Jacquemus S/S 2021 Happened Amidst a Pandemic...On a Field of Wild Wheat

‘L'amour’ Spring/Summer 2021. Minimal, clean & soft, not too jarring on the eyes, quirky accessories, sexy silhouettes, right out of a romantic poem. This is the brand that went viral over hosting a runway show on a neutral toned wheat field amidst a pandemic.

The brand is edgy, no doubt, with it’s designs, silhouettes and cuts. Including their runway shows in the past and in the present. They re-introduce you to soft pastels and make you gain trust in them. That's quite the right phrase to use for them. They make you gain trust in pastels. Very few brands have the ability to make you change your colour palette opinions. They also know how to turn heads by hosting thematic runway shows.

Jacquemus’s social media is creatively captivating, almost like a mood-board. It seems like one of those brands who realised the importance and art of woo-ing through instagram very early. Jacquemus’s inspiration and claim to fame mainly lies within the sweet, humble melody sung in the Southern of France, which Simon Porte has reintroduced in many ways in all his shows. His designs pay homage to his childhood memories and the small province of France he was raised in. Simon mentioned in his interview with Dazed Magazine that “Jacquemus is not about nightlife and clubbing and things like that, it is more about fruits and vegetables and rolling in the grass.”

Another intriguing fact about Jacquemus’s brand management is that his social platforms, which the brand is heavily centered around, seem so personal. His captions are typed directly by him (or at least that’s how it appears) with aesthetic pictures from runway shows, collections, models, favourite memories, his partner, his vacations, the studio, etc. This has always worked well for Jacquemus’s brand identity and interpersonal relations in the industry.

Jacquemus is famous for the former runway show held in 2019, the 10th anniversary show in the middle of a lavender field. You might recognise these pictures from every ‘minimal style’ moodboard on Pinterest. Also got re-posted by several famous influencers on Instagram.

‘Le Coup de Soleil’, S/S 2020
Image source: www.vogue.co.uk

‘Le Chiquito’ a micro-mini leather bag by Jacquemus
Image source: @jacquemus

Speaking to Vogue, the designer said, “For me, the runway can’t be a video. It’s at the heart of what we do; it’s not superficial. It’s important to all of us to continue, just like a restaurant that reopens. It’s like a movie of a summer day. It’s our life.” and rightfully so, Simon managed along with his team to safely transport 100 guests and a group of models to the site, which was 1 hour from Paris city. He mentioned that utmost safety was taken and distancing was maintained. All guests at the show were seated 1 meter from each other and were handed a cotton bag which contained a cotton mask made by Jacquemus, a small bottle with a gel like sanitiser. There was a controversial post made attaching 2 pictures in comparison, one of the masked team behind the show and one of the un-masked models on the wooden runway. They wanted to highlight the hypocrisy of fashion brands and the extent this industry can

push it’s staff members to. However, Simon has testified to the above, stating the show was conducted with utmost safety.

Seating observing strict social distancing of 1 meter
Image source: @jacquemus

Behind the scenes of Jacquemus’s stories on Instagram with team members
Image source: @jacquemus

For L’amour S/S 2021, Jacquemus’s designs, patterns and silhouettes were very simple. This is not new to the brand because their identity goes by minimal and sensual. This collection in particular looked like something a mass fashion brand, Zara would sell, but in defence to that, Simon Porte always styles his runway garments in a way that people see what they get. He has made this clear in the past. Often on runway shows you’ll see garments that won't add 2 and 2 together, Simon uses that as a learning lesson and does things differently for his label, which clearly works out for him. This is another big answer to another big question about Jacquemus’s runway displays.

‘Le bandeau Novio’, L’amour, S/S 2021
Image source: www.jacquemus.com

The collection features a lot of versions of thongs and thin straps around the waist, chest etc. Simon mentioned to Vogue, “I am not what I used to be at 19 anymore, the brand has grown with me. More and more sensual by the day”. It is fascinating to see thongs and adjustable leather straps sewed with cotton linen. Unusual, experimental, we like that.

Featuring ‘La jupe Terraio’ a long straight skirt with a waist belt detail and an adjustable belt buckle
Image source: www.jacquemus.com

We do not have a definitive reason for why there were leather forks and knives attached on the beige linen blazer for menswear. In the world of fashion where everything has to be for a reason and not for the sake of it, this is quite unusual. Quirky details also include a plate in a harness used as a prop. Laser cut-out heart shapes on garments and the classic Le Chiquito mini bags.

Look 4, S/S 2021, featuring leather forks and knives on a beige boxy blazer
Image source: www.jacquemus.com

Look 17, S/S 2021, featuring heart cut-outs on a grey oversized blazer with grey linen oversized pants
Image source: www.jacquemus.com

S/S 2021, a plate covered in a leather harness used as a prop Image
source: www.jacquemus.com

‘La robe Terraio’, S/S 2021, a mini shirt dress exposing the under-boob and midriff with a leather detailing
Image source: www.jacquemus.com

‘Le coussin’, S/S 2021, a puffed cotton bag
Image source: www.jacquemus.com

Simon added in his conversation with L’Officiel “In fact, every decision I make about Jacquemus is motivated primarily by love and common sense. That's why we adopted, last year, a rhythm of environmentally and human-friendly collections, with two coed shows for men and women, in January and June. This decision was all the more beneficial this season, as we received all our fabrics before the confinement period. You decide to keep our collection pace and fashion shows are at the heart of our visual identity, our commercial strategy.”

‘L’amour’ in all nobelity seemed like a no-nonsense show with its pre-order collection that went online within 24 hours. This means you go on their website, select what item you like, choose your size and then they sew the garment. The shipments are expected to be made anywhere between December 2020 to March 2021. This means Jacquemus will only sew the garment once it is requested for. Personally we can conclude that this is a great model to cut down on fabrics and unwanted seasons in the fashion industry.

It is refreshing to see that brands are learning some major business lessons from this pandemic and are flexible enough to bring about some change. This in itself makes the brand so much more likeable than the rest in the industry. Jacquemus sticks to its image of being young, reformatory and in love.

Watch L’amour, Spring/Summer 2021 here