Isabel Marant and Off-White let their models do the talking at SS20 shows

Last night in Paris, Isabel Marant flexed her commercial clout by recruiting some of the biggest names in the modelling world to star on her catwalk.

From veteran heavyweights Eva Herzigova, 46, Amber Valletta, 45, and Irina Shayk, 33, to social media supers Gigi Hadid and Kaia Gerber, the show not only served as a display of how the designer has succeeded in turning her brand of French girl cool into a global superbrand, but also how democratic her label is among high fashion players. 

The western fringed jackets, printed boiler suits and slouchy tie-dye denim jeans were broad in their appeal, not just as far as age was concerned but gender too, as the male models who appeared on the catwalk proved. 

But while Marant’s aesthetic may be inclusive, it’s also one rooted in an eternally youthful spirit – as the super-short shorts and teeny crochet bikinis showcased. 

In an age of conscious consumption, where luxury shoppers are considering their investment purchases more carefully than ever before, the common thread on this season’s catwalks is for designers to turn to what they do best.

But Marant is one name who has always stayed true to her own clearly defined aesthetic. 

It is perhaps for this reason that the Parisian tour de force is still among the star attractions at the French capital’s fashion week. And that her brand is more successful now than it’s ever been.

Earlier in the evening, millennial fashion phenomenon Off-White also set out to prove that its brand of elevated streetwear is also one capable of cross-generational appeal. 

As legions of teenage fans, dressed head-to-toe in the label’s latest ironic designs, gathered outside, the theme on the catwalk was often more mature in tone than past collections. With a casting that included several silver-haired models, alongside the Hadid sisters, the show began with a simple crisp white shirt dress which wouldn’t look out of place in office blocks across the capital. 

Though Virgil Abloh was absent from last night’s proceedings – the designer, who is also counts a high-pressured role as men’s artistic director at Louis Vuitton on his CV recently announced that he would be taking a three month hiatus from work on the advice of his doctor – this show was still chock full of his irreverent take on design.  

Next season, this manifested in a series of blazers and handbags perforated with giant holes. The show notes suggested these were used to invoke a meteor shower. 

As for the bag in particular, Abloh offered the explanation: “it is a non-functioning object (though it comes with a usable pouch) and it challenges the bedrock understanding of what, exactly, a bag is.” 

Ever the provocateur, the designer also credited the “cheesehead” hats worn by sports fans in the ‘dairy state’ of Wisconsin as the inspiration behind a pair of yellow hole-pocked boots which bore more than a passing resemblance to Swiss cheese.