2024/10 Valentino – Avant les Débuts
Details:
Valentino
Avant les Débuts
Resort 2025
Via Monte Napoleone 20, Milan
Review:
by Peter Hamer
October 21, 2024
I’ve been debating how to approach this one. Initially, it felt like the emotional route was the way to go, but as with anything that excites you, once it simmers down, the truth tends to surface. So, after watching some random C-list Christmas movie on Amazon Prime, it finally hit me.
Alessandro Michele’s first collection for Valentino has officially landed in stores, and I couldn’t wait to see it in person. Sure, I’d already seen the VM concept on Valentino’s Instagram, but experiencing it live is essential for me to fully grasp the details. The display? Simple yet elegant. Floor-to-ceiling cream curtains drape over furniture, giving off a sense of purity and sophistication without pulling focus from the product. And there are plenty of products: men’s, women’s, shoes, bags (small and large), earrings, necklaces, gloves, scarves—you name it. A complete collection through and through. Risky.
It’s a gamble—and not every gamble pays off. If you recall my last review for Valentino, I mentioned their lack of a “commercial product” for Michele and his team to work with. From a textbook perspective, that’s a red flag. But fuck the textbook—what’s the point of playing it safe? My gut reaction was, “I don’t understand the customer. Who are they aiming for?”
As a small, almost microscopic business owner myself, I’ve struggled with product-market fit. You need a product for the market and a market for the product. Textbook stuff. I didn’t always get that balance right, and while I love what I do, it’s tough figuring out who values it. Anyway, back to Valentino. They’re not struggling with finding that fit—they’re straight up ignoring it, which takes guts. To me, it feels like Valentino is designing for a customer that doesn’t exist—yet.
So who is this collection for? Honestly, I’m not sure. Valentino seems to be speaking to a customer who’s either yet to be defined or just doesn’t care about fitting into traditional fashion categories. But is that a wise move? Fashion loves to talk about innovation, but that doesn’t always translate to sales, especially when you can’t quite pin down who you’re targeting.
In a market where many luxury brands are playing it safe, Valentino’s approach stands out—sort of. They’ve moved away from the predictable, but it’s not necessarily revolutionary. It’s different, yes, but maybe not as disruptive as it could be. Valentino is doing something old but in a new way. It’s not fully defined, but I can feel it coming. When it hits, no one will remember doubting it. They’ll just hop on the trend—not as early adopters, but as late bloomers. And by then, the once bold and risky will be everywhere, with everyone who didn’t believe at first.
Good one, Valentino, but we’ll see when/if the rest of the world catches on. In the meantime check out the campaign.
