Pharrell might be living in Paris these days, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t still got a soft spot for the American coastline. Ever since he took over the reigns at Louis Vuitton, presiding over the House’s menswear output, he’s injected its French roots with the louche, unstudied and 70s-inspired temperament of the West and East Coast’s skaters and surfers. (Some maybe recall that his childhood nickname was “Skateboard P” – which he translated into his dedicated @skateboard social channel for exclusive BTS of his LV collections).
For the Maison’s Spring Summer 2027 show in Paris, it was all about “Embracing the sea and shore as spaces of universal human belonging”. These sensibilities were heightened as models traipsed down a sandy runway that weaved out from a cascading, trompe l’oeil barrel wave. Bicycles, longboards and skateboards were hoisted over shoulders or under arms with as much ease as its signature Speedys, and his new Combi sneakers debuted with a skate-forward, low-profile silhouette and vulcanised sole.
70s surf culture seemed to permeate the collection from all angles – from daisy chain belts to monogrammed wetsuits, corduroy lapels and patchwork jackets. The classic checkerboard pattern – taken from a time when teens would colour the white mid-soles of their shoes with black permanent markers to create custom checkerboard patterns – were repurposed into oversized knits and plastered onto leather accessories, alongside more intricately beaded bags.
Turning up to the FROW at Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris were ambassadors and friends of the House like Jeremy Allen White, J-Hope, Tyriq Withers, Charles Melton, Off Campus and RUSSH digital cover star Josh Heuston, and Lola Young. French basketball player and newly minted House ambassador Victor Wembanyama was also in attendance, alongside Missy Elliott, Backrooms star Finn Bennett, Miles Caton, Quavo, and Sunrise on the Reaping actor Joseph Zada.
But there was more to the thematics than met the eye. Over on Instagram, the brand announced that, as part of its Regeneration 2030 roadmap, Louis Vuitton would be supporting Coral Gardeners – an organisation conserving coral reefs in French Polynesia.
Further to this message of sustainability, the House continued: “While the show’s water, sourced from Eaux de Paris, will return to the sewer system through a closed circuit, its sand will be donated to the beach volleyball courts at the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris.”
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