I’m really looking forward to BoF VOICES 2024 which takes place from November 12-14 in Oxfordshire, UK and will be livestreamed for our global BoF Professional community.

When we first created BoF VOICES in 2016, we aimed to disrupt the industry echo chamber and bring in valuable external perspectives to help form a more rounded perspective on how cultural, technological and economic forces are shaping fashion and the wider world.

The ninth edition of our annual gathering for big thinkers will take place at a pivotal moment for fashion and the wider world: in the wake of a critical US presidential election with serious implications for the global economy and geopolitics; a sector that continues to grapple with sluggish growth, climate change and shifting customer sentiment towards fashion; and rapid developments in artificial intelligence that is creating new paths to purchase and opportunities for operational efficiencies.

We will explore all of these topics — and more — at BoF VOICES 2024 with top business and creative leaders from fashion and luxury, as well as with leading thinkers, experts and entrepreneurs from the worlds of technology, economics, media, science and contemporary art and culture.

• Legendary editor Tina Brown will share her perspectives on the US election and the role of the media in the age of disinformation.
• Sven Smit, senior partner and chair of the McKinsey Global Institute, will explain how energy, geopolitics and shifting demographics have placed us on the cusp of a new era.
• Waorani leader and activist Nemonte Nenquimo, along with her partner and co-founder of Amazon Frontlines Mitch Anderson will join Bandana Tewari for a conversation on the impact of Amazon deforestation on the future of the planet.
• AI innovators Julie Bornstein, Tom Graham and Lawrence Lenihan will share the latest developments in artificial intelligence.
• Valentino’s creative director Alessandro Michele and chief executive Jacopo Venturini will share their vision for the creative revamp of the iconic Roman fashion brand amid a global luxury slowdown.
• Retailers Lauren Santo Domingo, co-founder of Moda Operandi and Michael Kliger, chief executive of Mytheresa will outline the future of luxury e-commerce as the industry consolidates and restructures its business model.
• Simon Porte Jacquemus will discuss the evolution of the Jacquemus brand as the company rolls out new retail stores in London and New York and plans for its next phase of growth and expansion.
• The CEOs of lingerie and loungewear brand Skims and sportswear company On will explain how they are successfully challenging longtime incumbents.

You can find our full list of speakers here.

I hope you will join our global livestream from November 12-14. Sign up here to reserve your space.

BoF VOICES 2024 is made possible in part by our partners Shop with Google, Amazon Fashion, McKinsey & Company, Getty Images, Soho House, Blacklane and Penfolds. If you are interested in learning about partnership opportunities, please contact us here.

From the get-go, the most recent round of fashion weeks felt different. I didn’t make it to New York this season, but as I started meeting with CEOs and creative directors for catch-ups in London, Milan and Paris, it became more clear than ever that the industry is mired in a deep malaise. One CEO with 40 years of experience in the luxury fashion sector said he had never before witnessed such a marked shift in consumer sentiment in all major markets around the world, all at the same time.

The big question is whether the current downturn is a shorter-term cyclical shift, or a longer-term structural cataclysm that will require the luxury sector to make fundamental changes to its business model. The combination of customer resistance to dramatic price increases amid declining quality and ongoing questions about industry ethics and sustainability have dented the perceived value of big brand luxury.

Meanwhile, the rumour mill around creative director appointments continues to whir, leading fashion enthusiasts to conclude that designers are increasingly seen as dispensable, working under the pressure of an industry that doesn’t stop.

The Luxury Sweatshops Scandal: ‘It Could Happen to Any of Us’

As our sustainability correspondent Sarah Kent reported in a BoF investigation published at the beginning of Milan Fashion Week, the luxury fashion sector is in crisis mode as the industry awaits the results of a government probe into the luxury supply chains of as many as 12 luxury brands, after Armani and Dior were the first to be exposed for relying on an operating model that Italian prosecutors say prioritises profits over worker welfare.

“It could happen to any of us,” one executive said to me, claiming that no matter how hard they worked to get the situation under control, things are sometimes changed overnight when brands are not able to oversee everything in their outsourced supply chains. This sounded to me like an abdication of accountability rather than a realisation that there exists a deeper problem that must be solved.

But I still got the sense that the growing regulatory pressure and customer awareness of the issue will force executives to act, especially as the findings of the investigation play out on social media. It’s not lost on executives that the glossy exterior of luxury brands can quickly be compromised when brands are seen to underpay workers for products that are positioned as luxury.

Indeed, a Dior product certificate I found at home recently says the following: “We certify that this article has been manufactured according to the most rigorous quality standards, and in conformity with the image of our brand name.” Most other brands make similar promises. Now they know they must deliver on them or else.

Dramatic Slowdown in China Squashes Post-Covid Momentum

The rapid deceleration in the critical Chinese market was also a hot topic during fashion month. As one person put it to me, a strong performance in China over the last quarter is flat or single digit declines in revenue. The most challenged brands are seeing declines of up to thirty or forty percent, decimating profitability.

Consumer confidence in China remains low, as shoppers continue to grapple with a real-estate crisis which has had an impact on their perceived sense of wealth. Chinese customers are trading down, leaving luxury brands in the lurch. By most accounts, the next 12 to 18 months in the luxury sector are set to be very challenging indeed.

We will have our first read of how hard the industry is being hit when sector bellwether LVMH reports its Q3 results next week. With a US market that is basically flat year-on-year, and a European market that is struggling to regain its tourist inflows, analysts are expecting (and hoping for) a flat Q3, which would be seen as a good outcome.

Budget Cuts, Everywhere

Outside the shows, fashion month is usually filled with extravagant dinners and parties staged by brands to create more content and opportunities to wine and dine industry leaders. But, there was a notable pullback in these activations in London, Paris and Milan, and even some of the show sets and venues seemed dialled back as well. I can’t even count the number of times I heard the words “budget cuts” uttered this season.

For Casey Cadwallader at Mugler, this meant a much more straightforward daytime show at Le Trianon, a Paris concert hall with none of the nighttime theatrics that excited insiders in recent seasons.

This season at Louis Vuitton, the industry’s biggest luxury house created a runway made up of more than 1,000 Louis Vuitton trunks that rose from the floor at the beginning of the show instead of an elaborate set. It was an effective way to underscore the heritage of the house, but also seemed to be a way to trim the cost of the show set which in recent seasons has featured elaborate sets by Philippe Parreno.

Quiet Luxury on the Wane For Women

One notable change on the Spring/Summer 2025 runways was the return to maximalism and expressive fashion as seen at Valentino, Saint Laurent and Bottega Veneta.

There’s a good reason for this. Buyers and retailers I spoke to said that shoppers, particularly women, have tired of the muted colours and pared back designs that fuelled the quiet luxury trend in recent seasons.

There are a few reasons for this, they said. First, women’s closets are now filled with basic items in navy, beige and black. Now they are looking for more colourful and extravagant styles that motivate them to buy. Plus, smart shoppers have realised they can get a good version of quiet luxury at brands like Massimo Dutti for a fraction of the price.

