Stella McCartney: ‘There aren’t enough women in fashion’
‘There aren’t enough women at the top of fashion houses’, said Stella McCartney after her show outside the Pompidou Centre in Paris.
She has a point. Gucci. Saint Laurent. Givenchy, Louis Vuitton. Valentino… the world’s biggest labels are all run by men, just as they were 50 years ago.
‘It’s really important to keep saying that, because at the end of the day, these collections are selling to women. I try absolutely everything on that I design, because two centimetres, even two millimetres, can make all the difference in terms of comfort’.
This was far and away her best collection in several years, juxtaposing oversized tailoring (exaggerated for the catwalk) with slip dresses, Grecian style draping and strapless jumpsuits. The results were sophisticated and breezy, even if some of it needs adapting for boring old real life.
90s references? You bet, including hipsters, corset tops and vests festooned with strands of crystals that looked as though they’d come straight out of the 1999 collection she designed when she was still at Chloe. ‘The 90s are all my 15 year old daughter wants to wear,’ says McCartney, which makes her just like millions of other 15 year olds.
How does she feel seeing her archives hotly pursued by a new generation? ‘Very old’, says 51 year old McCartney, although that won’t stop her wearing it all again, second time round.
Even the hipsters? ‘Even the hipsters, though maybe not quite like on the catwalk. I’ve always liked low-cut trousers. They’re just so comfortable - and sexy’
There was, thoughtfully, a genuine 90s supermodel on hand to show everyone how it’s done. A bare faced (at least to the nake eye) 48 year old Amber Valletta came down the multi coloured catwalk twice - once in slouchy jeans and a big white shirt, and once in a black tuxedo jumpsuit. She made both outfits look like the only things you really need or want to wear - the sign of a great model.
There was more - alongside the monochrome, shots of primrose, tomato , mint and cerulean. McCartney recently told me that one of her problems is that she loves so many different aesthetics, it’s hard editing herself. But here it all came together.
Perhaps more importantly for her, three years into her deal with LVMH, which bought a 50 per cent stake in her label in 2019, and also appointed her as its sustainability advisor, this collection was 87 per cent sustainable.
Thanks to an investment from LVMH, she’s been able to switch to cotton that not only doesn’t use pesticides, but captures carbon in the soil during its growth. Anything that looks like leather on her catwalks - and there were some ultra sleek curvy jackets as well as squishy shoulder bags - is plant based, including the Mycelium bags which are made from mushroom skins.
‘I’m hoping you’re not aware of all of this while you’re watching the show,’ says McCartney. ‘The point is to prove you don’t have to sacrifice style or luxury to do this’.
As well as the artist Jeff Koons and her father, Sir Paul, her new boss, Bernard Arnault, CEO of LVMH and the most powerful man in fashion, was in the front row. This was a big deal. ‘I want Monsieur Arnault to see how far you can take sustainability. Hopefully then we can roll some of this technology out for all the other LVMH brands [which include Dior, Celine, Loewe and Louis Vuitton]’.
It was also the first time Mr Arnault had met Sir Paul, ‘It’s a bit nerve racking to be honest,’ she says.’ Apart from my husband, they’re the two main men in my life’.
