The fashion world was shocked these days with the news that the iconic fashion designer John Galliano, the ex-creative director for Dior and Maison Margiela, is going to collaborate with Zara.
This type of collaboration “started” in 1930, when Elsa Schiaparelli and Salvador Dali united fashion with surrealist art in pieces that are still remarkable for decades. However, the world has changed and now the luxury market is facing crises, in between the middle-class fashion consumers want to belong in this world. Entry luxury it’s the new bet of the fashion market, and with that the fast fashion companies join the trend by doing collaborations with well-known fashion designers and brands.
As this trend isn’t over, let’s revisit the past collabs!
Karl Lagerfeld x H&M
The first fashion designer to ever assign a collection with a fast fashion was Karl Lagerfeld, one of the most important designers to ever exist. And imagine, the creative director of Chanel and Fendi creating accessible pieces for a “normal” brand, everyone was surprised.
The unforgettable announcement was an advertising video and by the end, a man asks Karl “Is it true?” and he answers “Of course it’s true” the man replies again “But it’s cheap” and Karl plays his final card “What a depressing word. It’s all about taste. If you’re cheap, nothing helps.”. This basically explains the essence of the iconic collection contains turtlenecks, finger-less gloves, all-black looks with a bit of white on them and a shirt with his face on
After Lagerfeld collection with H&M in 2004, almost every following year there was a collab in 2005 with Stella McCartney, 2006 with Viktor & Rolf, 2007 with Roberto Cavalli, 2008 with Rei Kawakubo, 2009 with Jimmy Choo, 2010 with Sonia Rykiel, 2011 with Donatella Versace, 2012 with Maison Margiela, 2013 with Isabel Marant, 2014 with Alexander Wang, 2015 with Olivier Rousteing, 2016 with Humberto Leon e Carol Lim, 2017 with r Erdem Moralioglu, 2018 with Jeremy Scott, 2019 with Giambattista Valli, 2020 with Johanna Ortiz, 2021 with Simone Rocha, 2022 with Iris Apfel, in 2023 with Casey Cadwallader and, by now, the last one in 2025 with Glenn Martens.
Isabel Marant x Converse
The french designer Isabel Marant, the owner of her homonyms brand, has been doing collabs with Converse for 2 years, 2024 and 2025. The first one, was a new version of chuck 70, the brand’s most important flagship, with a hidden platform heel and a touch of stylish.
The second collab was freer to use patterns and colors that combine with the “DNA” of Marant’s brand, the shoes were chuck 70 and chuck wedge. Reimaging the classic bandana scarf with variations of colors going from brown to red.
2014: The year for collabs in Brazil
In 2014, the biggest fast fashions and the most famous designers collaborated in capsule collections presented in SPFW, the most important fashion week in South America.
Stella McCartney was the first to embrace it, she made a collection with the Brazilian fast fashion C&A in 2011 and returned to the country with another collection in 2014. Following the sustainable essence that she carries with her own brand, using as many sustainable and recyclable fabrics as possible in the collections. The first one was a capsule and, following the success behind it, she made another collection, but this time, a bigger one. With affordable and everyday clothes, including tailoring.
But she wasn’t the only one to make it. Donatella Versace made a collection with the Brazilian fast fashion Riachuelo. Rescuing the essence of Gianni Versace’s iconic fashion show inspired in sea elements, the diverse pieces followed the same “not basic” aesthetic and a campaign starring Adriana Lima. And they even manage to put on a fashion show during SPFW.
The article above was edited by Sofia Bianco.
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