known for their extravagant, luxury designs. In fact, they are considered one of the top best luxury brands for men – click here to read more.
The brand is now run by creative director, Alessandro Michele who took over as the creative director in 2015. At the time, Gucci had developed a sort of stale reputation and many questioned the direction Michele would be able to take it. Although Michele had worked for the fashion house in other roles for the last 12 years, he was still a relatively unknown designer. Michele’s work, however, has perfectly blended the classic Gucci aesthetic with a kooky, theatrical, idiosyncratic hot label that gave the brand the revival it needed.
Hermès
Another popular fan favorite is the brand Hermès. First established in 1837 by Thierry Hermès, this French fashion House truly creates one of a kind works of art through their fashion, accessories, fragrances and more. Known for their incredibly durable, finely crafted leathers, Hermès comes with years of experience in high end goods and fashion. Always delivering practical, well-made pieces, Hermès proves time and time again to be one of the best.
They are particularly known for their famous Birkin bag, ever heard of it? Named after famous English actress Jane Birkin, the Birkin bag was born through an encounter with Jean-Louis Dumas, when Jane Birkin complained her purse couldn’t carry enough of her things. Together, they created a flawless purse design through some of the finest fabrics and materials, with unique hideaway pockets, compartments, and clever storage. Each Birkin bag is hand-stitched by seamstresses that train for up to 10 years before they are able to create a Birkin bag. The materials are carefully picked from rare animal hides and can even be dotted with diamonds.
Louis Vuitton
Louis Vuitton, or LV, is one of the oldest and arguably one of the most influential fashion houses of all time. The brand was first started in 1854 by Louis Vuitton, a French box maker who was inspired to make his own luxury trunks and tap into a high-class market. Louis Vuitton continued to make durable, weatherproof box luggage for train travel through the twentieth century. It actually wasn’t until 1997 that the brand broke into fashion and hired on Marc Jacobs as their first creative director. With the help of Jacobs, Louis Vuitton created the brands first ready to wear men’s and women’s lines giving the fashion house an excellent start.
In 2013, Marc Jacobs left the brand and Nicolas Ghesquiere, formerly the creative director at Balenciaga, was brought on to the Louis Vuitton team, with Kim Jones as the style director. In 2017, street fashion caught fire, and Jones saw an opportunity. Louis Vuitton took on a risky collaboration with New York streetwear brand, Supreme for a Fall/Winter 2017 collection. The collaboration was a wild success, with the collection instantly selling out of every location. The brand leaned into this business opportunity and brought on creative director, Virgil Abloh, to take over. Abloh, who is also the creative director of his own brand, Off-white, has taken Louis Vuitton right into the heart of luxury street fashion and hype culture.
Their clean designs, durable materials, and iconic stars make them a must-have option among high fashion brands and consumers. In fact, they have been named the #1 luxury brand in the world for several years. However, Creative Director, Virgil Abloh, is prepared to push the boundaries of what is deemed as “high fashion” and even risk the reputation of Louis Vuitton as he ventures into the skate world. It’s true that late December 2020, Virgil Abloh paired up with professional skater, Lucien Clarke, to release Louis Vuitton’s first ever skate shoe. A risky move that proved to be high reward, Abloh is prepared to change the way we think about luxury fashion. The company continues to prove to be a powerhouse in the fashion world, operating out of 50 different countries and 460 boutique style stores worldwide.
Chanel
The French House of Chanel was established in 1909 by the famous Gabrielle Chanel, better known as Coco Chanel. Always having an eye for high fashion, Coco Chanel started her business with elegance, and works of art style pieces for the who’s who. She aimed to bring simplicity and classic designs to an over-designed, opulent fashion market, transforming the women’s fashion industry. Coco created lasting fashion designs that were practical and durable, carefully hand creating each piece to last throughout the years. And that’s exactly what they did. Although Coco Chanel passed away in 1971, her hand crafted designs still live on. Now these pieces can be bought today as vintage Chanel pieces and are extremely rare and high in price, but thanks to careful precision and excellent craftsmanship, have preserved to remain just as beautiful and new as they always were.
