Haider Ackermann knows a thing or two about skin. After all, he's in the business of fashion, an industry intimately acquainted with the human form. The designer, revered for his draping skills, engineers an ecosystem of stitches, tucks, and pleats that transforms the body into something supernatural, sylph-like.
Now, Ackermann is cutting right to the chase, focusing on what lies beneath his signature silks and leathers. Instead of draped gowns and tailored jackets, Ackermann has designed a custom bottle for skincare brand Augustinus Bader, favored by fashion folk like Victoria Beckham and Hailey Bieber.
Charles Rosier, Augustinus Bader's CEO, met Ackermann through a mutual friend, none other than the late Azzedine Alaïa. "We have a lot of common people in our communities," Rosier says of Ackermann. "People who admire Haider, they use our product." He motions to the brand's hero offering, The Rich Cream, a $280 concoction born of founder Dr. Augustinus Bader's three decades-worth of research on stem cells and their role in wound-healing.
Dr. Bader's work in regenerative medicine touched something in Ackermann, who describes the act of healing as "the most beautiful gesture." The collaboration was also an opportunity for Ackermann to extend his sartorial oeuvre in a novel way. "When I talk about clothes, I'm talking about covering a body, about covering skin," he says. "Now we're going straight to the point. Human skin is the most intimate thing that we are confronted [with] every day — our imperfection, our wrinkles, our happiness, our sadness. I mean, the face is a whole poem."
Augustinus Bader products come in "Bader Blue" tubes and jars topped with a bronze caps. Ackermann's twist on the brand's packaging is a full metal jacket, a nod to the self-indulgence of a mirror. "Your reflection... that's what you want to take everywhere," he says of the shiny bullet, refillable and sized to fit both The Rich Cream and The Cream.
Bader Blue, a status symbol in-and-of itself, isn't completely absent. It appears in the form of Ackermann's signature, scrawled lengthwise across the shiny vessel. For devotees of both brands, the bottle is a keepsake. Rosier hopes it will also function as a mood-booster, a reminder to savor the simple act of applying moisturizer.
It's no secret that fashion is cashing in on the beauty boom. Prada recently resurrected its skincare line, while Paco Rabanne entered cosmetics with a collection of Space Age-y makeup. Kering, the luxury conglomerate that owns Gucci and Balenciaga, established its own in-house beatuy division, Kering Beauté.
Ackermann won't be following in their footsteps. "We all have our different worlds, and I think we have to respect each other's worlds," he says — clothing is his lane; skincare is Bader's. For Ackermann, collaboration is more attractive than launching an in-house line. "I'm not interested in that, to be honest."
Ackermann is also adamant that his collaboration with Bader is the result of organic connection, rather than a carefully mapped out marketing plan. "Nothing has been calculated. It's just two people finding [each other] and wanting to take the same path," he says. "I talk about it very romantically, but it's true. People are not going to be surprised that we did this together, because it all makes sense."
Haider Ackermann x Augustinus Bader launches online on October 4.
