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- [00:01]
Narrator/Host
This episode is sponsored by Macy's. At Macy's, sometimes the accessory is the outfit. Spring fashion accents are the fastest, simplest
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Lauren Sherman
way to refresh your look.
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Narrator/Host
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Lauren Sherman
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Narrator/Host
a fresh fraction of the price. It's luxury that's better for your wallet and the planet. Discover spring handbags from Coach, Guess and Ralph Lauren in lighter textures, softer shapes and playful colors. Soft leather boho bags transition effortlessly from denim to flowy dresses, while slouchy suede and east west silhouettes add fresh, modern texture. Jewelry is the perfect low stakes way to experiment with trends. Layered necklaces bring depth to simple outfits, and metal band watches paired with bangs and cuffs create a polished stack. And don't forget fragrance, the unseen accessory that speaks before your scene. Explore spring scents like YSL Libre, Berry Crush, Carolina Herrera, Jasmine Jo Malone, Peach Blossom Cologne, Miu Miu, Fleur de Lait and Byredo Gypsy Water refresh your spring style. Macy's.com or in store today Insurance isn't
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- [01:56]
Lauren Sherman
Hello and welcome to Fashion People. I'm Lauren Sherman, writer of Puck's Fashion
- [02:01]
Narrator/Host
and Beauty Memo Line Sheet.
- [02:03]
Lauren Sherman
And today with me on the show is Brian Boy, the OG Influencer, fashion editor and Vic. He's here to discuss what else but Chanel?
- [02:17]
Narrator/Host
Before we get going, I wanted to remind you that if you like this podcast, you'll definitely love Puck, where I send an email called Line Sheet. If you're a fashion person, you get that reference. It's an original look at what's really going on inside the fashion and beauty industries. Line Sheet is scoopy, analytical and above all, fun. Along with me, a subscription to Puck gains you access to an unmatched roster of experts reporting on powerful people and companies in entertainment, media, sports, politics, finance,
- [02:48]
Lauren Sherman
the art world and much More.
- [02:50]
Narrator/Host
If you're interested listeners of Fashion People get a discount. Just go to Puck News Fashion People to join or start a free trial.
- [03:02]
Lauren Sherman
Happy Friday, everyone. Hope you're having a great week. I had a really nice week myself. Lots of meetings, lots of planning, lots of eating, had some nice wine on Wednesday night. Paris is great. It's a great place to live. If you write about the fashion industry. Probably should have done it a lot earlier than this. It was also a very busy news week with plenty of creative director switcheroos at the smaller houses. But this week on Line Sheet, we had way more than that. Rachel Strugatz had a giant scoop about the Alix Earle beauty launch. Rachel, as usual, has all the figures and the sales figures you'll never find anywhere else. And on Thursday, I did a bit of philosophizing about where Dario Vitale should go next. He has options. Even though there aren't a lot of open jobs right now. I think he has. He has many options and I have opinions about what he should do. And on Tuesday, earlier in the week, Malik Morris had this great piece on District Vision, which is this running brand run by two, I would say, former fashion guys that has really blown up over the past couple of years. They have a big collaboration, ongoing collaboration with New Balance. And they started out making running I wear. I remember getting a pair really early. They sold it at Barney's. And congrats to Max and Tom. I think I'm going to have them on the podcast soon to discuss it. But you should read Malik's story. Malik did a bunch of reporting, found out they don't really discuss numbers. And of course Malik got them because that is, that is how we roll or whatever. I hate that term. But it's fine. We're not going to redo this. Anyway, enjoy this conversation with Brian, who I have known since we sat together in the bloggers front row at Dolce and Gabbana in 2010. We've. We've come a long way, Brian, and it was really fun to discuss Chanel with you. Brian. Boy. Welcome to Fashion People.
- [05:06]
Brian Boy
Thanks, Lauren.
- [05:08]
Lauren Sherman
I can't believe you've never been on before. That's totally insane.
- [05:12]
Brian Boy
I know, it's like the scheduling. But we're here now. Again, very honored to be here.
- [05:17]
Lauren Sherman
We're calling in both from Paris in different places. We do these remotely, so it's. It's a surreal experience. You're wearing your Chanel. First question of the day. What'd you have for breakfast this morning? Did you eat breakfast?
- [05:32]
Brian Boy
I did Eat breakfast. I had salmon, smoked salmon. I had an omelette. I had two croissants and one Pancho cola. Quite a substantial breakfast.
- [05:44]
Lauren Sherman
We'll talk offline about how you can do that and maintain your slender figure, but we don't wanna. Let's avoid eating disorder corner. That's not what we're talking about today.
- [05:56]
Brian Boy
No, no, no.