This should bode well for those brands which laid on the embellishment and intricate craft in their collections. However, according to top retailers, the men’s quiet luxury movement continues unabated, with brands like Loro Piana, Zegna and Brunello Cucinelli continuing to perform well.

The Return of Retail Buying Power

With the merger of Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus in the United States and MyTheresa’s acquisition of Yoox Net-a-Porter announced earlier this week, multi-brand retailers will now be able to flex their muscle with brands, some of whom are reevaluating their retrenchment from wholesale channels.

As the overall luxury market cools, these larger and more powerful retail juggernauts offer a chance to reach new customers, who one day may shop the brand directly.

However, the retailers I spoke to also understand that they need to offer a more curated buy, rely less on discounting and elevate the shopping experience so top luxury brands feel safe in their retail environments.

This Weekend on The BoF Podcast

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Zac Posen burst onto the fashion scene in the early 2000s, gaining acclaim for his glamorous designs and dressing Hollywood’s elite. After nearly two decades, Posen closed his label in 2019, finding himself at a crossroads that eventually led to a meeting with Richard Dickson, the new CEO of Gap Inc., and the chance to join the company as creative director. Now, he’s on a mission to bring cultural relevance and excitement back to brands like Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic, and Athleta.

“Within five minutes [of meeting Dickson], I knew that there was something very special. It was a cosmic moment where there was like a magic connection, where I saw that I had met my dreamer,” Posen says.

This week on The BoF Podcast, I sit down with Posen to explore his journey of redefining success, his transformative role at Gap Inc., and his vision for the future of fashion.

Wishing you all a great weekend!

Imran Amed, Founder, CEO and Editor-in-Chief, The Business of Fashion

Here are my other top picks from our analysis on fashion, luxury and beauty:

1. What Escalation in the Middle East War Means for the Industry. After a year of war, things continued to heat up in the Middle East this week. BoF spoke to industry sources in the region to assess the impact, from Beirut’s ateliers to fashion retailers in Dubai.

2. Why Mytheresa Bought Yoox-Net-a-Porter. The merger between the luxury e-tailers has potentially far-reaching implications for the troubled sector.

3. Why Fashion Is Maxing Out on Minimalism. The Row’s success – including a recent investment from the families behind Chanel and L’Oréal at a unicorn valuation – is the most prestigious example of a rising generation of women-led independent brands that sell minimalist, approachably chic clothes. Some of them have billion-dollar aspirations of their own.

4. Old-School Magazines Are Brands’ New Favourite Marketing Tactic. Brands from Madhappy and Patta to Bottega Veneta are once again embracing print magazines full of on-brand editorial content as they attempt to escape the algorithm and bypass the drawbacks of social-media marketing.

5. The Glory Days of the Pop-Up Store Are Over. What’s Next? Rising rents and low vacancy rates have made it prohibitively expensive for many emerging brands to open retail locations — even temporary ones. Scrappy companies have found creative, low-cost ways to reach their consumers, from hotel partnerships and trunk shows to activations on college campuses.

To receive this email in your inbox each Saturday, sign up to The Daily Digest newsletter for agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice that you won’t find anywhere else.

PARIS and MILAN — On the Saturday evening of Milan Fashion Week last month, 62 year-old Michelle Yeoh quietly made fashion history when she turned up at the Bottega Veneta show dressed in the brand’s leather jeans paired with an off-white leather shirt in its signature intrecciato weave.

I had been working on a story about Yeoh for several months, and knew she had been named an ambassador for Balenciaga, eight months after becoming the first Asian woman — and second woman of colour — to win the Academy Award for Best Actress, cementing her status as a bona fide Hollywood A-lister with global appeal.

I scratched my head. Why was she at the Bottega show? Most contracts stipulate that ambassadors cannot wear other brands to public events, let alone attend their runway shows. But there she was: seated in a prime position, next to François-Henri Pinault, chairman and CEO of Kering, which owns both Balenciaga and Bottega Veneta.

As it turns out, her global starpower had enabled Yeoh — known for breaking boundaries since her time as an action film star in Hong Kong — to break another barrier, establishing formal ties with not one but two of the most important brands in the luxury fashion ecosystem, at the same time.

“Of course, CEOs of the houses speak to one another, and when Balenciaga was working on formalising their relationship with Michelle, we saw an opportunity to build our own relationship in parallel,” says Bottega Veneta chief executive Leo Rongone, confirming the brand’s contract with Yeoh for the first time.

“We want to make sure that each relationship is distinct, and that the relationship with Bottega Veneta has its own context,” he adds. “Our relationship has not been formally announced yet. We have a project planned for early 2025 that will be the vehicle for what comes next.”

None of this would have been possible without the historic Oscar win that catapulted Yeoh to the top of Hollywood, while giving her new resonance with fans on the other side of the world in Asia.

When she made her way to the stage of the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on March 13, 2023 to accept the award for her performance as stressed-out laundromat owner Evelyn Yang in the sleeper hit “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” she spoke directly to the audience in Asia, as well as also to older women for whom she is living proof that your career doesn’t have to peak in your thirties or forties.

“For all the little boys and girls who look like me watching tonight, this is a beacon of hope and possibilities,” Yeoh said in her acceptance speech. “This is proof that ... dream big, and dreams do come true. And ladies, don’t let anybody tell you you are ever past your prime. Never give up.”

Across Asia, the reaction to Yeoh’s historic win was deafening. Within 48 hours, the hashtag congratulating Yeoh was viewed more than 360 million times on the Chinese social media platform Weibo. More than 350,000 congratulatory messages were posted on Twitter (now X), calling her “brave,” “confident” and “a role model” for women everywhere.

Back in her native Malaysia, more than three hundred people, including her mother Janet Yeoh, had gathered for an Oscars party in Kuala Lumpur. Although it was already midday the next day and they were watching along on television, they had dressed in evening gowns and tuxedos, celebrating Yeoh’s win as if they were with her in Los Angeles.

“I swear to God, it was a roar,” Yeoh says now, moved to tears as I replay the video of her mother taking in the moment that changed Yeoh’s life and reflecting on the pan-Asian euphoria that followed her historic win. “The best actress [award] is always the second to last to come out. You know, everybody has got their awards and you’re sitting there and suddenly it hit me. ‘What if I don’t win?’” she says, knowing that she was carrying the expectations of an entire continent.

Yeoh was right to wonder if she would win. Despite having had a 39-year career in which she had displayed the versatility of Meryl Streep (3 Oscars, 21 nominations), stunt skills to rival those of Angelina Jolie (1 Oscar, 2 nominations) and beauty and elegance comparable to Cate Blanchett (2 Oscars, 8 nominations), Yeoh had never been nominated for — let alone won — the most coveted award in film.

Now, she’s conquered fashion, too.

This year, Yeoh once again graced the Oscars red carpet — this time as a global ambassador for the storied house of Balenciaga — dressed in a sparkling, off-the-shoulder gown which the brand’s creative director Demna had created from three vintage couture dresses that he sourced on eBay and then deconstructed and sewed together to create something entirely new.