Chanel still holds this value close to their work today. Known especially for their Little Black Dress, perfume No. 5 de Chanel, and the iconic Chanel Suit, The Parisian fashion house has and continues to bring function and class to the runway, breaking down barriers in fashion while still upholding elegance. Chanel is meant to last as it always has, which is why it is one of the best brands to ever buy from.
Today, the infamous fashion house is run by Alain and Gerard Wertheimer who actually have a personal connection to Chanel – proof of the brands long standing resilience. The Wertheimer family had the opportunity to give business input and advice and Alain and Gerard’s grandfather, Pierre Wertheimer, struck a deal with Coco Chanel in 1924. Since then, the Chanel brand has stayed close to home.
Balenciaga
First founded in 1937 by Cristóbal Balenciaga, Balenciaga was established in the Basque Country in Spain. The brand was later moved to France in 1937 as a result of the Spanish Civil War where they opened their first boutique store in Paris. Cristóbal used plenty of sleek, linear lines in his designs, a popular post-war era design aesthetic derived from the hour glass shape by Christian Dior during that time. He, along with a handful of famous designers, helped revolutionize the women’s fashion in the 50’s and 60’s and had developed a trademark style for himself – wide collars and bracelet sleeves, a look that had not yet been explored.
Although the Spanish fashion House has been established since the 30’s, Balenciaga has hit an all-time stride in April of 2019 with the rise of the streetwear trend. They offer many iconic looks and eclectic fashion pieces, but they are infamously known for their footwear – a small piece of the Balenciaga name that pushed them over the billion dollar mark. Current head designer, Demna Gvasalia, alongside Vetements, is who helped the brand accomplish this impressive milestone. His philosophy to fashion is that you must deconstruct something to create something. He cites that his work is largely influenced by streetwear and sportswear aesthetics with a focus on comfort, style, and flow.
While the price will depend on the item you are looking for, Balenciaga is not cheap to come by. There prices can range from $500 for a pair of shoes to $4,000 for a painted jacket. What makes Balenciaga so prestige is that each item is carefully hand crafted and hand stitched for perfection. There are no room for mistakes when it comes to creating clothing that will last, and Balenciaga has mastered the art of cool, comfortable, yet long-lasting fashion.
Rolex
Since the 1920’s, Rolex has been the pinnacle of luxury watch brands worldwide. Known for their incredible craftsmanship and style, Rolex is a long-standing brand of high society accessories. Not only are their watches extremely comfortable, but they are efficient, durable, and comes with a lifetime of use. What makes these watches so worth the extra money is that each piece is carefully handcrafted with precision, patience, and the highest quality materials. For example, most luxury watch brands use a 316L steel material – extremely durable and could last a lifetime with care. Rolex, however, uses an optical 904L steel which provides lifetime durability, shine, and harder material. It seems as though the products last just as long as the famous Rolex brand name will.
Aside from its durability, what exactly is it about Rolex that makes it such a desirable brand? Recent studies have actually show that Rolex has the highest emotional connection with consumers than any other luxury brand. Through clever marketing and years of watch making experience, Rolex has completely integrated themselves over the years into the consumer market and apart of the luxury lifestyle. The company has also brought everything in house, meaning every step in dreaming, designing, and building luxury wrist watches can all be done in house at Rolex which has allowed them to thrive on this total control. They actually have a name for this at the Rolex headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland called “The Rolex Way”. This philosophy has and always will drive the brand to creating the most innovative, stylish, lifetime watches in the market.
Giorgio Armani
Another famous Italian fashion House, Giorgio Armani has been producing fine quality leathers, materials, and fashion trends for 45 years now. Established in 1975 by Giorgio Armani, the Italian fashion house takes on a very business professional Italian aesthetic to it. With soft materials, and high quality fabrics, Armani is the cutting edge fashion of the business world. Although they specialize in prestige business wear, Armani also produces lines of athletic wear, loungewear, and streetwear. The Armani name is considered a luxury name due to the high quality, hand-picked materials they use for each of their pieces.