- [05:57]
Lauren Sherman
That sounds delicious. Okay, so I wanted to have you on today because of. To talk about the Chanel phenomenon. We have talked about Chanel many times on the podcast. I've talked about in Line sheet a million times and also on Instagram. It's sort of become definitely your personality, part of my personality to do shopping for people who want to go to Chanel. So I thought, and you've been a journalist for 15, 20 years. You've been online for 15, 20 years. You're an influencer, you're an editor, you're a huge shopper. Admitted huge shopper. And you and I really bonded over this, this Chanel thing. We have bonded over many things over the years, but the Chanel thing is. Is really been amazing. And so I wanted. I thought it'd be interesting to break it down with you. So let's start with Matou Blasey's first collection. You're seeing it from as an editor, as an online person, as a consumer of it. What was your. Were you a big Chanel person prior, and what was your initial reaction when their first Ready to Wear collection dropped last? I think, I guess it was October by that point, or in 2025.
- [07:19]
Brian Boy
Well, I mean, the thing about when you watch a show, you also don't have an idea, you know, in terms of how it's going to look like at the boutique. You know, we see, whenever we watch fashion shows, we're kind of like blinded by the whole aura, by the whole atmosphere. You go there, the set is incredible. You know, you watch the show, you're kind of like six feet away from models. And then you go to the Rey, you see all the stuff, you know, I mean, it's wonderful. But when I, you know, when you go to the boutiques five months later to see everything up close, I mean, how I felt, you know, was kind of like similar. Whenever I felt, you know, whatever, I would, you know, watch Virginie's shows, for example. I mean, I had a big problem with Virginie in terms of, you know, image and ad campaigns and styling. But with Chanel, when you go to the boutiques, everything became magical. That's where the magic happens. So I'VE always been a Virginie fan, always been a Chanel fan, but when it comes to Matthieu, it's the same effect. You know, the show is beautiful, but it was even more enchanting in real life. I mean, I went there on March 4, you know, at the boutique, the day before it launched, and I had a special preview. They weren't even selling it. They won't even let us buy anything, but they were able to place some things on hold. And what I saw was so different from what I felt, you know, at the show. It was incredibly modern. It felt fresh, it felt new. The quality was. You know, it's just so different. Even the little tiny chains on the jackets, they're much thicker, you know, waist heavier than, like, the old Virginia jackets. I mean, you're just kind of, like, hypnotized by the whole thing.
- [09:21]
Lauren Sherman
It's interesting because as someone who I've obviously admired Chanel and the idea of Chanel, and as a journalist have thought it was interesting. And also I thought Virginie, her first few collections, I was interested in them because they were. The thing that Chanel needed to do was it did need to be more in the conversation to an extent. Like, it doesn't need to lead the con. It's leading the conversation now, but we'll talk about that later. It doesn't necessarily need to lead the conversation. I think a great comparison is Hermes, where Nadej Vanhi. She's in the conversation, but it's not. She's just kind of dialoguing with the rest of fashion. She's not a part of the rest of fashion. And so I never have thought Chanel needed to be. It is the. All of the DNA and the sort of house codes are so strong that you don't really need to make a big directional designer thing. So especially early on, I was like, she's making culottes. I don't want to wear them. But Leandra Medine does. And that's interesting. I felt like as she went on, you could kind of feel that her time was ending, and she probably felt that too. And it started to get. It was honestly, for me, the Runway a little. A little depressing, but. But I understand what you're saying, that from a product perspective, in the stores, it was so good. What I will say, I was not at the. The first Mattieu show. I was in an airport, I believe, Boston, trying to get home. And I watched it online and was just completely as. Not as a journalist, not as a kind of observer of these brands, but as like a little girl who loved fashion, growing up, I was just blown away. And I loved the way the set and, you know, I really liked Matthieu's Bottega Veneta. But the. But the thing I would say about it, and I did buy a few things from, wasn't for me, the Bottega was about the fact that he made great bags and that the Runway concept, I love the ideas behind the Runway concept. It wasn't so commercially driven in my mind. Whereas the Chanel, immediately there was this one jacket that I was like, this jacket is my. My dream jacket of my entire 43 years on this earth. And the interesting thing was then I was able to go to the show in New York and then the couture and see it in person. And in person, you see it even more and just falling in love more and more with this whole idea. And the thing to me that was really interesting is the how that it does feel directional in this very specific way. It's not like he's creating new silhouettes, but he is proposing something that maybe people haven't been wearing, like a drop waist skirt that maybe it will never really catch on. But he's kind of saying, like, I'm not gonna give up on this. I believe in it. And before we get to the retail and this, this last collection, because it's so interesting how the two, the new ready to wear and the retail connected. But from a fashion editor perspective, what do you think about the sort of silhouette that he's proposing? A broad shoulder with, you know, double breasted, in many cases, very boxy, and. And so much drop lace, which I don't know if the last time that was a popular silhouette was probably the 70s. What do you think of that proposition that he's making as a, as a leader in the industry?
