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Stella McCartney has signed a contract with luxury conglomerate LVMH, not long after ending her 17-year partnership with rival Kering. LVMH’s decision to partner with the designer is part of the company’s plan to accelerate its support of sustainability, having also partnered with Unesco.
Although exact details of the deal will remain under wraps until September, it has been revealed that McCartney will remain the majority stakeholder of her company and will continue to be the house’s creative director, overseeing menswear, womenswear and childrenswear.
About a year ago, McCartney announced that she would be ending her 17-year partnership with Kering by buying back the 50 per cent stake she had sold to them. In an interview that was published last week, the designer said she had found the buy out “reinvigorating”.
“[I did it to] protect my name, my history – it was kind of about heritage and family and continuation,” she told The Observer.
The designer has clearly found more of what she was looking for in a partnership with LVMH, who also owns Dior, Givenchy and Louis Vuitton, and recently acquired Rihanna’s luxury label, Fenty. In a statement about the deal, McCartney explained why she chose the company despite being approached by “various parties expressing their wish to partner and invest”.
“None could match the conversation [I had with LVMH],” she said. “The passion and commitment they expressed towards the Stella McCartney brand alongside their belief in the ambitions and our values as the global leader in sustainable luxury fashion was truly impressive.”
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LVMH’s acquisition of Stella McCartney will be seen as an ongoing commitment to sustainability in the fashion industry, having also signed up to a five-year deal with Unesco, an opportunity that will give the company’s brands access to a network of experts that will help them build more sustainable supply chains.