Like winning Hollywood’s top accolades, scoring coveted ambassadorships at top luxury brands like Balenciaga and Bottega Veneta is highly unusual for an Asian woman in her sixties.

“Just before the Oscars, [there was] a silly television commentator who turned around and said, you know, ‘You’re past your prime’,” she recalls, shaking her head. “It’s like, how dare you? How dare anybody tell you what you are capable of, and what your prime is.”

“As you get older, people tend to put you aside even more. If you allow that, then you will always stay at the side. In my generation you can see Demi Moore, Nicole [Kidman], or even Judi Dench and Helen Mirren. We stand up strong and say, ‘Yes, we have wrinkles on our face. So what? So do you. There is nothing wrong with that. We are who we are. And I think that is what the fashion world has latched on to.”

Indeed, in recent years, fashion has begun to recalibrate its relationship with older stars, using icons from Joan Didion to Isabelle Huppert (herself a Balenciaga ambassador) in their marketing campaigns.

Yeoh had long-standing relationships with Giorgio Armani and Valentino going back to her time as an action star in Hong Kong and has been an ambassador for luxury watch brand Richard Mille since 2011. But it wasn’t until she won an Oscar that big fashion deals came her way.

As you get older, people tend to put you aside even more. If you allow that, then you will always stay at the side. ‘Yes, we have wrinkles on our face. So what? So do you.’ There is nothing wrong with that. We are who we are. And I think that is what the fashion world has latched on to.

—  Michelle Yeoh

Yeoh’s ascent came amid wider cultural change. Hollywood was embracing diversity with new vigour amid shifting socio-political winds in the United States. Meanwhile, China had become the world’s second largest fashion market; Asian culture had penetrated the West in a way not previously seen; and there was rising national pride in fast-growing frontier markets in the Global South and Global East, where customers expected to see themselves represented in ad campaigns

Leslie Sun, Vogue’s Asia-Pacific editorial director, believes that “politics and economics aside,” there are two main factors behind the timing of the fashion industry’s interest in stars like Yeoh.

“One [is] the increased exposure to, understanding of, and curiosity about a more authentic side of Asian culture that has risen in the West over the past decade,” explains Sun. “This has allowed films and television shows portraying Asian cultures, with mainly Asian production and cast or in Asian languages, to enter mainstream conversations. As a result, Asian faces have become more ‘relatable’ globally, which I suppose is what brands are seeking in [their] campaigns and ambassadors — and I’d say the same applies to magazine covers.”

Vogue China, the Taiwanese edition of Vogue (which Sun oversees directly), and the US edition of Elle were among the fashion glossies that shot Yeoh for cover stories shortly before or after her Oscars win.

“Another key factor is the evolution of women’s roles,” continues Sun, pointing out that Yeoh’s groundbreaking performances in the 1980s and 1990s as a female “action star [set] her apart from her contemporaries” early on. “Throughout her career, she frequently portrayed strong-willed characters who were fighters, both literally and metaphorically. While her role selections have diversified over the years, what has evolved even more is the growing acceptance of the fighter quality in women as an attractive trait.”

“The unequal expectations placed on women ageing in the industry are unfortunately still very prevalent,” adds Sun. “Michelle leads the way in that, despite her beauty, it wasn’t her looks that defined her success. It was her innate sense of self and her understanding that she has so much more to offer than her physical appearance. One of the reasons she has become such an inspiration to many women is because she possesses a rare confidence, where the only expectations she feels compelled to meet are her own.”

The Making of a ‘Fighter’

Finding time for a two hour in-person interview with Yeoh over the summer was not easy. For several months, she had been flying back and forth between Prague — where she was managing a gruelling filming schedule for the mini-series “Blade Runner 2099″ starring alongside Hunter Schafer and Mikkel Bratt Silset — and Paris where she had official duties at the 2024 Summer Olympic Games as a member of the International Olympic Committee and where she shares a home with her husband Jean Todt, a French motor racing executive.

Meanwhile, she was also gearing up for global promotion for the screen adaptation of the hit Broadway musical “Wicked, “in which she stars alongside Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo and Jonathan Bailey.

When she walks into the lobby of the Plaza Athénée Hotel, she is dressed in a sporty pink tracksuit and platform sneakers, Olympic badges and other credentials dangling around her neck. Immediately after our interview, she needs to rush off to attend the IOC General Assembly before returning to Prague for a 6am call time. And as she collapses into a sofa in a suite overlooking Avenue Montaigne, she is exhausted from all of the back and forth.

Growing up in Malaysia, Yeoh was never interested in acting. “I went to the cinema because my mom is a huge movie buff. We saw movies from around the globe like “The Sound of Music” and “Tarzan” because my dad loved nature. And we also watched Hindi movies and Malay movies with subtitles,” she recalls. “But not once, as a child, staring at the silver screen [did] I want to be up there, or want to be one of them. I wanted to be somehow involved with the world of dance and ballet.”

Yeoh began ballet lessons at the age of four. At 15, she moved to the United Kingdom, to attend an all-girls boarding school. Later, she enrolled at the prestigious Royal Academy of Dance in London, though she knew from the start that a career as a professional ballerina was unlikely.

“Being Chinese, the shape and form … we did not fit into the classical look,” she says. “As long as I could come back to Malaysia and have my own school and one day share the love of ballet and dance with little kids, I would be happy with that. And in fact, that was my goal.”

But a severe spinal injury put these plans on hold and Yeoh returned home to Malaysia at 21 only to discover that her mother had secretly enrolled her as a contestant for the Miss Malaysia beauty pageant.

“She had no choice but to inform me because [from amongst] I don’t know how many thousands of girls from the whole of Malaysia, they narrowed it down and they said the last 100 semi-finalists will have to meet in Kuala Lumpur, and that’s when the judges will meet you,” she says laughing. “In the end, I agreed to do it so that it would get her off my back.”

In an unexpected twist of fate, Yeoh won the pageant. So, instead of returning to the UK, she spent a year in Malaysia on a promotional tour. “I learned a lot about my country — not just Ipoh and Perak, where I’m from — because you are the ambassador of Malaysia, and that encompasses 13 states and then Sabah and East Malaysia as well. It gave me an opportunity to really get to know my country.”

A multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-racial, multi-faith Southeast Asian country of 34 million people, Malaysia shares land borders with Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore and Brunei and has a majority Muslim population as well as a significant number of followers of Buddhism, Christianity and Hinduism.

“We never saw differences in different cultures because we grew up together,” she says. “I grew up with the Muslims, the Malays, the Indians, Hindus, Chinese — whether they’re Buddhists or Christians. We embraced each other’s cultures … And I think that has always been such a solid foundation for me as a person.”

As her year as Miss Malaysia was coming to an end, Yeoh received a call from a Malaysian friend in Hong Kong saying she had shown the business tycoon Dickson Poon a photo of her and he wanted to meet.

