It was not too long ago when we’ve caught wind of Rihanna developing her very own luxury brand with LVMH, rumors spurred by her wearing sunglasses that bore her last name. A month later, we have more information on the said project, which was confirmed to be a legitimate venture rather than just an unfounded buzz.
According to anonymous sources, the brand is known within both RiRi and LVMH’s parties as “Project Loud France”, a name said to be taken from the performer’s fifth album Loud released in 2010, which contained hits such as “Only Girl (in the World),” “S&M,” and “What’s My Name?” It is unknown as of the moment if it is just a working name, although it is said to be closer to the realization of the luxury brand that what was initially thought. It has been leaked that Rihanna has already used $34 million of her wealth to put in and be a stakeholder of Project Loud France. While the singer holds 49.99% of the upcoming company, LVMH remains the major investor by having the rest of the share. The cost is just what is expected of a venture such as this, which to some is partly a reason for LVMH buying rather than creating new houses. The last ever brand that has its roots in the French holdings company is Christian Lacroix, which opened in 1987.
It has already been noted previously that LVMH has put some of its own people from its existing luxury brands onto the project, particularly those from Celine and Louis Vuitton. Now, Jean Baptiste Voisin, the chief strategy officer of LVMH, is the designated brand president. Rihanna is said to have brought in a cherry picked team, too.
Project Loud France is expected to have an expansive scope of products. Documents reveal that it may create, distribute and export menswear, womenswear, shoes, kidswear, leather goods, and even perhaps home decor and stationery. While these things have been reported on, some details remain a mystery—the release date is still under wraps. There has been earlier speculation that the launch will coincide with that of Rihanna’s new album, but there is nothing in the leak that confirms this.
Rihanna, although without formal training in fashion, has already been involved in industry-related endeavors that have met success. Fenty Beauty, which is connected to LVMH through beauty brand incubator Kendo, has been lauded for its wide range and was close to Kylie Jenner’s own line of cosmetics in profit. The lingerie line Savage x Fenty is also acclaimed for being color, size and age inclusive, and is among the mentioned lines that could take out Victoria’s Secret from the lead. Because of this, there are high expectations from Rihanna’s luxury brand, but experts believe that her partnership with LVMH will be beneficial both ways. Mario Ortelli, a luxury analyst, makes the observation to Business of Fashion that LVMH has “one of the best platforms in the world in terms of design, marketing, distribution, supply chain,” which will make the success of Project Loud France all the more likely.
Image credits: Getty Images, Ilya S. Savenok, Jackson Lee, AFP, Angela Weiss, LVMH, Marc Schiller, Fenty Beauty
View this post on Instagram