The Italian fashion house designs and manufactures haute couture, ready-to-wear lines, watches, jewelry, shoes, eyewear, accessories, home interiors, and even cosmetics. Armani operates under several labels including Giorgio Armani Privé, Giorgio Armani, Emporio Armani (including EA7), Armani Junior, and Armani Exchange. The brand cleverly utilizes their prestige name in luxury fashion in other labels for maximum profit in the high fashion world. Gorgio Armani is also in collaboration with Emaar Properties, a chain of luxury hotels, and also owns and operates bars and nightclubs around the world. So next time you go out with your friends, maybe consider the Armani nightclub.
The Gorgio Armani high end label’s men’s and women’s ready-to-wear lines can only be purchased in Gorgio Armani boutiques around the world. In 2016, the company took a bold approach in their fashion design and decided to stop using real animal furs for their pieces. The decision arose out of discrimination towards the company, and Gorgio Armani decided to find a more humane approach to their work.
Prada
First establish in 1913 by Mario Prada and his brother Martino, Prada originally started as a leather goods shop selling primarily animal goods such as reins and bridles, as well as trunks and handbags. Mario Prada did not believe that women should have any role in business and prevented any of the female family members from taking part in the business. Ironically enough, Mario’s son took no interest in the business and refused to take it over, so it was Mario’s daughter, Luisa Prada, who took over the business. Her own daughter, Miuccia Prada, joined the company in 1970 and eventually took over for her mother in 1978. Miuccia Prada remains with Prada today as the head creative director.
Kanye once rapped “Praises due to the most fly: Prada” and it’s true that the supernatural can be seen in the details of Prada’s work. For many years a velvet rope separated the world of high fashion and hip hop. Artists hardly experienced high fashion unless it was through high end bootlegger masterminds such as Dapper Dan. However, as hip hop began to integrate itself more into our normal day to day culture, that velvet rope came down quickly. Soon, artists everywhere were not only dressing in high end fashion pieces but were become the faces of these brands too. Some of the world’s biggest stars now sport head to toe luxury fashion symbols and lead the rest of the world into hype culture – and Prada went with them.
Prada has seemed to last through the ages by form-fitting to each fashion trend as it comes. From 90’s fashion staples to present day streetwear, Prada has found a place in the fashion world throughout the years. Known especially for their sunglasses, shoes, and bags, you can always count on Prada to deliver the highest-quality and most durable products as they always have. Prada’s price tag can be blamed on the incredible materials and careful production – but honestly, who could blame them? While you pay a little more up front, you are investing in a product that will last through the fashion trends as well as the normal wear and tear of everyday life.
Christian Dior
Established by a man named Christian Dior in 1946, Christian was later nicknamed ‘the designer of dreams’. The French luxury brand, Christian Dior, or more commonly known as Dior, has always been at the forefront of luxury beauty, sunglasses, and fragrances. While they do offer some incredible fashion trends and collaboration with other large luxury brand names, Christian Dior is known for their incredible line of highly effective and easy to use beauty accessories and products. Only delivering the finest quality, Dior has and always will stand as one of the top fashion houses in the world.
While the brand has always had a long standing reputation in the world of luxury, it wasn’t until after WWII that they truly hit their stride. In fact, Dior has been specifically recognized as the catalyst for the Paris fashion revival and even helped Paris reclaim their “Fashion Capitol of the World” title after WWII had ended, and still remains so today. After the war, Dior took on “The New Look” and produced full-skirted silhouette’s, flowy pieces, and elegant fashion designs. It was a breathe of fresh air from the stark uniformed look of wartime and had a heavy influence on many other designers including Alexander McQueen, Miuccia Prada, and Vivienne Westwood. The Dior fashion house helped pioneer a new wave of fashion and gave the world the bounce back it so desperately needed.
Tiffany & Co.
They say diamonds are a girl’s best friend? Well her name is Tiffany. Tiffany & Co., better known as Tiffany’s, is an American luxury jewelry line headquartered in New York City, founded in 1837, making them one of the oldest high end jewelry makers in America. While the brand specializes in sterling silver, crystal, china, watches, and personal accessories, they are especially known for their artistic work with sterling silver and diamonds. Their beautiful diamond, engagement, and wedding rings are unlike anything else on the market and of the upmost highest quality. But aside from their gorgeous rings, the company also creates beautiful handcrafted necklaces, watches, water bottles, stationary, and other accessories.
