First Look: Louis Vuitton's First-Class Paris-to-India Connection
Pharrell's Louis Vuitton is terrifically worldly. Only a year or so ago, it was exploring Virgina, Pharrell's home state, and now it's sunbathing in India, where the LV Spring/Summer 2026 menswear collection draws deep from a well of historic style in shaping its typically sumptuous seasonal spread.
Since Louis Vuitton collections are typically quite expansive — and SS26 is hardly an exception — not every garment is obvious in its inspiration.
More overt references include The Darjeeling Limited, a Wes Anderson film that takes place in India; The luggage that Louis Vuitton created exclusively for the 2007 movie is replicated here.
More subtle stuff comes by way of the Louis Vuitton Tilted sneaker, a relatively new footwear signature created by designer Thibo Denis that returns in woven "checkerboard" uppers that're presumably both an homage to LV's signature Damier pattern and India's history of textile innovation (the indigo pair, for instance, sure feels aligned with India's generational cultivation of what local farmers call "blue gold.")
And the hiking boots? Pharrell's notion of trekkable Himalayas footwear.
Even if you aren't savvy to the LV menswear season's overarching theme, though, you'll grasp that this is quite impressive stuff.
One leather bomber is pure craft, its torso delicately cut into a tapestry of vines and floral motifs, a pair of thong sandals is made absurdly resplendent in exotic leather, and little plush figures are formed around tiny balls of Louis Vuitton monogram canvas.
If you were to bet on any one item from this collection most likely to be coveted by the many famous friends of Pharrell who crowded the SS26 runway show, those little guys would be a safe selection.
Not that the Wes Anderson-ish luggage or enormous trunks are anything to sneeze at, of course.
But surely the closest thing imaginable to a Louis Vuitton Labubu is destined to become an especially hot commodity. Emphasis on the hot: this is summertime in India, after all.
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