Poon, who would later go on to acquire the UK luxury department store Harvey Nichols and set up its Hong Kong outpost, owned Dickson Watches and operated fashion brands like Charles Jourdan and Ralph Lauren in the Hong Kong market. At the time, he was looking to cast a woman for a commercial promoting his watches business — and soon Yeoh was filming a commercial with Hong Kong film legend and action hero, Jackie Chan. It was her first time in front of a camera.

“When there is an opportunity, you sometimes just have to seize it and go. What have you got to lose?” she reasons . “I could have said no on the phone call and that moment would have gone. You never know when those moments come, but when they do come… are you ready for it?”

Yeoh was definitely ready. She signed a two-year film contract with Poon’s production company, and soon became the leading actress in Hong Kong action films, starring opposite all the greats: Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Chow Yun-fat and Sammo Hung.

“My first movie in Hong Kong was very typical at that time,” says Yeoh. “It was the guys who did the rescuing, who did all the martial arts and did all the stunts … You know, they were the heroes. The women were relegated more to the damsel in distress, ‘Oh, save me, save me.’”

“I was very fortunate that one of the wives of our producers said ‘You put her in the same box as you have all the other girls that we have … why don’t you let her blossom and be who she possibly could be?’”

“To get into that boy’s world, you have to prove yourself. It’s hard enough as a man trying to get into that circle, let alone a woman. They sort of look at you and go like, ‘Okay, within two seconds you’re going to be in that corner going like waaaah,’” she says, imitating a crying baby.

To succeed, Yeoh would need to do her own stunts, just like the male actors. “I went straight to register myself in a gym where I knew that stunt people — like Hong Kong action actors — [were] training there. I was very fortunate. [They] were very generous … maybe they were curious as well. Miss Malaysia, beauty queen. And she wants to try and do this?”

Yeoh went on to break boundaries as a leading woman in the Hong Kong film industry, working on films like “Yes, Madam,” “Dynamite Fighters” and “Magnificent Warriors.” But in 1987, she decided to step back from her career following her marriage to Poon, the tycoon who gave her her start.

“I am a great admirer of women who can juggle and balance, but I don’t know how to multitask in that way,” she explains. “I made a very specific choice. I was 28 and I would be filming constantly away. It was a very personal choice. Being an actress is something that I loved. But being a wife was something that I loved more at that time.”

To get into that boy’s world, you have to prove yourself. It’s hard enough as a man trying to get into that circle, let alone a woman. They sort of look at you and go like, ‘Okay, within two seconds you’re going to be in that corner going like waaaah,’

—  Michelle Yeoh

Yeoh was not able to have children and the marriage ended a few years later. The Hong Kong media championed Yeoh’s return to cinema, and given a choice between two new film projects, she picked “Police Story 3: Supercop,” the 1992 action comedy with Jackie Chan.

“That was the time when you come back and you feel you have so much you want to prove, not just to the world, but first of all to yourself that I am able, I am still fit, and I’m still fighting for what I believe in and what I love to do.”

No Hollywood Dreams

Yeoh had never really thought about Hollywood until a producer she had worked with, Terence Chang, called her from Los Angeles asking if she would consider making a go of it.

“It was never, ‘Oh, I want to be a Hollywood star.’ I was happy. I was enjoying my life. I was doing things that I wanted to do. Then Terence said, ‘Why don’t you come? Just come for, you know, a visit’,” she recalls.

But what Yeoh found was that roles for an Asian woman in Hollywood were few and far between, and executives there lacked a basic knowledge of Asia.

“They always said, ‘Oh, you speak English!’ she remembers.. “And they didn’t know Hong Kong from Malaysia from Japan. One day when [someone] said that, I turned around and said, well, the flight over here was 13 hours. It was long. So I learned [how to speak English on the plane]!”

“Our market was not big enough for them to feel that they should bother with us,” she continues. “Until the day that we can build up such a powerful box office — which is now what we have with China and the rest of Asia and India — then we are formidable. Then they would go, ‘We should make movies for them as well’. But when they don’t recognise us, you go, ‘God, do I want to be in this industry?”

Eventually, given her experience in stunts and action films, Yeoh ended up in a conversation about starring alongside Pierce Brosnan in the James Bond spy thriller “Tomorrow Never Dies.”.

“They decided ‘we want a strong female character because times change’ [which meant] they wanted a Bond girl who wasn’t just a femme fatale,” says Yeoh.

Yeoh followed up with starring roles in Ang Lee’s “Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon,” for which she learned to speak Mandarin phonetically, Rob Marshall’s “Memoirs of a Geisha,” and the hit romantic comedy “Crazy Rich Asians,” which underscored the commercial viability of a film with an all-Asian cast.

But finding roles wasn’t always easy, sometimes resulting in long gaps between films while she waited for opportunities that matched her ambitions and aligned with her values. Along the way, she turned down many roles that played towards stereotypes of Asian people.

“There was always a need to [justify] why an Asian woman was there. So unless it was in Chinatown or it was a take-out, then you don’t have to explain it because [the thinking was] an Asian woman would not be sitting behind the desk as a GM or politician. She would be where she’s ‘supposed’ to be,” she recalls.

“Having saved enough money from working in Asia, I [had] the opportunity to say no, because when I say yes to this, that means I agree this is what we are and what we should be. I am not saying that everybody has to think like me, but I believe that a few of us who can make and push the change, we have to grab that opportunity to do it. I don’t want to be part of something that I don’t believe in.”

“The studios or the producers thought there wasn’t a market, saying that no one wants to see an Asian hero or a heroine,” she recalls. “We need more of those kinds of roles, because if I look at all my peers — I mean, look at Emma Stone and Jennifer Lawrence — they have such a wide repertoire of films that gives them the ability.”

It wasn’t until she received the script for “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” that she felt she could bring her full self to a film. “It really was like all the things I’ve done in 30 years, all put into one,” Yeoh recalls.

Bridging Cultures and Generations

In the latest Balenciaga ad campaign released in August, Yeoh is pictured seated on a chair, legs splayed with a high-volume 80s style hairdo, wearing signature Balenciaga ready-to-wear, with the brand’s new Bel Air bag front and centre.

Being a Balenciaga ambassador places Yeoh amongst a group that includes Hollywood A-lister Nicole Kidman, French cinema legend Isabelle Huppert, mega-influencer Kim Kardashian and multi-hyphenate Thai star Krit Amnuaydechkorn.

“Fashion also changed, it wasn’t just me,” Yeoh says. “It’s not just about dressing the younger people, right? Other groups are just as important. I’m not going to wear what the 20-year-old is going to wear. You have to find a different generational representation of it. And I think what I represent is to be proud that you are different, that you are older and there’s nothing wrong [with it].

“Michelle can wear anything from hoodie and trainers to a couture gown and always looks absolutely stunning and elegant,” says Balenciaga creative director Demna. “I love the diversity of looks that she chooses to wear and how they are all complementary to her personality and individual style. She wears fashion — and not the other way round. She has this natural style and elegance that is above fashion and very rare today.”