- [13:13]
Brian Boy
I think in. In general, what the biggest notice that I, you know, the one thing that I noticed and what I love about, you know, his collections, I mean, I totally agree with you. Since day one, Chanel will never be that conceptual brand. Never, you know, directional. Yes. But I think for me, what I felt was, it's tangible. Everything that Mathieu does, it's tangible, it's real, it's deliberate. It's, you know, and what I love about all the silhouettes that he put out there, it's freeing. You know, he really captured the essence of what Gabrielle did, you know, to free women. I mean, these are clothes that you can wear, you know, day to day. You can eat, you can drink, you can party. You can dance. Even the way those silhouettes move, you know, everything under the knee kind of like move. There's a certain, you know, flow and movement in those clothes and. Sure. Like the drop waist silhouette. I mean, it's something that Gabrielle, you know, obviously did. I mean, I think it's gonna work. You know, there's always all this discussion online. You know, only tall people can do that. But you don't know how it's gonna translate at the boutique, you know, when they do it commercially. But on an editorial perspective, I mean, he does push things a little bit. You can tell it's not extreme. He's not, you know, creating and selling only ideas, which a lot of designers now do. You know, when they design collections, it's all about pushing an idea. It's all idea, the idea of this, the idea of that. But nothing is tangible, you know, but with Matthieu, it's all real. There's the idea and then there's also the product. And it's so interconnected. And when you go to the boutiques, you can actually buy them and wear them.
- [15:03]
Lauren Sherman
Yeah. And then. And the idea. The other thing is people need newness in their closets. Someone said to me today, well, why didn't you just buy a vintage jacket? And I said, it's funny. I did buy a vintage Janelle jacket right after the show and I love it and it's great. But this is. It feels new. There's so little on the market right now that feels like totally original. And it is a silhouette that a drop waist dress. You aren't going to find a lot of those from other eras that fit well now or look modern and what everything. And it's really the ready to wear. We'll talk about the shoes and bags too. But like, I just can't even explain, like I had all these ideas of every time I come to Paris for the shows, I buy like two or three designer things and that is my clothes for the next, you know, it's part of my little collection. And this time I was just like, no, I'm not buying anything else because I have to. Once you let me know that it was not out of my reach, the jacket that I wanted, I was that. That was it. But let's talk about the lead up to the retail and then the interplay between the new show and the retail. Cause I think that was really smart, how Chanel did it. But first question, did you. You're a big consumer of fashion. Every. Anyone who follows you on social media knows this. Did you pre order anything from Chanel or did you wait till it was in the store to see. To see it?
- [16:47]
Brian Boy
I guess every client had a different policy. You know, when I. I've been going to the same sales associates in Kanbon for eight years. Eight, nine years. And, you know, we have a system where since I go to the shows, they always ask me, brian, what do you want to order from the shows? And then I send them pictures, and then they're. They're going to say, they're going to tell me, okay, we're going to take note of it, you know, the next time you're in Paris, you know, we're going to reserve it for you. They've never taken a deposit, never let me prepay anything. And whenever I'm in Paris, you know, when it's there, it's there. For this particular collection, I definitely. I have a Screenshot, you know, October 4th, you know, I want look number one, look number two, look number five. And then, of course, when I went there on March 4th, I was like, where's look number one? You know?
- [17:41]
Lauren Sherman
Yeah.
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Brian Boy
And they said it sold out. So my heart was broken, you know, like, I mean, I really. I mean, not only. I mean, I wanted look number one because it's the first look of the first show. So it's a very symbolic thing. And also the storytelling behind it, how on the first day of Matthieu, you know, he went to the studio, he's wearing it, he brought his own men's blazer, took a pair of scissors, cut it, you know.
- [18:07]
Lauren Sherman
Yeah.
- [18:08]
Brian Boy
And to see how it's gonna be. And, you know, and then they created a narrative about it, how, you know, Gabrielle used to borrow from the boys, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. You know, mythology. Yeah. But I just love the story behind it and a collectible point of view. You know, I really wanted it. And to this day.
- [18:27]
Lauren Sherman
Yeah, sorry, no, keep going. To this day.
- [18:30]
Brian Boy
To this day. Three weeks after it launched, I still don't have it. I had four friends from around the world hunting for it. Everyone from Kim Jones to Lily Allen to my friends in Singapore, you know, to all my friends in Japan. It's all sold out.
