Louis Vuitton Stages 1st Ever Cruise Collection Runway Show, Choosing Monaco as the 1st Location

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| 18 May 2014

On Saturday, Nicolas Ghesquiere showed his second collection for Louis Vuitton in what was the first ever Cruise collection runway show for the French luxury label, in the principality of Monaco. The choice of location was strategic, with the Cannes Film Festival taking place nearby whilst the Formula One race was set to begin soon in the city-state itself. It was no wonder that the world's attention was drawn to the South of France at the moment.

The show was a seminal moment not just for the new designer-in-charge, but for the label as well -- the outgoing Marc Jacobs had never designed the Cruise collection, instead it was handled by Louis Vuitton's former head of womenswear Julie de Libran, who incidentally was this week named Creative Director of the house of Sonia Rykiel.

It marked a shift in strategy and positioning for Louis Vuitton as it sought to re-energise its consumer base. "Cruise is our most important collection," explained Michael Burke, Louis Vuitton's CEO, before adding, "It's everybody's biggest collection."

Louis Vuitton's Cruise 2015 show saw a custom-built glass cube erected in a square shadowed by the Monégasque palace and as the event started, a motorised curtain unfurled around the venue, blocking out the palace square's wedding-cake architecture. It was in this exclusive setting that Ghesquiere's mix of technique and dazzling textile using inlaid silks, custom woven lace, crusted embroideries like barnacles or sea urchins that teased the audience as to what to expect in the stores come pre-Fall season next year.

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