John Galliano

Galliano Departs Margiela – Now Confirmed

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A decade transfiguring contemporary fashion


The news is here, freshly reported by fashion outlets: John Galliano departs Margiela. While his tenure brought substantial growth to OTB—the group that owns the Maison—it also exemplified a troubling trend in contemporary fashion: the distortion of archival treasures that deserve respect. For this reason, we view his departure without regret.

Galliano’s time at Margiela was pivotal for both parties. For OTB, it was a period of rapid growth and brand elevation. For Galliano, it provided an opportunity to rehabilitate his public image following previous controversies. Now, after more than a decade of collaboration, Galliano exits the Maison, leaving behind a legacy that has sparked both acclaim and critique.

In our earlier post, Decoding Margiela’s Gallianification, we examined how the brand shifted to reflect Galliano’s personal identity. This transformation mirrors a broader industry pattern: creative directors imprinting their aesthetics on every house they helm, often at the expense of the brand’s original vision.

A troubling pattern in the fashion industry


What Galliano did with Margiela is emblematic of a larger issue in the luxury fashion industry. Creative directors often place their personal vision centre-stage, overshadowing the founder’s ethos. Their approach recycles a singular aesthetic, applying it indiscriminately across brands. This practice is enabled by corporate resources, extensive archives, and relentless marketing campaigns.

The result? Brands lose their distinctiveness, morphing into interchangeable entities. As creative directors move from one Maison to another, they replicate the same formula under a different logo, leaving behind a trail of diluted brand identities.

This erosion of authenticity and uniqueness undermines the very pillars of luxury fashion. As highlighted in a recent Altagamma report, consumers increasingly struggle to recognise the essence of luxury amidst this homogenisation.

The game of profit over vision


Our commentary reflects the absurd reality of today’s fashion landscape. An industry once celebrated for its idiosyncratic creativity has devolved into an empty vessel, chasing profit over vision. The relentless pursuit of marketability and trends has stripped many Maisons of their credibility and authenticity.

Conclusion


The news that Galliano departs Margiela is not surprising. His tenure served as a platform for personal rehabilitation while driving significant growth for the Maison. However, it also highlighted one of the industry’s pervasive issues: the prioritisation of individual ego over collective heritage.

Now, the question is: Will Galliano do Galliano under his own brand name, where his vision would truly make sense? Or are we about to witness the Gallianification of yet another fashion house?

Only time will tell, but one thing is clear: the fashion industry must reckon with its identity crisis if it hopes to reclaim its authenticity and creativity.

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Decoding Margiela’s Gallianification

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Exploring the impact of Galliano’s vision on Maison Margiela and the fashion industry


Decoding Margiela’s Gallianification, completed in the recent Artisanal SS24 couture show, prompts questions about the direction of the fashion industry.

As John Galliano fully embraces his creative role at Margiela, we witness a brand transfiguration under a new vision. The show, a clear display of Galliano’s aesthetic, raises inquiries about the essence of this transformation. Why not celebrate Galliano’s vision under his own brand name? What is the significance of reshaping Margiela into something it originally was not?

SS24 Haute Couture: Margiela’s Gallianification completed


A play of lights and shadows. In an underpass of the Seine, a theatrical representation showed the ritual of dressing, using the body as a canvas, attempting to express the emotional form of man. Like puppets moved by invisible strings, the models seemed to come to life step by step together with the clothes and accessories they wore. Lace, latex, very tight corsets, jackets and suits with visible stitching.
In fact, Margiela Artisanal SS24 couture show was one of the most beautiful during the recent Haute Couture Week in Paris. Definitely, Galliano knows what couture is. Yet, it was 100% Galliano and almost no trace of Margiela, if not for a few tabi shoes or the four-corner white-stitch of the logo.

A brief background

In 2011, Dior ousted John Galliano after a video emerged in which the British designer hurled anti-Semitic insults at a couple in a Paris bar. So, following the scandal, he was fired from his own fashion label, majority-owned by Dior.
In 2014, OTB – Only The Brave, Renzo Rosso’s company – appointed John Galliano as designer for Maison Margiela.
The news, to us, sounded like a joke. For instance, it was like asking Dolce & Gabbana to design Helmut Lang. Two different visions, opposite perspectives, indeed. Both should exist in the fashion industry, providing a diverse representation. Yet, each one under the creative guidance of a designer who can allow a specific sensibility to emerge.

Implications for the fashion industry


Of course, in the hands of Galliano, Margiela took a different turn. And now, with this Haute Couture skilful show, Gallianification of Margiela has been fully completed. Therefore, a reputable designer becomes the creative director of another label, taking just a few hints from the original designer. And in the end, celebrates his own vision of fashion, but under another brand name.

Perhaps, a revenge for Galliano in a field deprived of meaning. However, we wonder, what’s the point of this? Why doesn’t Galliano do Galliano under his own brand name? Why do they need to transform Margiela into what Margiela is not?

In the grand spectacle of Galliano’s creative takeover at Maison Margiela, the Margiela Artisanal SS24 couture show provided a poignant chapter in the ongoing saga of Gallianification. As the brand transforms under Galliano’s unmistakable vision, we’re left contemplating the broader implications for the fashion industry. In fact, this issue regards all the luxury brands in which the creative founder is no longer in charge. Specifically, we suffer for Margiela because we adore it, the original… Martin Margiela. In fact, we carried MM6 in our boutique in the past.

Decoding Margiela’s Gallianification unveils an absurd reality: an industry once celebrated for its idiosyncrasy now seems an empty vessel awaiting the next lucrative trend. Simply a game. But where is the fashion industry heading with these games?

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