- [18:54]
Fandango Announcer
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- [19:20]
Susie Welch
Have you ever felt like you were living just a B or B life? It's so dangerous to live that. More dangerous than a B minus or a C plus life? Because when you're living a B or B life, you don't change it. You think it's good enough? Is it? I'm Susie Welch. I host a podcast called Becoming you. People think, okay, an A life is not available to me, but there is a way. We are all in the process of becoming ourselves. Listen to becoming you wherever you get your podcasts.
- [19:53]
Lauren Sherman
So what? Name a few things you do, because you did end up buying multiple things. What. What did you end up, like, name the, like the. Your hero items. You're wearing a jacket right now, right?
- [20:06]
Brian Boy
Yes. I think it's. This is like, look, number five or so.
- [20:09]
Lauren Sherman
Number five.
- [20:10]
Brian Boy
Yeah. And I might be wrong, but yeah, look number five. Another, you know, crop jacket. Very, very light. And the thing I like about, you know, the new Chanel jackets, it's like, it's kind of loose in the arm, you know, and the armhole is not really high and tight. I mean, it's all just. It feels good and it feels so light and airy. Yeah.
- [20:31]
Lauren Sherman
Yes, you are. I'm looking right now and. And it was paired. Did you buy any of this? Do you wear skirts? You wear skirts sometimes.
- [20:38]
Brian Boy
No, I don't.
- [20:39]
Lauren Sherman
You don't do that. So you did not buy skirts?
- [20:42]
Brian Boy
I didn't buy the skirt, but I bought a match. So basically I bought three suits.
- [20:47]
Lauren Sherman
Okay.
- [20:48]
Brian Boy
And then a gold jacket.
- [20:50]
Lauren Sherman
The gold jacket is.
- [20:52]
Brian Boy
I know.
- [20:53]
Lauren Sherman
It's really the best. It's so good.
- [20:56]
Brian Boy
There's one look that I really, really love, and Matthew called it the scarecrow look, which is what Robbie, Margot Robbie Wore on the 25 campaign. It's basically all beaded, but it's so lightweight. It's so lightweight. And then you also have the sleeveless top, you know, with kind of like all these, like, fabric hay sticking out. And when I found out the price tag, I mean, I was really. First I was shocked because I was expecting it to be a certain amount. I was expecting it to be like, you know, oh, a fully beaded jacket. It's going to be like 30,000, 40,000. You know, I'm not going to even. But then I found out the price. It was like 20. I mean, it's still substantial, but I'm like, I am not ready for a €20,000 jacket yet.
- [21:39]
Lauren Sherman
Well, it's interesting, though. The pricing was, we don't want to Sound like complete deranged people. But the pricing was more. I think reasonable is not the right word. But, like, it was not as much as the line sheet I saw the jacket that I got. It was about half the price of what it was on this line sheet. That being said, it was in the US and also these line sheets, the prices are often more expensive because they end up using different fabrication, different factories. And I think my feeling about it was that they. They thought carefully about, like, what is the value? And it was honestly felt a little bit more of an Hermes approach approach to pricing, which is that, like, they say they don't price for marketing. What. Who knows?
- [22:37]
Brian Boy
But I think the right word could be used. It's justified.
- [22:41]
Lauren Sherman
Yes. And there's a value like the. In. In justified is a great way to put it. Also, in MBA terms, the price value equation was there. So, like, if you looked at a chanel jacket from 1990, and you adjusted for inflation, the price that we paid for our jackets was the price that they cost in 1990. And I'm okay with that because the, you know, that is if that's how you. You choose to. But whereas there are other things on the market that feel the glass effect.
- [23:16]
Brian Boy
Tom ford PVC for $7,000.
- [23:21]
Lauren Sherman
Yes. You're just kind of like, okay, I'm sure there's a reason, but it's not a reason that I'm willing to. To make myself delusional over and love that collection. But.
- [23:36]
Brian Boy
But I was really pleasantly surprised with, you know, with the pricing, especially when I've been buying jackets for 15 years from Chanel.
- [23:45]
Lauren Sherman
Yeah.
- [23:45]
Brian Boy
And, you know, the Virginia. There was a time when every single virginie jacket was like, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 18. But with Matthieu, it's really, you know, the men's blazers. I mean, the blazers, the cutoff, the crop blazers, like, 7,000, 6,400, $7,000. And they really improved on the quality. They've upgraded so many things. You know, the fabric is incredible. Like, the chains, the little buttons, the details, the lining, It's. It, you know, compared to what's out there in the market. I. I really felt like you're getting so much out of it.
- [24:24]
Lauren Sherman
If it does feel really high value. The jacket I got, which was, I think, look 40 something.
- [24:31]
Brian Boy
Jackie, that was a beautiful. The. The red buttons are, you know, just divine buttons.