“I don’t believe in a Gen-Z only driven ambassadors approach,” adds Cedric Charbit, CEO of Balenciaga. “We chose people … for who they are and what they have accomplished. At Balenciaga the point is to, over time, form a group of people that are real voices, pushing boundaries and inspiring globally.”

Indeed, Yeoh’s following across Asia was clearly a draw, as well as her unique ability to bridge East and West, a rare example of an Asian actress who was making it big in Hollywood films.

As for Yeoh, she says she chooses her endorsements as carefully as her films. “I found that with Balenciaga, they were culturally very deep. But at the same time, they were pushing the boundaries of having someone like Demna, who was very edgy, who was very today and, you know, and still at the same time very classical in many ways.”

I don’t believe in a Gen-Z only driven ambassadors approach. We chose people… for who they are and what they have accomplished. At Balenciaga the point is to, over time, form a group of people that are real voices, pushing boundaries and inspiring globally.

—  Cedric Charbit, CEO of Balenciaga

Olympian Spirit

There are just 111 members of the International Olympic Committee. Among them are Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the United States Princess Reema Bandar al-Saud; Canadian swimming champion and former president of the World Anti-Doping Agency Richard “Dick” Pound; Princess Anne, a senior member of Britain’s royal family and an Olympic equestrian; and, as of last October, the boundary-breaking actress Michelle Yeoh.

“This was one thing that I really wanted because I’ve always loved sports,” she says. “Sports have been part of my life, like dance has been part of my life. I love the message and the spirit of what it’s supposed to bring: peace working together through sports. I can shine the light on certain things, for example, the refugee team, which is very, very dear to [IOC president Thomas Bach]’s heart and the Olympic spirit.”

That spirit is critical to Yeoh’s success.

“Michelle has such dignity and such a gentle way about her that makes you pay attention. Her incredible athleticism and the fearlessness with which she accomplishes her action stunts can only fill you with awe,” says Zhang Ziyi, her co-star in “Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon.” “She seems to have this same no-fear approach to living her life. Steadfast and laser-focused, she has achieved the seemingly impossible. We can all learn from her.”

So how does Yeoh feel about her success?

“What is success? What does it really actually mean?” Yeoh ponders, repeating my question. “If you look at the dictionary, it means something that you’ve achieved in other people’s eyes; that you’ve reached a certain goal. For me, I think the most important [thing] is that I have truly loved what I’ve done over the years. Then I can look at myself and think, I’ve had successes. I’m successful because of participating in the IOC, in projects, in movies and TV series that I engage in by choice.”

“I was not obliged to do something that I would not be proud of — and in my eyes, that’s a gold medal.”

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Background

Alessandro Michele’s whimsical, bold vision as creative director of Gucci revitalised the brand, turning it into a cultural juggernaut. Now, he’s attempting to do the same at Valentino, bringing his signature blend of nostalgia, craftsmanship, and artistic risk-taking to reimagine the Roman couture house.

“This place has such a specific story,” he says. “That name, Valentino — it’s a real name, with real life, with real love. There is always Valentino somewhere with me.”

This week on The BoF Podcast, BoF founder and editor-in-chief Imran Amed sits down with Michele to discuss his evolution as a designer, his deep connection to Valentino’s heritage, and the importance of passion and obsession in achieving creative success.

Key Insights

• As creative director, Michele said that the weight of Valentino founder Valentino Garavani’s legacy continues to inspire and guide him, even in the smallest details of his work. “When I’m working by myself, with the people of the studio, with Jacopo, there is always Valentino somewhere with me. … There is always an open conversation with him because I can feel the things talking to me, through the dresses, the walls,” he said.
• Contemplating the meaning of success, Michele emphasises the importance of remaining true to himself as a designer. “It’s more moving left and right, rather than up and down. Success is when you are in the right place, when you’re free to be yourself,” he said. His approach to fashion is personal and deeply intuitive, and he protects his creativity by concentrating on his own creative fulfilment rather than trying to please everyone. “I don’t need to be someone else. I think a big designer or a good designer needs to be himself.”
• Michele approaches his work with a deep understanding that creativity comes with taking risks, both in life and in fashion. He views risk as an essential element of growth and evolution in his designs. “You are taking beautiful risks, but they are risks,” he said. “I like myself also for the things I did wrong. Now that I’m a big boy, I like the Alessandro who did so many wrong things.”
• For Michele, the magic of fashion and creating a collection lies in the uncertainty. “You put all the ingredients inside, and it’s going to be real only when the first person starts to walk on the catwalk. That’s the magic,” he said. “You feel that you were pregnant, but now the baby has a proper life and you can no longer be in control. It’s outside and it’s gonna walk by himself or herself.”

Additional Resources

Versace Spring/Summer 2025

In this episode of Backstage Pass, Tim Blanks goes backstage at Versace’s Spring/Summer 25 show to interview designer Donatella Versace on her inspiration for the brand’s latest collection.

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Marni Spring/Summer 2025

In this episode of Backstage Pass, Tim Blanks goes backstage at Marni’s Spring/Summer 25 show to interview designer Francesco Risso on his inspiration for the brand’s latest collection.

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Read More: Milan Goes to the Movies

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Background

The renowned grime MC and rapper Skepta knows that there’s no such thing as an overnight success. After the rapper launched his fashion brand, Mains, in 2017, it was put on pause after a split from his manufacturer before making a return to London Fashion Week last year. Progress, he believes, takes time and resilience.

“Like anything in the world, the best way to learn is to do it and fail,” he said. “I know that it’s not a short road … you have to be in it to win. And it could take one pair of shoes. It could take a hat, could take one bag … If you don’t carry on trying and failing, you won’t get there.”

This week on The BoF Podcast, BoF founder and editor-in-chief Imran Amed sits down with Skepta to discuss Mains’ revival, his philosophy of perseverance and why he refuses to follow conventional rules in the fashion industry.

Key Insights

• Skepta’s love for fashion was sparked by his passion for underground music and the style he saw at garage events. “I’m getting turned away from clubs … and when I’m getting turned away, I’m looking in the queue and there’s people wearing Versace, Moschino, Patrick Cox loafers,” he says. The way that clothes and music felt, tied together to shape his taste. “That was where I really fell in love with fashion. The aspiration of wanting to wear the clothes, but also listening to the music that you listen to when you wear the clothes.”
• Skepta’s journey as a fashion customer, with a keen eye for garment construction and detail, led him to launch his own brand. “Years and years of experience of buying clothes and looking at stitches and the inside jackets, the panels, I just felt like I was experienced enough to give the tailoring expertise as well as the love and the true magical passion that’s not taught in school. ... Paired with a great designer, Mikey Pearce, and team, it was almost like divine intervention for me to just do it.”
• Skepta’s creative process is iterative. “With music, you can actually change the audio after it’s even out, but with clothes you definitely can’t, so until it’s out I’m always changing. I’m always adapting and figuring out,” he says. “I don’t like putting boundaries on thought. I think we should always be able to adapt and change.”
• “I’m doing one show a year. Spring, summer or winter altogether. Boys and girls in my show, they’re all wearing the same clothes.” This creative freedom allows Skepta to fully enjoy the process, believing it’s important to not take fashion too seriously. “It should be fun. And I see a lot of people that go into fashion and adhere to the rules that have been set, then they start having a bad time doing something that they love. That’s crazy to me.”