Many people first heard the brand name Tiffany’s in Audrey Hepburn’s appearance in the movie Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Although the brand was still wildly popular before Audrey Hepburn held up that iconic blue box with the white ribbon in the movie, Breakfast at Tiffany’s pushed the brand into the mainstream consumer market, and today gives us a sense of elegance and nostalgia. Tiffany’s created its first ever catalog in 1870, a catalog that is still in publication today. The company proudly won first place for jewelry and the grand prize for silverware at the Paris Exposition show in 1878. It was that event that gave Tiffany’s its International exposure, and they continue to grow on this reputation still today. But Tiffany’s is known for more than just their jewelry. If you explore their website, you will see that the company also includes home goods and accessories, leather goods, and more.
Yves Saint Laurent
Yves Saint Laurent, also known as Saint Laurent, is a French luxury fashion house founded by Yves Saint Laurent and his partner Pierre Bergé in 1961 in Paris, France. Having been founded in 1961, Saint Laurent is considered by many to be on the most prominent high fashion brands in the world. Known for their modern and iconic pieces, Saint Laurent provides forward thinking pieces that push the boundaries of fashion such as their infamous tuxedo jackets for women. While Saint Laurent particularly focuses on men’s and women’s ready-to-wear seasonal lines, leather goods, shoes, and jewelry, the French fashion house also has quite a notable presence in perfumes and fragrances as well as luxury beauty cosmetics. This small piece of their business, however, is owned by L’Oréal. Under creative director, Hedi Slimane, the luxury brand revived their haute couture collections in 2016. Later, Anthony Vaccarello was appointed as creative director, and remains in this position today.
During the late 1960’s and early 1970’s Yves Saint Laurent hit a stride in popularizing many fashion trends still in play today. Among some of his best work is the beatnik look, tight pants and knee high boots for women, safari jackets for both men and women, and of course, the most iconic look, the Le Smoking suit – a tuxedo jacket for women first designed in 1966. Some of Saint Laurent’s most iconic collections have been the Ballet Russes, Picasso, Pop Art, and Chinese. The brilliant designer also pushed the idea of wearing silhouettes into the mainstream from the 20’s through the 40’s. What’s more is that in 1966, Yves Saint Laurent was the first to popularize ready-to-wear lines in attempt to democratize fashion. Soon, many fashion houses followed suit and ready-to-wear fashion entered the consumer world.
Michael Kors
Arguably one of the most popular and widely seen luxury brands on the market is Michael Kors. Michael Kor’s affinity for fashion started when he was very young after he was exposed to the fashion industry through his mother’s modeling career. As he leaned into this passion, he started designing and selling clothes out of his parent’s basement which he later named the Iron Butterfly. Soon, Kor’s was discovered by Bergdorf’s fashion director, Dawn Mello, and asked is he would be willing to show his collection to the buyers at Bergdorf Goodman. From there the rest is history. In 1981, Michael Kors launched his first women’s label at Bergdorf Goodman. In 2004, Michael Kors left the company to focus on his own brand MICHAEL Michael Kors which joined the original Michael Kors Collection label. The line included women’s ready-to-wear apparel, as well as shoes and handbags – still a popular trademark item for the fashion house today.
Today, Michael Kors has over 770 Lifestyle stores around the world with collection boutiques in New York, Beverly Hills, Chicago, Palm Beach, and Southampton. After each seasonal women’s line steps off the runway, the collection can be found here in the United States at Bergdorf Goodman, Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, and Bloomingdale’s, as well as a number of other specialty stores. With decades of experience in luxury women’s fashion, Michael Kors has dressed many A-list celebrities including Nicole Kidman, Olivia Wilde, Blake Lively, Kate Hudson, Jennifer Lawrence, Taylor Swift, Kate Middleton, Hillary Clinton, Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Lopez, Heidi Klum, and even Michele Obama in her first term official portrait. Michael Kors is a wildly respected, highly rewarded, exclusive label. However, his prices are not so exclusive that they cannot be enjoyed by nearly everyone.