- [24:35]
Lauren Sherman
It's. It. It was paired on the Runway. I am a skirt suit girl. And if. Yeah, if it was another world, but I'm not going there. But maybe if I find it on the real real in five years, it's going to be. Someone said to me today, it's going to be so fun to watch the resale market of that first collection. Maybe I'll end up getting the skirt, too. But it was paired with this plaid silk shirt on the Runway that, like, in real life, I would never. I would never buy the shirt, too. It's too much for me. But the. The amazing thing about the jacket is it's lined in the plaid, and you can see it coming out from the. From the bottom and from the arms. And so even though I've worn the jacket exclusively with black, because there's a lot of black in it, it's so fun that I. I feel like I got an extra piece because of that. It's. It's so special.
- [25:29]
Brian Boy
It's fascinating. That's the thing with Chanel, though. I mean, I consider. I mean, for me, you know, when you buy a piece of Ready to Wear from Chanel, I mean, the longevity is definitely there. It's not like a lot of, you know, fashion pieces from other brands where everything is designed to be obsolete. With Chanel, when you buy a Chanel jacket, I mean, it's for life. You can wear it with literally anything. You know, a Chanel jacket. It's Chanel jacket. Like, I mean.
- [26:00]
Narrator/Host
Yeah.
- [26:00]
Brian Boy
And even, you know, I can wear it, like, jeans, you know, trousers, you know, slacks, shorts, denim. I mean, it. It lives for a long time.
- [26:13]
Lauren Sherman
Yeah, it's. It's also interesting. I was thinking about what Bruno have.
- [26:19]
Brian Boy
Pavlovsky.
- [26:20]
Lauren Sherman
Pavlovsky. I was thinking about what Bruno, the president of fashion, said a couple of years ago about the bags, where he kind of went on the record, and he's sort of the spokesperson for the brand other than the designer, typically. And he went on the record, and he was like, our bags got too expensive, and we need to improve the quality, and we need to be more careful about pricing. But it feels like they did that about clothing as well. I have a question. How do you feel about all of these people online who are constantly talking about, like, bag quality, clothing quality, these. A lot of times, some people are experts, but a lot of times they're just like super consumers who have made some sort of either hobby or sometimes it's their job now to discuss this stuff. Do you pay attention to that? I know you look at it sometimes, but do you. Do you think that that discourse is good and that's pushing the brands to make better stuff, or how do you feel about that whole Discourse online.
- [27:28]
Brian Boy
I mean, it's, it's really hard to take it seriously because what I do, you know, I would find it more credible if it comes from actual consumers with product, you know, with experience with a product, you know. Yeah, I mean, I love this, for example, with this guy, Tanner Leatherstein. Now it's my turn to kind of like mention it. And I don't know if I pronounced it right with that guy. I know that he dissects bags, he dissects product, you know, I mean, and he's, you know, most of the time it's valid. But. Yeah, what I do disagree on is that it's value and worth is kind of like subjective. I've had incredibly, you know, I have so many bags, it's almost embarrassing. And I also have bags that are like €30, which I got from a flea market in Thailand that I like to use often. And that, you know, that's probably like 25 years old and it's still around. And I also have, you know, Prada bags and Gucci bags that I don't use. And the quality is also incredible. I have Louis Vuitton. My Louis vuitton Speedy from 1997 is still in great condition, you know, so there's so many factors at play when it comes to so called quality. It's very subjective. It's how you treat your item. It's how you use your item. Of course, if you use your Birkin every single day for 40 years, it's gonna show wear and tear. Does that mean it's poorly made? You know, yeah, but it's just very subjective and I tend to take all these comments online and discourse about it with a grain of salt. Unless it comes from personal experience I've had. You know, all the Chanel bags I've bought are still around, still in perfect condition. You know, I use them all the time and they're fine.
- [29:43]
Lauren Sherman
Yeah, I think that value and quality and what quality is, is so different. I have a friend, I wonder if she'll know. I wonder if she'll know. She'll listen to this. Probably not every single bag she's ever gotten, there's been something wrong with it. And she'll be very mad and be like, not, not everyone, but like she is a person who always complains about it and will be like this, this got screwed up, blah, blah, blah. And it's like, yeah, this is what the. Not everything is perfect. And, and, and you're not buying Hermes. That's what's gonna happen. Like, and, and I also Think or. Or Chanel, to be honest. But it's one of those things when you're buying, like, a $700 bag and she gets mad about the thing falling apart. It's like, this is what $700 bag? I don't know. I find that discourse. I try to look and kind of notice what people are saying and their feedback on things, because I think you're right. The consumer, if they don't. A lot of times, quality becomes an issue when they are unhappy with the brand or the design overall. So they pick at it to say the quality's not good or the quality's gone downhill. The thing that drives me the most crazy is when people are talking about, like, high street fashion quality going downhill because it's actually really improved. Like, I know Zara is incredibly high quality, and especially for what you get for your money. Like, and so that drives me completely insane. But.