Related Articles

• In London, Plasticine and Messy Dressing. Susie Lau reports from the first half of London Fashion Week: JW Anderson, Roksanda, Molly Goddard and more.
• How to Bring a Personal Touch to PR. DH-PR founder Daisy Hoppen, who is celebrating 10 years in business this year, built an agency that represents some of London’s most interesting creatives. Now, she’s evolving her approach as she navigates a more challenging and competitive PR landscape.

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Background

Clare Waight Keller’s career in fashion has been defined by her versatility as a designer and desire to step outside her comfort zone. She started out specialising in knitwear at the Royal College of Art before taking on a role in knitwear at Calvin Klein and moving on to Ralph Lauren. She returned to Europe to work at Gucci under Tom Ford, and then stepped into creative director roles at Pringle, Chloé and Givenchy. Last week, it was announced that she was becoming the creative director of Japanese clothing retailer Uniqlo, which is targeted at the masses, not the classes.

Seeing new challenges as an opportunity to learn and grow, has led Waight Keller to make many unexpected decisions from the start of her career.

“Those moments when you are pushed to your boundaries and don’t quite know how to navigate … bring a great sense of drive for me. I love the idea of being uncomfortable with what I’m working on because it makes me learn quickly,” she said. “I enjoy the process of change, and I guess that’s why I’ve worked in so many different places.”

This week on The BoF Podcast, BoF founder and editor-in-chief Imran Amed sits down with Waight Keller to discuss her varied career path and her experience working in American, Italian, British, French and now Japanese fashion companies and how this has shaped her outlook on the industry.

Key Insights

• Growing up in Birmingham, England, Waight Keller was captivated by the vibrant subcultures she encountered. That influence led her towards art school, and eventually, fashion. “I distinctly remember standing at a bus stop, going to college, with punks, skinheads or goths — people who really expressed themselves through fashion and took it to a real sense of identity,” she said. “They just seemed like the most interesting people. I wanted to be part of that.”
• After working for predominantly male creative directors, Clare felt it was time to express her own perspective, leading her to the creative director position at Chloé in 2011. “There’s such a sensibility that women have in fashion because you try it on yourself, you wear it, you feel it,” she said. “I’m putting together what I believe to be my point of view of fashion and I really wanted to express that one day.”
• Waight Keller’s move to Uniqlo marked a shift from working in the world of luxury to mass fashion, which has required some adjustment. “Understanding the scale was just extraordinary. In luxury fashion, you work on a much smaller scale, even at big brands,” she said. However, with this came new opportunities. “With that scale comes incredible access to innovation, amazing fabric mills, and quality. They spend a lot of time developing the quality of their products.”
• Even as her career flourished, Waight Keller came to discover the inherent gender bias women face in the industry. “It’s still fairly male-dominated in management and across the business side of fashion ... I had to make my family work around my career because even a season out in fashion can put you back a year, and people look at you differently.” With that, her advice to fellow female designers is not to “be afraid of a challenge and having to learn on the ground. I think that’s actually how you really get knowledge and become valuable,” she says.

Additional Resources

• Do Mass Brands Need Creative Directors? This week, Uniqlo appointed Clare Waight Keller the creative director of its main line, while Stefano Pilati signed on for a collection with Inditex flagship Zara and Zac Posen staged a New York Fashion Week bash with Old Navy. The jury is still out on whether hiring designers from high-fashion will drive retail results.
• The Logic Behind Givenchy’s New Designer Appointment. Matthew M. Williams, founder of the luxury streetwear-inspired label 1017 ALYX 9SM, succeeds Clare Waight Keller. What expertise does he bring to the LVMH-owned brand?
• Uniqlo Appoints Clare Waight Keller as Creative Director. The British designer previously served as creative director at LVMH-owned Givenchy and Richemont’s Chloé.

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Background

Sport and fashion have always been a part of Stéphane Ashpool’s life: He was raised watching his artistic parents socialise with designers like Claude Montana in Paris, while simultaneously falling in love with basketball watching the LA Lakers on TV. He followed both of these passions into adulthood, eventually launching streetwear brand Pigalle in 2008 and going on to collaborate with brands like Nike.

“I have as much curiosity for couture as I have for sport kit,” said Ashpool. “I knew I wanted to kind of blend those things spontaneously. I had no clue what it was going to bring me but that’s why I started to put things together.”

This week on The BoF Podcast, Ashpool joins BoF founder and editor-in-chief Imran Amed to share his journey with clothing brand Pigalle and how his unconventional path into fashion led him to designing the French national team’s Olympic uniforms.

Key Insights

• Raised in the Parisian suburbs with his dancer mother and artist father, Ashpool was deeply rooted in the worlds of sport and fashion from a young age. “I had this charming home, and when I went in the streets, I had this more masculine type of vibe. And that was related to the sport I love the most, which is basketball,” he says. “My mother and her friends were dancers, so I’ve been surrounded by a lot of the gay community, people coming from all over the globe, eccentricity, people that really embrace style.”
• Established in 2008, Ashpool’s brand Pigalle was named for the Parisian neighbourhood he grew up in and born with the district’s multi-dimensional spirit in mind. “I didn’t exactly know what I was doing, but what I did know was the best of both worlds. I like to blend, so I have as much curiosity for couture as I have for sports kits,” he shares. “[At the start] we didn’t know how to handle things, to organise ourselves, but the fire was burning. It was really exciting to enter a lane that no one really did before.”
• When Ashpool was approached by Le Coq Sportif to design the uniforms for the French Olympic team, it came with new challenges and constraints, but Ashpool relished this learning experience. “I really embraced it because even though they put you in a frame, if you managed to break the frame even a little bit, you always got more than what they gave you. I made sure I was pushing the boundaries.”
• For young creatives, Ashpool’s advice is simple. “Dream big, but manage your expectations. Create your own lanes, be inspired, but don’t let yourself be someone else. If you start something, you need to finish it. Don’t teach yourself to not finish something. Otherwise, it’s going to enter your DNA,” he warns. “Be nice to people. It works. Be yourself. It works. Be patient. It works.”

Additional resources

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Background:

2024 has the potential to be a dynamic year for dealmaking in beauty, as brands including Makeup by Mario, Kosas, Merit and even Selena Gomez’s Rare Beauty begin exploring their strategic options. But strategic buyers and private equity firms are also adopting more selective acquisition strategies.

At The Business of Beauty Global Forum 2024, Vennette Ho, managing director and global head of beauty and personal care at investment bank Financo Raymond James shared her expert views on this year’s M&A scene in the beauty industry. Ho is the industry’s most respected investment banker, so when she talks, the beauty industry listens.