Stella McCartney
Stella McCartney, English fashion designer, started her Stella McCartney high end fashion brand in 2001 and debuted her first collection in a joint venture with Gucci in Paris, France. Stella is the daughter of English singer and songwriter, Sir Paul McCartney, and American photographer, musician, and animal rights activist, Linda McCartney. Much like her parents, Stella McCartney holds a love for animals close to her heart and is an avid activist for animals. She is particularly known for using vegan and cruelty free alternatives in her designs. Her designs are elegant and sustainable usually sporting simple, bold colors, and minimal lines used to accentuate the female figure. While he work remains overall timeless, McCartney has been known to play with eccentric patterns, and eclectic designs, letting her creativity seep into some of her most inspired work.
Throughout the years, Stella McCartney has proven her place in the world of high fashion and has even collaborated with monopoly brands. A few key milestones worth mentioning for the brand include the launching of the STELLA fragrance in 2003, a partnership with Adidas athletic wear in 2004 which has been ongoing ever since then, and the first lingerie collection launched in 2008. In 2010, however, the introduction to the Stella McCartney’s iconic Falabella bag was made, with distinguishable qualities such as the braided chain, making it the brand’s number one selling item. In Spring of 2017, Stella McCartney charted new territories with the launch of the first ever menswear collection that was made entirely vegan. Today, Stella McCartney includes menswear, women’s ready-to-wear, kids’ clothing line, fragrances, shoes, handbags, other accessories, and of course, performance wear collaboration lines with Adidas.
Marc Jacobs
Marc Jacobs, New York born American fashion designer, launched his own fashion label, Marc Jacobs, in 1986 backed by Onward Kashiyama USA. The Marc Jacobs line is particularly known for bold colors, loud patterns, eclectic, almost theatrical design, and forward thinking fashion choices. His work is both professional and whimsical, providing cuts, lines, and designs that are born completely out of passion, innovation, and creativity. In 1987, he was the youngest fashion designer to ever be awarded the fashion world’s highest honor, the Council of Fashion Designers of America’s Perry Ellis Award for New Fashion Talent, which launched him into a lifelong career of art and creating.
In 1994, Marc Jacobs took a new turn when they decided to design and produced their first ever full collection of menswear. The line proved to be a success and in 1997, Jacobs was appointed at Louis Vuitton’s creative director. During his time as creative director for LV, Jacobs developed the brands first ready-to-wear clothing line, a big milestone for the LV name and an even bigger milestone for the young designer. Thanks to his popularity and brilliant design, Marc Jacobs has collaborated with many popular artists around the world for his Louis Vuitton collections including Takashi Murakami, Kanye West, Richard Prince, and Stephen Sprouse. He has been named Time Magazine’s “Time 100” top 100 most influential people in the world, and number fourteen on Out Magazine’s “50 Most Powerful Gay Men and Women in America”.
Tom Ford
American designer, Tom Ford, is known particularly for his sexy, smooth and heavy masculine or feminine aesthetics. After previously building Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent back up simultaneously, the American designer decided to launch his own self-named luxury high end fashion brand, Tom Ford, in 2006. Fashion house Tom Ford become wildly successful and remains a staple in America’s “cool culture” even today. With a long standing career spanning over three decades of fashion experience, Tom Ford leads trends and paves the way for the American fashion and design culture. But that’s not all he’s known for. Interestingly enough, designer Tom Ford is also a celebrated filmmaker as well and even directed academy award-nominated films Nocturnal Animals and A Single Man. He also currently serves as Chairman on the Board of the Council of Fashion Designers of America.
Tom Ford is known especially for his minimal, sharp aesthetic. His fashion designs use bold materials such as leathers, laminated eel, and silks, but keep to a very feminine flowy for his women’s line, or clean cut masculine for his men’s line. You can see the extreme high attention to detail in all of his work with carefully places lines, cuts, and fits all while encompassing an effortless, sexy look. He has had the opportunity to dress celebrities like Beyoncé, Jennifer Lopez, Anne Hathaway, Will Smith, and even Justin Timberlake in which he created the suits, shirts, and accessories for Timberlake’s Grammy winning music video “Suit & Tie”. He also designed an ivory floor length evening gown for Michelle Obama which she wore to Buckingham Palace in 2011. Tom Ford has and may always remain the pinnacle of American fashion.