- [31:21]
Brian Boy
And I also have a lot of, you know, designer, you know, pieces that are like. I mean, like, for example, I have so many Prada T shirts that I bought after two washes. It's like, you know, fashionable. You know what I mean?
- [31:37]
Lauren Sherman
Yes.
- [31:37]
Brian Boy
So it just. It all depends on the item. And also, again, you know, you're right. Nothing is perfect. I mean, I bought a Chanel backpack. I don't know, like, four or five years ago. I was planning to do an unboxing. You know, the straps. I mean, you know how the leather inside a chain is kind of like it was busted. And I was gonna do unboxing, and I literally open it and oops, you know, what is this? So I'm sure it kind of like, failed quality control. I mean, these things happen.
- [32:07]
Lauren Sherman
Yes.
- [32:08]
Brian Boy
You know, nothing is perfect.
- [32:10]
Lauren Sherman
No exact protein is now at Starbucks,
- [32:16]
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Lauren Sherman
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- [32:31]
Lauren Sherman
Refreshing wild cherry cola meets smooth cream. The treat you deserve. Pepsi Wild cherry and cream. Treat yourself. So moving on to. We talked a lot about the ready to wear. Let's talk bags and shoes, because that's something I have not engaged in as much as a consumer. Obviously have tracked the popularity of that one bag that your dentist friend got, and everybody else was very jealous of him.
- [33:07]
Brian Boy
No one got it until this day. Eva Chen hasn't gotten her maxi flap.
- [33:11]
Lauren Sherman
That's very funny. She will someday. But what did you think of the way the shoes and bags? So one thing I noticed during couture, there was a shoe he did that was sort of a two tone pump. I think it was like more of a dance shoe. I loved it and was like, oh, my God, I want. And a friend of mine said, oh, they never make the couture shoes. I assume that they'll make some version of that silhouette because it seems like he's repeating so much. But what do you think of the shoe styles, the color combinations? How did he. It feels like he really took the, like, colors and ideas from the ready to wear and made them accessible in the shoes. What did you think of, like, the whole approach on that, because that's where they really have been making their money the last few years is shoes and bags. Always. But shoes. Shoes are such a great growth business for so many of these luxury brands.
- [34:06]
Brian Boy
Well, I think, you know, what he did was, you know, it's definitely genius. I mean, you already have the core classics of Chanel. You got the slingbacks, you have the cap toe. You have all the, all these codes. You have the loafers. I mean, what he did is he kind of like broadened them. He didn't do things that are radical. Like, for example, the square toed, you know, shoes, all of those. I mean, just change the cap toe from a round and pointy one and do a square shape. A simple design element, you know, kind of like upgraded. And it looks so modern and fresh and everyone kind of like got into it. So at the end of the day, you're kind of like, you know, they're still classics, but done in a new and fresh way. And it's so desirable. You know, at the end of the day, people will tend to gravitate into something that they can use multiple times. You know, the classics. But these are just new, new and fresh and. And again, it doesn't exist anywhere. Just imagine a simple square toe, Square cap toe. How come no one thought about that?
- [35:14]
Lauren Sherman
Yeah, yeah. And it was like this. The square toe has been a thing for a while now, but like the
- [35:19]
Brian Boy
idea of just doing it in a Chanel way.
- [35:23]
Lauren Sherman
Chanel ifying a trend. Yeah, I think they look great. It's been fun to see all of that kind of rollout as well, because that does. I mean, it's still obviously not accessible, but it does make it more accessible. When I was in the store on the Fri, I think I finally got my. I got my jacket the day after the show and I was there with Gabriella Karifa Johnson, and I was looking at the stuff that was still out. I was like, mm, should I just tag on? I Didn't. You know, I don't think I'm a Chanel shoe person. I love them, but I just. It's. I'm so. My shoe. My shoe identity is very particular and complicated. And I was like, I'm not. I'm not ready yet. But. But I thought, like, the stuff that was the nice thing about all of this, like, a lot of the. Obviously, the Runway stuff sold out. But did you feel. I felt like when I went into the store, there was still a lot of, like, really amazing stuff to look at. Even if. If it felt cleared out, quote, unquote, for Runway. It felt to me, I was really excited still to be there and to see what was there and walk around even. Even a few days, you know, five days, six days after it had landed in Paris. Because it was in Paris earlier than all the other stores, right?
- [36:47]
Brian Boy
Yeah, it was the first. And for example, I went there two days ago, and it's already, what, April 1st? And I went there two days. It was wiped out. I went to the old Cambon. It was all in the Pre collection. It never happened before. You know, like, usually the Pre collection, they kind of, like, put aside in a way.
- [37:06]
Lauren Sherman
Interesting.
