Pressing Pause on FENTY
Image Courtesy: Strike FSU
In 2017, LVMH (Moët Hennessey Louis Vuitton) began their journey with multi-talented artist and entrepreneur, Rihanna to create the FENTY Fashion House. Under the creative direction of Robyn Rihanna Fenty, LVMH launched its first luxury fashion brand built from scratch since the Christian Lacroix brand in 1987. And if breaking music industry records wasn’t enough, Rihanna also became the first women and person-of-color to lead a luxury brand at LVMH. In 2019, the fashion line debuted its collection in Paris, including clothing, eyewear, jewelry and footwear. Prices varied from jogger pants costing $280, t-shirts starting at $180, hoodies at $300, and dresses ranging from $600 - $700. With the brand’s unique beginnings, Rihanna and CEO of LVMH, Bernard Arnault, were prepared to expand the name of FENTY.
Skip to 2021 and the Fenty Maison has decided to indefinitely suspend the brand and place their efforts elsewhere. LVMH made a statement to WWD that read, “Rihanna and LVMH have jointly made the decision to put on hold the RTW activity, based in Europe, pending better conditions.” By investing more into Rihanna’s brand, the parent company wants to develop an activewear line and more Savage X Fenty into physical retail stores. There is now $115 million in new funding for Savage X and thankfully, Fenty Beauty and Fenty Skin are still here to stay. LVMH still believes in what is to come for FENTY and is definitely making it known that they are not afraid of change and risk. The reasons for why the brand decided to take a pause are plentiful but there are a few in particular I would like to tackle.
Getting the obvious reason out of the way, COVID-19 played a major role in the decision of suspending the line and for all of the right reasons. Most people are not shopping for luxury goods at this time because of remote work, travel restrictions, social distancing leading to less social gatherings, etc. The luxury market has probably had one of the biggest hits because of the pandemic and consumers are searching for more casual clothing, rather than luxury items. There has also been discussion over if the mogul missed her demographic in the creation of this new line. In addition to undesirable price points, there was not much hype around the fashion show, unlike her beauty and lingerie that exudes confidence and body-positivity with affordability. It is not often we see conglomerates such as LVMH give celebrities full reign of a luxury brand but rather just endorse them. Fashion enthusiasts were skeptical to believe the long-term success of the brand from the start.
With continued focus on Savage X Fenty, Fenty Beauty, and Fenty Skin, we are nowhere near to seeing the end of Robyn Rihanna Fenty. An inspiration to all, Rihanna is breaking barriers and building confidence and self-love within all of her supporters. Both LVMH and Rihanna wish to divert their focus on FENTY by investing in her lingerie, skincare, and beauty brands. And so, we are not saying our goodbyes to FENTY but instead, a see you later.
Strike Out,
Writer: Breanna Tang
Editor: Joey Flanagan
Graphics: Alison MacCloud
Tallahassee