Bottega Veneta
First established in 1966 in Vicenza, Italy by entrepreneurs and business partners, Michele Taddei and Renzo Zengiaro. At the time, Michele Taddei was married to Laura Braggion who helped developed the brand alongside him. After a few years, Michele and Laura split and left the new fashion house in the hands of Vittorio and Laura. Like many high end luxury fashion brands, Bottega Veneta, a name derived from the phrase “Venetian Shop” in Italian, was founded on producing high quality artisanal leather goods. Only working with the finest leathers in all of Italy, the young fashion house developed what they called an intrecciato – an intricate weave design developed into the leather. This distinctive design caused a lot of attention, and soon the intrecciato became associated with the Bottego Veneta brand name.
During the 1980’s the Bottega Veneta found themselves in a bit of decline as most fashion houses do during their lifespan. It wasn’t until 2001 that the struggling company was bought out by Gucci Group for $156 million dollars. At the time, Tom Ford was still creative director at Gucci and was put in charge of finding Bottega Veneta a new leader. Tom Ford hired creative director, Tomas Maier, who had previously worked for Sonia Rykiel and Hermès. After gaining totally control of the brand, Maier set out to restore Bottega Veneta’s original reputation – one built on quality, durability, and innovative designs. And that’s exactly what he did. The brand was turned around and has been on an uphill swing ever since then. The brand features heavy materials, much like Comme des Garçon, but with a much more minimal, punk aesthetic. They pride themselves on bold, heavy lines, baggy fits, and sharp cuts. As the brand continues to rise in popularity, we can see that Bottega Veneta may just be redefining luxury fashion for a new era of high end clothing.
Hugo Boss
Hugo Boss, normally associated with the name BOSS, is a German based luxury high end fashion house based in Metzingen, Baden-Württemberg. The German fashion house produces everything from clothing to accessories, footwear to fragrances, and is one of the largest German clothing companies in the world. The company was originally founded by Hugo Boss in 1924 and originally produced general clothing for everyday use. As the Nazi party began to rise in the early 1930’s, Boss took advantage of the opportunity by designing and selling Nazi uniforms. As the part progressed, Boss became the uniform supplier to the German government during World War II, and made uniforms for organizations such as the Hitler Youth and Waffen-SS, which naturally boosted the brands sales and exposure.
After WWII, and the death of the founder in 1948, the German fashion house completely rebranded, moving away from uniforms and more towards turn of the century trends. Hugo Boss started primarily producing men’s suits and still remains one of their specialties today. The company eventually went public in 1988 and released a line of fragrances and perfumes that same year. They also continued to release new lines such as a full men’s and women’s line, children’s clothing line, and has developed into a major global fashion house. Today, the brand features collections of high end casual wear for both men and women, with pieces ranging from polos, skirts, graphic t-shirts, shorts, and running shoes. Their style, although fashionable, plays it safe with simple designs, bright colors, and minimal patterns.
Valentino
The Italian fashion house, first founded in 1960 by Valentino Garavani and part of the Valentino Fashion Group, Valentino has been leading the world in high end Italian fashion trends for the last few decades. The Valentino fashion house first opened their doors in Rome, Italy on Via Condotti – a street dedicated to luxury, high end brands and goods – with the backing of his father, and his father’s business partner, Giancarlo Giammetti. It wasn’t long after that Valentino was ready for his first debut in the world of fashion. In 1962, Valentino Garavani introduced the world to Valentino – the newest, hottest, trendiest Italian fashion house. The debut took place in Florence, Italy, which at the time was the fashion capitol of the world. Since then, the brand has gained global popularity and established themselves as a staple brand in the world of fashion.
