Why Chanel and Schiaparelli are Dressing Bad Bunny, Jacob Elordi

Can you capture the hearts of the female luxury consumer through the broad shoulders of Bad Bunny, Jacob Elordi or Kendrick Lamar?

Chanel and Schiaparelli, French couture houses that do not market men’s collections, certainly seem to think so, having recently dressed those famous men for awards shows and film premieres, generating plenty of headlines and chatter on social media.

“Male celebrities command huge cultural attention, yet far less of that conversation is focused on what they’re wearing,” said Alison Bringé, chief marketing officer at Launchmetrics.

In her view, dressing today’s top male celebrities represents “a real opportunity for brands to experiment, push boundaries and create looks that don’t just dress talent, but turn that existing attention into conversation and help them stand out in a space that’s still far less crowded than womenswear.”

At the Golden Globes on Jan. 11, “Heated Rivalry” actors Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie had a lock on the top four spots in Launchmetrics’ ranking of the red-carpet looks that racked up the most media impact value or MIV, a proprietary measure that gauges the reach of brands. Elordi, dressed in Bottega Veneta at that award show, came in fifth place.

Surveying its data from the Globes and the Critics’ Choice awards, Launchmetrics found that Timotheé Chalamet was the most talked about celebrity in general with conversations around the actor, unrelated to brands, driving twice as much MIV as conversations around Ariana Grande, for example.

It’s clear the guys have it.

Youssef Marquis, whose namesake Paris communications consultancy specializes in celebrity relations, said it’s all about awareness when a women’s-focused brand dresses buzzy male stars.

“It’s guaranteed discourse online, and of course additional visibility for pieces that are often derived or identical to women’s pieces, so with a commercial purpose,” he said in an interview. “It’s interesting to see that the product they place on these men are adaptations of women’s designs.…If it drives you to the store, to buy it for you as a woman who likes the oversize fit on a man or for a man who might get the idea to wear a bigger size women’s jacket, the mission is accomplished.”

Marquis argued that the evolution of men’s fashion also plays a role.

“Some of these young Hollywood stars love pushing the envelope and play with dressing like female celebrities traditionally would,” he said. “It sends a message of modernity and gender fluidity that resonates with young audiences authentically.

“It’s harder to exclude anyone in a world where we want everything to be accessible to all, so showing a bit of fluidity in who wears the clothes does help with the projected values of the brand,” he added. 

“As it has always been the case, Chanel collaborates with personalities who embody the values of the house and our collections, both masculine and feminine,” Chanel replied in answer to a query from WWD, also noting that “inspiration drawn from men’s wardrobes has always been part of Chanel’s DNA.”

Indeed, Chanel’s longtime designer Karl Lagerfeld often dressed the men in his entourage in Chanel, and friends of the house like Pharrell Williams, who also did a capsule collection with the brand in 2019. “I’ve been wearing Chanel’s women’s clothes for years now, but being able to make this capsule unisex gives more people access,” Williams told WWD at the time. 

A$AP Rocky is now an official Chanel ambassador, selected by its current creative director Matthieu Blazy.

“There’s definitely a growing appetite for this,” said Bosse Myhr, director menswear, womenswear and childrenswear buying at Selfridges, calling out Rocky’s appearance in head-to-toe Chanel at its couture show last month as “a great moment that captured this evolution.”

“While celebrity influence does play a role, it tends to be more subtle and indirect rather than customers directly trying to replicate a specific star’s look,” he cautioned. Still, “we’re seeing customers gravitate toward more elevated, fashion-forward pieces.”

The retail executive confirmed that Selfridges’ menswear floor, at least, is regularly shopped by women.

“It can be difficult to determine whether purchases are for themselves or for partners or family members,” he said. “That said, there is clear cross-gender appeal, particularly with brands traditionally rooted in menswear. Stone Island, Thom Browne and Loewe are all strong examples where the collections attract interest from a broad, diverse customer base.”