"Frenchness" was the theme of Lanvin's autumn/winter 2020 show as Gigi and Bella took to the runway

A year since France’s oldest couture house hired previously unknown name Bruno Sialelli to renew its relevance and rescue plummeting profits, it appears the gamble has paid off.

This morning in Paris, the 32-year-old designer, who was plucked from the menswear division of luxury leather house Loewe to take creative command of Lanvin, unveiled his third collection which was undoubtably his most promising to date.

Recruiting a starry cast of models to showcase his vision, from Londoner Jourdan Dunn to Gigi and Bella Hadid, Sialelli sought to stay sensitive to the brand’s 131 year history, while ushering in a new era tailor made for a modern luxury market.

Founder Jeanne Lanvin’s legacy was paramount, particularly in accessories which serve as a crucial category for the house. Patent leather knee-high boots featured a vertiginous heel with curved into a ‘J’. The perfume and beauty lines of which she was a pioneer were woven into the clothes on the catwalk both literally, in form of evening bags shaped like oversized lipstick and rouge compacts, and figuratively in the colour palette of powder blue and bush-pink.

Animal motifs were also lifted from her apartment on rue Barbet du Jouy, designed by renowned furniture maker Armand-Albert Rateau, and informed jewellery on the catwalk including parrot shaped cuff bracelets and monkey brooches on lapels.

“Frenchness” was also a key word for the designer. This abstract notion was interpreted through classic couture shapes from coats cut with generously structured shoulders to cascading froufrou frilled skirts, as well as the gesture of leather gloves matching shoes and handbags.

But whilst typically Parisian in its sensibility, it was clear this collection was also executed with a global mindset. A set of handbags, crafted to resemble a pâtisseries box, served as a playful French fancy for an Instagram-obsessed generation.

Of course, this is no accident. A report published yesterday by the Business of Fashion revealed that the brand’s number of social media followers had increased by 50,000 per month for the last four months to reach 4.1 million, with half of new followers under 34 years old.

Since the departure of its long-serving and well loved designer Alber Elbaz in 2013, Lanvin’s trajectory been on a downward spiral. But signs of recovery are beginning to show. While still currently operating at a loss, sales are slowly starting to climb for the first time in years.

Menswear, which the report confirms accounts for 40 percent of Lanvin sales thanks to a strong history of suiting, was well represented this morning with Sialleli choosing to combine men's and womenswear in one presentation with the former contributing to what was perhaps the most inspired pieces on today’s catwalk.