- [37:07]
Brian Boy
And you have all the current season. But the moment they literally didn't have any current season items, I was shocked. I was shocked. And also what I liked, you know, from this, you know, in terms of accessories, I love that Matthieu really did its research and introduced new things for Chanel. I've never seen animal print at CHANEL Ever in 25, 30 years, ever.
- [37:35]
Lauren Sherman
You know, and it was so. So I love the mix. It's so fun. Like, they had. They had a buy. A buy print cap, toe, shoe. And I was like, this is great.
- [37:46]
Brian Boy
They have cow print, you know, you know, cow print, animal print. And then, of course, it's not just that. And then, you know, at Metia d', Art, there was a leopard print jacket, and then Harry Styles wore it. And then, you know, Matthieu asked me, so, what do you want to get from Mathildart? Oh, I want to get the Dua Lipa jacket. He was like, well, you should. Maybe you should look into the leopard one. I'm like, it's going to be too expensive. And then Matthieu sent me pictures of, you know, Gabrielle Chanel from back in the day, and that's where it came from. So this is a guy who really went out there and did his research and referenced everything and. And kind of like, turn it into something new.
- [38:25]
Lauren Sherman
What I love about him Is he's super brainy, but he's also. He understands that he needs to do. Be really clear about it, and it needs to be emotional. Like, the ending with these. All these, like, very nostalgic songs, I think is such a clear example of it like this. He can do all the brainy stuff and, like, really go in and. And make it be about, like. I think when. When you look. We look back on his career, a lot of it's going to be about, like, meditations on childhood and. And growing up and, like, coming of age and all of that, and. Or at least the last 10. The first 10 years of him being a creative director and. And I connect with that so closely. But there is something so, like, simple about what he does and then also so deep. And that is. It's. That's why we're all. We're all hooked.
- [39:23]
Brian Boy
So why Thinking, you know, it's kind of like when I was growing up. You know, when I was growing up, I would watch Dior Galliano shows, and they were so impactful on. You know, to me, I'd want it. I know the music, see all the models. You know, they just kind of like, you really connect to the show and to the collection, to the work because of all these factors at play. So it's kind of like now when I look at fashion shows. I mean, he's only had four shows so far in the past six months. And I sometimes watch the Chanel shows on the background just to listen to the music, you know, to kind of, like, feel it. You really feel connected to it, you know, to the show. And there's very few shows, you know, in. In today's time that really makes you feel emotionally invested and connected.
- [40:18]
Lauren Sherman
Yes. Connect. There's connection. Okay, two more big questions for you. One is, let's talk about the way he sort of repeated the f first show with the second show with the Ready to Wear. He didn't. But, like, there was. He layered on from the first Ready to Wear show. The two shows in between had different concepts. They had. He pulled things. And it's all connected. It feels all of the same brand and all the same designer and identity. But the first Ready to Wear and the second Ready to Wear. To me, what it did was it created, like, there was the plaid that was. Or the check or whatever. Tartan that's in my jacket was also in the second show, or a close one, but. And similar colors, but he did it beaded with. In. In shiny c. Whatever. He, like, layered the technique on. So it Was like, a lot of concepts from the first show tweaked or layered or made more. And it was so funny because the. The set was a construction site. And I thought when the first look came out, I'm like, oh, he's going to make. He's going to use, like, really humble fabrics for this. And I mean, some Chanel fabrics are humble, like gray jersey, obviously, but obviously that was the last thing he was going to do. It was so much. It was so extravagant in this really amazing way, but. But with still, like, humble ideas underneath. But anyway, the point being, I think what it did was it created even more of, like, we all as editors and being in Paris, there was a frenzy around going to the store. But I talked to some people who work in the stores in the US who were like, it's coming on Friday. I'm not sure how it's going to do. Blew it out of the water. They had so much demand. They all underbought because they weren't sure. I think when I talked to some of the big clients around the Metier d' Art show, like, they were like, well, I like it. I'm going to buy a couple things. I think the client, the old client, is now totally on board. I think what the second show did was just reinforce the excitement, and it drove even more sales. What do you think about that approach? Because I don't really know any other designer who has done it in such a clear, straightforward way.
- [42:48]
Brian Boy
It's a really tough question. I think everyone from the brand to the clients to the media, we all underestimated the impact of that first show. It's unprecedented. You know, we all underestimated it. We really did. I mean, even though even the clients, both new and old, you know, so we underestimated that. But with a second show, it kind of like my second meaning Autumn Winter, you know, because obviously couture and Metedar, it's different. But with the Autumn Winter collection, it really felt like he expanded on his first show and even brought in more propositions. Like, there's so many things out. You know, there's so many new things for Chanel. I mean, there's the blousons, the bomber jackets, you know, I mean, chainmail. The chainmail jackets. I mean, he really. I mean, it's mental. When I was at the Re. See the overshirts. I mean, clearly what he's doing is he's building a wardrobe with every single imaginable garment and silhouette and shape, except for cocktail dresses, short cocktail dresses. But, you know, he really just threw everything, including the kitchen sink, and made it ornate and layered it all up. I mean, there's much so, so many propos. I mean, I can even imagine the sampling that he did. There must have been, like, thousands of fabrics. You know, it's going to be a success.