“M&A happens when there’s a fundamental change in the consumer. The consumer needs and the consumer wants are something that the strategics today don’t have,” Ho explained. “Every time there’s an evolution of a consumer need or want or expectation, M&A has to become a necessity for large strategies to look at.”

This week on The BoF Podcast, Imran Amed, BoF founder and editor-in-chief sits down with Ho to discuss the evolving nature and market of the beauty industry.

Key Insights:

• According to Ho, consumer expectations for beauty brands have changed, as well as how they engage with them. Acquiring indie brands helps conglomerates meet those expectations. “A lot of the big companies don’t have … the ability to incubate internally, they don’t have the ability to come up with something. It really comes honestly from the hearts of founders and it comes from private companies. As a result, M&A becomes really necessary,” she says.
• Ho advises founders to get to know lots of potential acquirers when considering a potential acquirer, in order to understand who shares your values before making a deal. “It also goes for the other side that they feel like they know you and you can have a better alignment from the beginning,” she adds.
• The perfect exit process is not just about the closing of the deal but also what happens after. “What happened six, 12 months, three years after the deal happened? Are people still feeling the same way? I think that’s where we get the most pride and say, ‘Okay, this actually impacted the industry in some huge way that went beyond just that moment of the deal,’” says Ho.
• Looking towards the future of the industry, Ho believes we’ll continue to see the breakdown of beauty category silos. “I think some of the most interesting and most disruptive companies don’t actually fit into that mould and don’t actually fit into a traditional thing,” she said. “The consumer doesn’t think, ‘Is this a prestige brand? Is this a mass brand? Is this a skincare brand?’ They’re thinking, ‘Is this a brand that I want to engage with that engages me in a certain way?’ There’s a really exciting democratisation of things where brands can exist in different channels at the same time.”

Additional Resources:

• Why L’Oréal Is Investing in Niche Chinese Fragrance Brands: The French beauty giant’s two latest deals are part of a wider M&A push by global players to capture a larger slice of the China market, targeting buzzy high-end brands that offer products with distinctive Chinese elements.
• The Changing Shape of Beauty M&A: Beauty megadeals may be few and far between over the near term, but M&A will still be critical for buyers and sellers seeking growth, innovation and competitive product portfolios, reports The State of Fashion: Beauty.
• Beauty’s Top M&A Targets: A flurry of deals just weeks into the new year are a sign of things to come. The Business of Beauty identifies the top targets of the year.

ASPEN, Colorado — One of the best things about my job is that while I am deeply immersed in all things fashion, I also have the opportunity to meet people outside the fashion bubble to learn and expand my mind, and bring the insights I take away back to my work here at The Business of Fashion. This combination of insider access, with an outsider’s perspective, has always informed my take on fashion and luxury.

This week, after attending Dries Van Noten’s final show for his namesake brand on Saturday evening, Vogue World on Sunday evening and five haute couture shows on Monday — Schiaparelli, Dior, Rahul Mishra, Thom Browne and Giambattista Valli — I flew to Aspen, Colorado where I was invited to speak at the 20th annual Aspen Ideas Festival by former Vanity Fair editor Tina Brown, who curated this year’s event.

This meant I missed some important fashion moments at the Paris couture shows, including Nicolas di Felice’s beautiful guest turn at Jean Paul Gaultier and Demna’s annual couture collection for Balenciaga, both of which I had to experience through Tim Blanks’ review on BoF, just like the old days when I would carefully read every word of what Tim wrote during his time at Style.com.

They say everything in life is about making trade-offs. So was this one worth it?

Going from Paris to Aspen felt a little like whiplash, and not just because of the 14 hour flight (via Dallas) and the eight hour time difference. The first thing I saw when I arrived at the tiny Aspen airport teeming with private jets was a warning about bears! But once I settled into my hotel and began attending talks scattered across the campus nestled in the Colorado Rockies, I got into the rhythm pretty quickly.

It was 75 years ago this week that Walter Paepcke, founder of The Aspen Institute, first convened leaders here to mark the 200th birthday of noted German polymath and writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. This gathering eventually gave life to the first Aspen Ideas Festival in 2005, drawing expert speakers and leaders from a wide range of disciplines and backgrounds to engage in deep discussions about the forces shaping the world around us.

For the thought leaders and business moguls gathering in Aspen, anxiety is rising about the outcome of the US election in November, and the impact that the potential return of Donald Trump to the White House would have in exacerbating the challenges we face from the most serious technological, geopolitical and ecological issues of our times.

A wide-ranging and expertly curated opening session examined the latest thinking from OpenAI founder Sam Altman, the global leader in the race for developing artificial intelligence, and his friend Brian Chesky, co-founder of Airbnb; the complex “American Vortex” characterised by bitter partisan divides, a broken immigration system, vast income inequality and lack of faith (and participation) in the democratic process; and the worsening climate crisis with 86 year-old actress-cum-climate activist Jane Fonda, who in a rousing conversation with Katie Couric implored attendees not to vote for Donald Trump who could take the US out of the Paris Climate Accord again.

As the festival progressed, it also became clearer to me how deeply intertwined all of these topics are. As the world is once again experiencing the hottest year on record, climate-driven migration is dividing societies in North America and Europe who fear they cannot accommodate all of these asylum seekers, leading to the rise of far-right political movements which prey on the fears of populations still contending with higher cost of living brought on by high inflation and high interest rates following the pandemic. In the United States, this is most acutely felt by people in marginalised Black and Native communities who often don’t participate in the democratic process because the system as it stands has never worked in their favour.

Meanwhile, the artificial intelligence revolution is being led by the same already dominant tech companies in Silicon Valley which are competing to develop AI. Unchecked by global regulation, AI leaders say we need to ensure that the technology doesn’t break democracy and divide societies in the same way social media did in 2016, enabling Donald Trump to be elected in the first place.

In a session called ‘The Iconoclast’ on Thursday afternoon, Peter Thiel, former CEO of Paypal and founder of data analytics company Palantir Technologies, said he would be voting for Donald Trump and thinks Trump will handily win again this year.

“I don’t think it’s going to even be close,” he said, even before President Joe Biden’s halting performance in a debate with Trump later that evening. “It’s these two different hate factories that we have targeted at each other. That’s the way politics works. My judgment is that Trump will easily win that.”

On Friday, in a conversation with Tina Brown, Endeavour CEO Ari Emmanuel said that legal issues at the State level may prevent from Joe Biden from dropping out of the race as many Democrats are now hoping he will to save the country from a second Trump term.

“We’re in a pickle,” he said. “The lifeblood to a campaign in politics is money. Maybe the only way this gets [sorted out], with smart lawyers looking at it, is if the money starts drying up. If this is, as Biden says, the fight for our democracy, man he gave us a bunch of malarky. And I’m really pissed. We all should be really pissed. I cannot believe we are in this situation. We’re in fuck city.”

