Ann Demeulemeester on Her New Perfume

It seems rare these days that an independent designer launches a perfume. They now tend to come either from niche perfumery houses, corporate brands, or legacy fashion brands that are not owned by beauty conglomerates. Which makes the new Ann Demeulemeester perfume, titled simply “A,” an event in its own right, not to mention the fact that it gives Demeulemeester’s friends another reason to revisit her work.

StyleZeitgeist Podcast: Is This the End of the Hype Era? with Philippe Pourhashemi

On this hot-take episode with Philippe Pourhashemi we discuss the recent firings of Ludovic de Saint Sernin from Ann Demeulemeester and Rhuigi Villasenor from Bally and their implications. We speak about hype versus talent, what makes the right fit between a creative director and a brand, the relationship between management and creative, brand building and reputational risk, and much more.

Ann Demeulemeester x SERAX Furniture Collection

After Belgian designer Ann Demeulemeester retired from fashion she kept busy, launching a collection of ceramic and glass tableware with Serax, a Belgian furnishings company. It debuted in 2019 to much critical acclaim.  But Demeulemeester already had further creative ambitions. After all, for a universe-maker, which Demeulemeester certainly is, it made total sense to take…