The fashion world entered a period of mourning in the fall of 2015, when Alber Elbaz announced his departure from the Parisian fashion house Lanvin, following 14 stellar years at the brand’s helm. In the years since, Lanvin has struggled to find its footing and reestablish its once powerful position as a leader in womenswear, and although Elbaz’s name has been bandied about by fashion insiders keen to see him take up the reigns at another big house, little has been seen or heard from him. That is, until now.
Turns out Elbaz has spent the past year working with LeSportsac on a series of nylon bags, backpacks, and weekenders printed with a collection of his signature sketches. “It was a nice project with nice people,” he told Vogue of the collaboration. “You know, I’m very sensitive to the people I work with, and I felt very comfortable with the team at LeSportsac, the Japanese and the American teams. I liked the idea of a democratic and iconic company that is there for so long and known for its sketches, so I thought, Why not? It will be fun!”
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
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- Alber Elbaz x LeSportsac
When asked if he had any intention of returning to the runway, Elbaz said “The answer is yes. But I’m taking the time—I’m not really in a rush. I always feel I want to do things I love for people I love and for women I love, so this is always the issue. I mean, here I am waiting for Mr. Right or Mrs. Right, or whatever you call it. For the time being, I am observing. I think it’s quite an interesting thing to stop from time to time and to look around and to try to see and understand and accumulate ideas and words and stories and needs and life—and life changes. I think as a designer, we have to take all of it into consideration.”
The collection will be available on lesportsac.com beginning August 15th and in stores worldwide beginning in September with an official launch party on September 5th as part of NYFW: The Shows, at Spring Studios.
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