Philipp Plein loves the spotlight, and loves anything big, bold, and eye-catching, and for his Fall/Winter 2022 collection, the designer spared no color.
The collection was filled with plenty of new graphics, as the collection was titled "LIL MONSTERS," Plein introduced us to new fantasy characters named "LILBOO, LILDIABLO, LILGOZILLA, LILSHARK, and LILSKULL."
The creatures were featured on both apparel and accessories, making their way onto bags. Amongst the bags were also a silhouette that looked oddly familiar...
Decked out in a monogrammed silver leather, contrasted by an orange chain strap, Philipp Plein's travel duffle looks very similar to Virgil Abloh's Keepall bags for Louis Vuitton, which have seen plenty of iterations – holographic, metallic, translucent, and so on – and has been one of LV's most popular silhouettes for decades before Abloh gave it new life with color and updated materials.
Additionally, the designer also showed a crossbody version of the design, that also took a few pages from Abloh's Louis Vuitton. The colorway and the orange chain? I mean, come on.
Whether the designs were an homage to the late designer is questionable, but there's no doubt where the inspiration came from. Regardless, it is in poor taste, and of course, we already know that Philipp Plein has previously gotten in trouble for plagiarising the Stüssy x Dior graphic print. Long story short, this doesn't come as a massive surprise for anyone.
But, it seems as if Plein is already moving on to other ventures. This year, the designer is set to open the PHILIPP PLEIN Hotel and Club in Milan, as well as plenty other lifestyle branches. We can't even imagine what the interiors to the hotel will look like, but if it anywhere close to the label's stores, it will be a sensory overload to say the least.
Philipp Plein might have done well to secure Megan Fox for his latest campaign, but copying Virgil Abloh's Louis Vuitton is a move that is not welcomed anywhere.
