Rise of the Balmain Army
“My job is not to design clothes but to also give a new vision to fashion”
As the luxury brand of the moment, Balmain has redefined haute couture with its sleek silhouettes anddesigns perfectly coalescing with the fashion in the streets. Cult followings on social media and trending hashtags of ‘balmainarmy’, the French brand has embraced more than the social media antics of our decade. Balmain has broken the mould of the untouchable exclusivity that comes with many of the French haute couture houses. While other brands have followed suit, none have been able to establish it as the core, defining principal of their image. At the helm of Balmain, is its creative director, Olivier Rousteing, who’s understanding of the millennium mindset and what they value in fashion is exceptional, “I’m part of the new generation-I’m part of the Twitter generation, the Facebook generation, the Instagram generation where everything is about one click.” With the Balmain-H&M collaboration last year, the opening of Balmain’s first store in New York and the newest 2017 collections hitting the runway and stores, Balmain has proved itself as being intrinsic with the twenty-first century and going as fast as our media enhanced age.
Founded by Pierre Balmain in 1945, the French label immediately rose to success and fame, dressing actresses and personalities of the time. From Ava Gardner to Brigitte Bardot to Queen Sirikit of Thailand. Traditional silhouettes and simplistic designs were the houses’s signature style and continued to be after the death of Pierre Balmain. Seeing many talented head designers over the years, even under the legendary Oscar De La Renta, Balmain stuck to its traditional styles. It was under the direction of Christophe Decarnin, whose idea was to bring Balmain into the 21st century and favored flashier designs to the houses more conventional and luxurious decorum.
Photo Credit: @balmain
Though a star designer, he was replaced by Olivier Rousteing in 2011 who favored the bold designs, further enhancing them while instating fundamental changes to the label’s entire platform. With Gigi Hadid, Kendall Jenner and Justin Bieber in Balmain’s ad campaigns, walking the runways and the streets in Balmain clothing, Rousteing immediately captured a younger audience. Combined with a savvy social media presence, Balmain gives the image of an approachable coolness that everyone wants to be a part of and can be. As Rousteing explains “Balmain is really aristocratic and really about luxury and couture, so bringing pop culture really makes it more modern and more fresh than if I was just keeping up with the traditions of Paris.”
Rousteing redefined the design of Balmain, taking away the elaborate embroidery, of gems and diamantes and intricate thread work. Instead, a more modern, suave, look has taken over Balmain catwalks. Bright, contrasting colors and motifs with silver chains define Balmain’s latest collections. Jewel toned dresses and jungle hues and bronzy, earthy tones were part of the SS17 collection. Olivier Rousteing said about his designs and the criticism he also gets that ‘the Balmain Army has shed its armor, whatever I do, even if I cover up my girls, people can say it's vulgar. But this is what it is. I think it's really chic, really French. It's Paris how I see it.”