Jonathan An-Dior-son
You may not have realized that Dior really needs Jonathan Anderson from the offhanded manner in which the designer was confirmed to be leading Dior's menswear line. And yet, there it is: Jonathan Anderson is Dior Homme's artistic director.
The news of Anderson's Dior appointment confirms a rumbling that's been circulating for so long that the actual announcement is less a surprise than an affirmation of fashion's ever-churning rumor mill — no such thing as fake news in fashion!
(Seriously, though, please don't believe every headline you see shared on social media)
Luxury conglomerate LVMH apparently felt similarly. Anderson's hiring at Dior wasn't confirmed by way of the usual routes, like press release or statement or splashy magazine cover.
Instead, Anderson came up almost as a footnote during an investor's call, incidentally tossed out by LVMH CEO Bernaud Arnault as if to quell investor nervousness.
Investors have good reason to be anxious. LVMH share prices were already slumping even before American President Donald Trump's one-sided trade war against the rest of the planet upset an already tenuous global economy.
And amidst recession fears and viral videos of supposed Chinese factories promoting "discount" luxury goods, luxury market's broader financials are looking especially shaky.
Second only to Louis Vuitton, Dior is one of LVMH's toppest of top-tier houses. And like LV, Dior's fortunes are indicative of LVMH's own standing. So, it's tremendously important that the powers that be ensure that the steadiest hands are leading its prized maisons.
So, Dior needs Anderson. In fact, Dior needs Anderson more than he needs Dior.
Anderson could have his pick of the fashion litter, really. His tremendous success at LOEWE speaks for itself and he could always fall back on his still-potent eponymous line were he content to oversee only a single line.
Heck, Anderson has the necessary clout to even hold out for a position at another imprint, if he saw fit.
Dior, meanwhile, craves leadership in the vein of Anderson or Kim Jones, its former menswear overseer, if only to secure crucial commercial viability.
Jones was all over this. He carved out a new niche for Dior through high-profile partnerships with artists like Shawn Stussy and Travis Scott, even snapping up youthful streetwear cache with Stone Island, Jordan Brand, and KAWS collaborations. Jones also made footwear a new priority for Dior and, as such, his sneakers became crossover wins.
But ready-to-wear was never the main draw of Jones' Dior Homme. His Dior epitomized smart tailoring, which was stylistically quite strong, best epitomized by his recent swan song. It's just that while his team-ups had mass appeal, Jones' pajama-like blazers and billowing slacks translated to a smaller niche.
Anderson, meanwhile, can do it all. His tenure at LOEWE delivered hit bags and sneakers alike while his ready-to-wear, even at its most fanciful, remained uncomplicatedly covetable. He's a master of world-building, capable of straddling the two sides of the business. Some call it commercial and critical, some call it commerce and art.
However you wanna put it, Anderson is the rare fashion technician who's capable of catering to A-list talent with approachable aspiration while playing to the fashion crowd with real-deal ingenuity. Exactly what Dior needs right now.