Valentino designs do not shy away from detail. In fact, the closer you look at any given piece, the more intricate details seem to pop out. Valentino usually features elegant, sophisticated patterns, minimal colors, and bold cuts and fits. Anything from large puffy sleeves, to logo heavy designs, Valentino prides themselves on eclectic forms, wild prints, and, of course, lots and lots of detail. Valentino has had the opportunity to design couture wedding dresses for A-list celebrities such as Jennifer Lopez, Anne Hathaway, Elizabeth Taylor, and even Princess Madeleine of Sweden. The company continues to gain popularity as its new lines leak into more mainstream fashion trends and streetwear.
Karl Lagerfeld
As one of the most acclaimed fashion designers in the world, Karl Lagerfeld is a German born fashion designer best known for his constant reinvention and bold designs. He was once described by Vogue magazine as a brilliant interpreter of the “mood of the moment”. The world famous designer later passed away in Paris on February 19th, 2019, although his fashion brand and mark on the industry continues to live on today. From an early age, however, Lagerfeld showed an interest in fashion and design. As a young child, he would often cut pictures out of magazines of the latest fashion trends and styles. He also did not shy away from giving his unwarranted fashion advice to fellow classmates at school. However, it wasn’t until his later teen years that he was fully immersed in the world of high fashion, which lead him down a successful and fruitful career in fashion.
Throughout the years, Lagerfeld has proven to do the impossible including reviving the almost dead Chanel brand back to life in the early 1980’s. Around that time, Lagerfeld launched his own label, Karl Lagerfeld. The brand proved to be a huge success and was later sold to Tommy Hilfiger in 2005. The brnad still encompasses the heart and soul of Lagerfeld by sticking to what he did best, strong lines, bold patterns, mix-match cuts and styles, all with a simple, chic aesthetic. Very similar to Calvin Klein, Karl Lagerfeld sticks to a understated fashion style, while also giving it life with unique patterns and interesting cuts. His fashion strays away from the norm while also being timeless and simple. Karl Lagerfeld was and continues to be one of the most influential designers in the world of fashion.
Dolce and Gabbana
Dolce and Gabbana is a world famous Italian fashion house first established in 1985 in Legnano, although it is now headquartered in Milan, Italy. The Italian fashion house was started by two passionate designers and business partners, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. The business partners first met in Milan in 1980 while both designing for the same fashion house. The pair grew close and soon uncovered the same passion and direction for fashion. Together, they broke away from the fashion house label and started a designer consulting studio which they launched in 1982. Throughout the years, as they gained popularity in their industry, the brand soon became known as “Dolce & Gabbana”. In 1985, they decided to explore fashion design and launched their first women’s line in Milan. The launch was a huge success and lead them to opening their first store doors only a year later.
Dolce and Gabbana has quickly worked their way up as the pinnacle of high end fashion in such a short amount of time. Their fashion is bold, colorful, eclectic, and extremely desirable. Dolce and Gabbana has always worked to create new trends through insane patterns, unusual, yet form fitting styles, all with a splash of elegance. It’s true that what you will find on a Dolce and Gabbana runway you won’t be able to find anywhere else. The brand has set themselves apart as a wild, theatrical clothing brand that continues to lead the world in high fashion.
Versace
Last but not least, is the forever famous brand, Versace. Versace is extremely versitalle amongst many different fashion enthusiasts and has even taken their design into home goods, accessories, and even helicopter collaborations. Versace is a name that has been plastered all over the fashion world and for good reason – the work they do may be some of the finest, most beautiful, most inspired work of any designer in the world. First started in 1978, this Italian fashion house was first started by Gianni Versace. The Versace logo is the head of Medusa, surrounded by a popular Greek pattern seen throughout many of Versace’s designs even today. The logo came from the floor of the Reggio Calabria ruins – an area the Versace children played in quite regularly growing up. The Medusa logo was chosen because the Greek mythological figured seduced people into falling in love with her, and once you did there was no way back.
The Versace brand is known for its innovative designs, symbolic flashy patterns, crazy prints, bright colors, all with style. They have always been ahead of their time with beautiful, form fitting cuts, naturally accentuating designs, and bold, never before seen patterns. Much of Versace still remains timeless to this day as they are constantly reimagining, reinventing, and reusing iconic patterns from their history. Versace is a brand to be reckoned with as they lead the world in creativity, innovation, and incredible fashion.
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