Celebrity Ambassador or Fashion Hostages?
There are many ways to know you’ve made it in Hollywood. By the number of followers you have, the number of awards you’ve won, or whether you are the face of a high fashion brand.
The face of a brand, or fashion ambassador, is a celebrity who is in contract, usually with a luxury fashion house, to promote the brand in campaigns, on the carpet, on the cover of magazines, or just regularly with streetwear. It is a good thing for brands because most luxury houses are eager to have lasting contracts with celebrities, but it also ensures that they are still in the fashion circle, having their pieces worn in elite spaces. For a celeb, it cements them into the fashion world, ensuring they will most likely always have something to wear when going to the event.
A few of the best and most perfectly matched celeb/brand partnerships are Robert Pattinson with Dior, Harry Styles with Gucci, and Zendaya with Valentino.
Although it’s nice to have security with a fashion contract, they can be significantly limited in what they’re allowed to wear. Of course, fashion connoisseurs are always eager to see what the stars are wearing on the carpet, but it can get a little predictable when you know that a star will wear something from the same brand repeatedly.
One example of a celeb trapped in a fashion contract is actress Kristen Stewart. Stewart has been an ambassador for Chanel since 2013 and has strictly only worn Chanel on the carpets since then. She was also a muse for the late designer Karl Lagerfeld. Lagerfeld was the creative director for Chanel from 1989-2019 while also having his own self-named luxury brand. The theme of the next Met Gala is in tribute to him, and many people are worried as his era Chanel hasn’t been a favorite.
Another Chanel hostage or ambassador is Margot Robbie. Robbie has been with the luxury label since 2018. Her red carpet outfits are notoriously known for not being the best. In January, fashion fans rejoiced when she wore several looks from Bottega Veneta. Unfortunately, her contract may have only been amended because she wore Chanel again at the following events.
Some celebrity contracts with brands are looser than others. Zendaya, for example, was previously in a contract with Valentino, and as an ambassador, she could work with other houses such as Versace, Ferragamo, Prada, and more. As a result, Zendaya is now known as a fashion icon and one of the best-dressed celebs. Thanks to her stylist, now retired, Law Roach.
Sometimes, more than not, it isn’t the luxury brand’s fault for how a celeb dresses on a carpet, but more so the stylist. Stylists are the critical connection between celebrities and the brands they work with. It’s a running joke amongst fashion lovers that if a celeb is styled poorly on the carpet, they have probably wronged their stylist.
Some other celebrity fashion ambassadors include Maneskin with Gucci, Lily-Rose Depp with Chanel, and Michael B. Jordan for Coach. Recently there have been a few newer celeb partnerships, such as Taylor Russell with Loewe and Zendaya and Anne Hathaway with Louis Vuitton.
Recently, due to the rise of the music genre, K-pop fashion houses have partnered with many Korean stars. Each member of Black Pink is tied to a fashion house: Jisoo for Dior, Lisa for Celine, Rose for YSL, and Jennie for Chanel. K-pop fans help with “free promotion” and generate buzz for high fashion houses outside fashion spaces. During Bottega Veneta’s FW23 show during Milan Fashion Week where BTS’ Kim Nam Joon, professionally known as RM, attended. Fans flooded Twitter with a hashtag in support of RM and Bottega.
Many things are considered when styling a look for a celeb; sometimes, it’s a little more complicated when there is a commitment to a particular brand. It’s great to have lasting relationships between a brand and a celeb for both parties, but sometimes it’s more like a hostage situation. All I know is I’m crossing my fingers for Margot Robbie to be freed before the press for Greta Gerwig’s Barbie.
Strike Out,
Boca Raton
Morgann Rhule
Morgann (yes with 2 n’s) is a content writer for Strike Magazine. Her best friends describe her as a shopaholic bookworm who gives the best advice. Born in Jamaica, she wears it proudly with a beaded red, green, and gold necklace she never takes off. You can reach her on insta @morgannrhule or email morgannrhule@gmail.com
