29th October 2021

FENDI x SKIMS Capsule Collection

Arguably the two most famous Kims in the world finally combine for a new collaboration. By Sorcha Ní Cheallaigh

Whether it’s breaking the internet or achieving billionaire status, the power of Kim Kardashian West is undeniable.  For every 30 people across the globe, one will be following the reality star on Instagram, a fact that Fendi’s Kim Jones was only too aware of when the designer sought the reality mogul for a collaboration.  “My team and I were sitting around a table at the studio in Rome,” writes Jones.  “Suddenly, all the women went silent and started looking at their phones.  I didn’t know what was going on, but they were waiting for the launch of the new SKIMS collection.  It was then that I thought: let’s do something together.”

Jones, like Kardashian West, has a knack for breaking the internet.  Barely a month has passed since the metamorphic Fendace Swap, and now Fendi is once more flooding headlines.  FENDI x SKIMS may not have seemed the most obvious choice but, following successful couture/pop culture collaborations such as Gucci x Disney and Louis Vuitton x Supreme, a partnership between a top fashion house and a highly profitable shapewear brand is artistically and commercially masterful.  For Kardashian West, SKIMS and Fendi share a creative vision with goals that are “so closely aligned”.  As a shapewear brand, SKIMS has always focused on creating solutions for all women, while Jones’ vision for Fendi dedicates itself to “creating something for every woman, every different shape”. 

For the collection itself, flawless compositions dominate.  Compression tights in blushed lilacs and striking pinks serve as a highlight, with underwear and skintight jerseys to match.  The FENDI x SKIMS logo repeats across form-fitting silhouettes contrasted with formal outerwear attire such as leather dresses in skin tone shades.  The most notable departure for the shapewear brand is the addition of the bold fluffy shearling hiking sandals available across the collection’s brightly coloured palette.  FENDI x SKIMS athleisure proves a welcome addition, and a logical expansion, for Kardashian West, as large logos dominate the recycled nylon sportswear. 

“The innovation in fabrics typical to SKIMS paired with the luxury and quality of Fendi may feel unexpected to some people,” writes Kardashian West.  Yet, unlike many collaborations and disruptions over the last ten years, FENDI x SKIMS is at once the most unpredicted collaboration and the most natural.  By drawing on Karl Lagerfeld’s archival Fendi sketches from 1979 and the influence of one of the most talked about women in contemporary society, Jones’ Fendi has successfully found a way to celebrate the past by firmly looking to the present and future. 

 

Launching worldwide on November 9th, 2021.  All images by Steven Meisel

 

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