Luxury fashion houses branch out into interior design and home collections
Fashion houses are jumping on the bandwagon of launching interior design and home collections and collaborating with property developers, writes Kris Chan
We don’t call them fashion maisons anymore. Nowadays, many brands are known as luxury houses as they spread their wings across different domains such as design, furniture and homeware without straying from their core design values.
As Gian Giacomo Ferraris, CEO of Versace, explains: “Versace is a true fashion, luxury and lifestyle brand. Since the very beginning, it has encompassed many disciplines, not just fashion and accessories, but also design in the broadest sense.” So the venture into the interiors market seems to be a natural move.
As one of the first leading luxury houses to establish its own home collection and the very first to introduce the concept of a fashion luxury hotel, Versace has realised the business reality in a very early stage.
Collaborating with interior design companies or property developers has been a fast-growing trend in the industry. Branded residences are enjoying a steep rise in popularity, as fans of the brands show a notable interest in Bottega Veneta’s first residential design project Eisenzahn 1 in Berlin, or fashion luxury hotels such as Fendi’s first boutique hotel in Rome, or Palazzo Versace Macau hotel, set to open in 2017.
These projects are all furnished with the brand’s own home collections, and by making full use of the houses’ reputation as reassurance of style and quality, the interior collections become an extension of the brands’ aesthetics, appealing to loyal fans and new customers alike.
“Versace Home has been part of Versace DNA since the very beginning,” Ferraris adds.
“To bring it in-house is a natural step forward to pursue our strategy to increase and further develop of the company. Versace Home is an important asset for the brand.”
At this year’s Salone del Mobile furniture fair in Milan, it was easy to spot some familiar fashion big names that were showcasing new collections from their home divisions. On the other hand, collaborations are common. Fendi Casa presented the Velum lamps designed by the architect Marco Costanzi, and Berluti teamed up with furniture maker Ceccotti Collezioni to create the ultimate gentleman’s valet by Giuseppe Casarosa with a matching chair by Roberto Lazzeroni.
Meanwhile, some brands choose to take it in-house.