Must Read: Balenciaga Relaunches Le City Bag, Estée Lauder Signs IU as Global Brand Ambassador

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These are the stories making headlines in fashion on Thursday.

Balenciaga relaunches Le City bag
Balenciaga reintroduced its Le City bag on Thursday after the style first launched back in 2001. In celebration of the launch, Balenciaga released a campaign photographed by Mario Sorrenti and starring Kate Moss, Danish model Mona Tougaard, Chinese actor and singer Yang Chaoyue as well as Korean singer Juyeon. The new Le City was designed to echo the 2001 bag almost exactly, and is now available in black, yellow, green, light purple, metallic steel grey, metallic silver, white, blue and beige colorways in select stores worldwide and on balenciaga.com. See the campaign images above. {Fashionista inbox}

Estée Lauder signs IU as global brand ambassador
Korean singer and actor IU is Estée Lauder's newest global brand ambassador. IU will be featured in campaigns for the brand's Advanced Night Repair and Double Wear, and her first campaign will debut this month. "I am incredibly excited to be joining Estée Lauder," IU said in a statement. "It is an iconic brand founded by an inspirational woman leader and is beloved by so many women around the world. I am truly honored to be part of it." {Fashionista inbox}

London Fashion Week Men's is back with a rebrand
This summer, London Fashion Week June "aims to ignite a cultural moment," according to the British Fashion Council. The event will be held from June 7 to 10 and will feature panel discussions, cultural events and runway shows focusing on menswear. The week will begin with an event at the Institute of Contemporary Arts, and more specific details on the schedule are to come. {Vogue Business/paywalled}

Do hair relaxers have a future?
The U.S. National Institutes of Health published a study in October 2022 that found women who used hair relaxers more than four times a year were at a higher risk of uterine cancer. Many Black women have since quit chemical straighteners and even filed lawsuits against manufacturers like Dark & Lovely, Ors Olive Oil No-Lye Relaxer and TCB Naturals. Meanwhile, sales of these relaxers and perms in African countries like Tunisia, Kenya and Cameroon, are continuing to climb. Some argue that governments should ban dangerous ingredients found in relaxers and require health warnings, while beauty brands claim that more research is still needed. {Business of Fashion/paywalled}

Dove pledges to not use AI models in advertising
In a new ad campaign titled "The Code," Dove pledged to never use AI "to create or distort women's images" as part of its ongoing commitment to "Real Beauty." Dove also established Real Beauty Prompt Guidelines aiming to help users of generative AI create more representative images. {Retail Dive}

Larroudé and Markarian collaborate on bridal shoe
Luxury womenswear label Markarian and Larroudé teamed up to create a bridal shoe that is custom made to order. The minimalist pair of white sandals are adorned with a satin bow. Retailing for $375, the bridal shoe is available now on larroude.com. {Fashionista inbox}

Brandy Melville documentary reveals racism, misogyny and overconsumption
A new documentary titled "Brandy Hellville & the Cult of Fast Fashion" offers a behind-the-scenes look at Brandy Melville's accusations of racism and sexual exploitation as well as overconsumption within fast fashion. The documentary directed by Eva Orner reveals "a culture of sexualizing young white girls and promoting disordered eating via their unrealistic beauty standards," Teen Vogue's Lex McMenamin writes. It also spotlights the impact fast fashion has on the environment by showing Ghana's largest secondhand market where 7.5 million pounds of clothing arrives weekly from the U.S. The doc is streaming now on HBO Max. {Teen Vogue}

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