- [44:24]
Lauren Sherman
And it's funny, I think it comes back to this thing of, like, when I wrote about it that first show, and I was like, I was crying at. At the airport. I was so happy. Like, our slack channel with all my boys. Like, you know, I have all my editors at Puck are men. And they're like, Lauren has lost it. Because, like, I'm like half of a crazy fashion person, half of a serious business journalist. And I, like, usually do not get emotional. And I was like, guys, this is the best thing that's ever happened to me. I was so happy. I got so many responses that week from readers being like, I'm disappointed in you. Because they were like, you're. You're being too. Basically that I was being too nice about it, that I was being too rah rah. And I was like, you all believe me when I say I don't like stuff. So you have to believe me that I think that this is special. That being said, I was just on the cutting room floor with Retcho.
- [45:25]
Brian Boy
Yeah.
- [45:27]
Lauren Sherman
In one of the segments, she asked me, do I ever think something. This is my last question for you because then I have to go to therapy. But in. She said, do you ever think there's going to be something as big as, like, Alessandro Iguchi? And in. In the interview, I said, and this was in. We recorded this during New York Fashion Week. I said, absolutely not. And there. And you and I. And then you brought this up to me the other day, and you said, I haven't seen a frenzy like this since Alessandra at Gucci. I'm gonna say, what my feeling. And then we're gonna end with you. But so I agree. I am shocked by the retail response because I just don't think fashion has the same role in culture that it did in 2015, 16, 17, when Alessandro, Demna, Virgil were all Phoebe et Celine. Still were all, like, at the center of the world. I don't think people think of fashion in their lives the way they did back then. It's. The world has changed so much, and I don't think we will. That. That was unprecedented. I don't ever think it'll be like that again or not for, you know, not in. In our lifetime. That being said, I was Totally shocked by the retail response to this. And from your perspective, what do you think this says about the industry? Because I think of it as more of an anomaly. But do you think it is a indication that the luxury industry as a whole is kind of moving in the right direction? Or do you think that Chanel is an island, Hermes is an island and everyone else is on the mainland?
- [47:18]
Brian Boy
That's a good question. I do think, I mean, fashion is an island, you know, it's an island of its own. And the way I see it is that fashion is not like food and drug. It's, it's not an essential purchase. You know, people buy fashion because they want to be happy. That's what it is. They want to look good, they want to feel good, they want to, you know, feel better about themselves. You know, it's, it's, it's therapy for everybody. You know, it's not an essential purchase. And most of fashion is driven by vanity, by what they see online, by emotion, by feeling. In order for someone to swipe their card onto the terminal, they have to want it. They want to, they need to feel that they need it. And this is how I feel with Chanel. You know, Chanel somehow found the recipe, all the factors into play. Great technician, great designer, fabulous shows, you know, incredible casting from, you know, of all ages, of all races, the narratives behind it, the campaigns of joy and happiness. All of these factors come into place that are very well thought out, well researched. I don't think it's deliberate, I don't think it's forced. They just did what they felt like doing and it worked and people connected to it. People are so happy buying into this Chanel world that it really changed the game for everybody. It set the tone. I've never seen so many people so happy online with what they bought. People are sharing it. The amount of user generated content that money can never buy, that marketing will never afford. And a big brand can throw millions and billions into marketing. They'll never pay for this. Because at the end of the day, Chanel did what a lot of brands couldn't do. They just connected to people's hearts, Brian.
- [49:41]
Lauren Sherman
They really did. And you know what?
- [49:42]
Brian Boy
They really did.
- [49:43]
Lauren Sherman
Why else, why else are we in fashion? Not to be miserable about it, but to be happy. Brian, you connect to my heart. I adore you.
- [49:52]
Susie Welch
Thank you.
- [49:52]
Lauren Sherman
Thank you for being here. Have a great time in Paris and let's, let's connect offline after I'm done with therapy.
- [49:59]
Brian Boy
Bye.
- [50:01]
Narrator/Host
Fashion People is a presentation of Odyssey in partnership with Puck. The show is produced and edited by Molly Nugent. Special thanks to Puck co founder John Kelly, executive editor Ben Landy, producer Maya Tribbett and director of editorial operations Gabby Grossman. An additional thanks to the team at Odyssey, Kelly Turner and Bob Tabador.