Reflecting on all of this made most of the dinner table conversations in Paris this week seem rather inconsequential. While everyone in Paris was chattering about Vogue World (“Why is Conde Nast even staging this event?” and “How much did people pay to attend?”) and succession planning at Chanel (“Would they really hire Hedi Slimane?” and “It’s the only job Sarah Burton wants.”), the world is quite literally years away from a point-of-no-return climate catastrophe, extreme political divides in Western democracies are threatening to elect a far-right government in France, and there is no clear path to manage an unprecedented new technology that will fundamentally change how we live and work as a global society.

That being said, though the festival seems to have made great efforts to make the event more inclusive, global and diverse, it can sometimes feel like a very privileged group of American people mostly talking amongst themselves. It was hard not to notice that most of the attendees were older, wealthy and privileged. (Aspen has one of the highest concentrations of billionaires in the United States, underscored by some sponsors shilling retirement services and new healthcare solutions.) An important talk I attended on LGBTQIA+ issues examining transgender rights was sparsely attended and there was little discussion about the ongoing wars and resulting humanitarian crises in Gaza and Sudan.

So, in the end, the crowd gathering in Aspen is in a bubble too. We are all in our own bubbles. That’s why I try to break out of mine whenever I can. It’s the best way to learn and form a more well-rounded view of the complex, multi-faceted, fascinating world we live in, all of which has a direct impact on the global fashion industry, too.

This Weekend on the BoF Podcast

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From her miraculous birth as the daughter of a Holocaust survivor to becoming a fashion powerhouse with her signature wrap dress, Diane von Furstenberg’s remarkable journey is one of resilience, innovation, and empowerment. She has broken glass ceilings and inspires women worldwide.

In a new documentary about her life called “Diane von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge,” Academy Award-winning filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy combines archival footage and intimate interviews with some of Diane’s closest friends and family to paint a vivid picture of a woman who has always been true to herself.

For this week’s episode of The BoF Podcast, Diane and Sharmeen spoke to me at the London premiere to share their experience of making the documentary and the new learnings this process surfaced about leading a life well lived.

Wishing you all a great weekend!

Imran Amed, Founder, CEO and Editor-in-Chief, The Business of Fashion

Plus, join me and the BoF Professional community in Manila on Tuesday, July 9 for a special event with Vogue Philippines. Secure your ticket now.

Here are my other top picks from our analysis on fashion, luxury and beauty:

1. Is Gap’s Turnaround Finally Working? Signs of recovery at the American retailer have convinced some analysts that its stock may be undervalued. Others say it’s too soon to tell, but even the sceptics note improvements on product, merchandising and markdowns.

2. Dries Van Noten: So Long, Farewell. But after 38 years, 150 collections and 129 shows, is it possible that the best is still to come for Belgium’s finest? In an in-depth profile, Tim Blanks explores the departing designer’s past, present and future.

3. In Paris, a Season of Big and Small. A sense of monumental scale dominated the Paris men’s shows, but bigger wasn’t always better, writes Angelo Flaccavento.

4. Why Influencers Want You in Their Group Chats. Instagram’s broadcast channel feature is becoming a favourite for online creators and brand founders as a place to seek feedback and share a more unvarnished look at their lives. It’s also proving to be a powerful marketing tool.

5. How the WNBA Tunnel Walk Became a Fashion Marketing Gold Mine. Superstar rookies-turned-pre-game models like Angel Reese and Cameron Brink have transformed the league’s tunnel walk into the hottest runway in town, with brands like Balmain, Prada and Versace clamouring to cash in on its newfound fashion appeal.

To receive this email in your inbox each Saturday, sign up to The Daily Digest newsletter for agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice that you won’t find anywhere else.

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Background:

Deena Aljuhani Abdulaziz was drawn to fashion from a young age, devouring issues of Vogue and Tatler. This led her to set up D’NA, a members-only boutique based in Saudi Arabia and Qatar. 10 years later when she closed her boutique, she became the founding editor-in-chief of Vogue Arabia – but soon parted ways with the publication due to a misalignment in values.

Now, Aljuhani Abdulaziz is back with her own media publication, on her own terms. ‘Deenathe1st.com’ is an editorial lifestyle website dedicated to fostering a creative community that celebrates Arab culture.

“What I hold dear is what anybody would hold dear. Representing my culture correctly and fairly,” she says. “And it’s not trying to show off Western ideas to the region. It’s the other way around. It’s showcasing the region and what we share creatively with the rest of the world.”

This week on The BoF Podcast, Aljuhani Abdulaziz joins BoF founder and editor-in-chief Imran Amed to share her career journey, the lessons she’s learned about fostering culture and community, and why the fashion community needs a new publication.

Key Insights:

• Born in California but raised between the US and Saudi Arabia, Aljuhani Abdulaziz is an expert code switcher who’s always felt able to act like a cultural bridge between the two worlds. “It never felt like an effort. It just came naturally. I think that’s part of what makes me who I am in a sense,” she shares. “It’s not just in figures of speech, but also in how you would interact with people, because there are different customs and traditions in different regions and in different households. It’s really about a state of mind.”
• Aljuhani Abdulaziz’s first fashion influence was her mother, who she describes as “still very, very chic.” As a child, her discovery of Tatler magazine pushed this passion even further. “I picked it up and I opened up its pages and I was like, ‘Oh my goodness, this is it!’ I was just so grateful and happy that it existed.”
• Aljuhani Abdulaziz’s stint at Vogue Arabia ended abruptly after just two months. “I understood the responsibility of being a voice for a very big region, being Arab myself,” she said.  “I think there was a point when that didn’t align and the visions were not parallel.”
• Looking to the future, Aljuhani Abdulaziz says she is building her editorial lifestyle platform ‘Deenathe1st.com’ on the basis of community, shared values, and kindness. “I think that it’s super important to remind people that you don’t have to be nasty to be stylish or to be in fashion or to be chic,” she said. “I would love to continue my love letter to Arabia. That’s really what I’m trying to do with this site.”

Additional resources:

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Background:

As a self-styled “image architect,” Law Roach has earned global recognition for the red carpet looks he has created for some of the most famous — and most photographed — women in the world.

But in 2022, when he suddenly announced his retirement on Instagram, writing “If this business was just about the clothes I would do it for the rest of my life but unfortunately it’s not! The politics, the lies and false narratives finally got me! You win… I’m out.”

While Roach continues to work with top clients Celine Dion and Zendaya — he was the mastermind behind Zendaya’s tennis-inspired “Challengers” press tour earlier this year — he’s also pursuing his entrepreneurial ambitions. Later this year, he will launch a new online learning platform to train the next generation of stylists.

“It was hours and hours of me talking with a script writer and being recorded to get out all my processes, from the way I set up a room to style and the psychology of choosing the right dress. So it’s super comprehensive and I’m super proud of it. And we’re launching it with me as the very first instructor.”

This week, on the BoF Podcast, Roach joins me to trace his career right from the beginning when he was selling thrifted clothes from the trunk of his friend’s car in the South Side of Chicago and to exclusively share the details of his new online learning platform and what he hopes people will learn from it.

Key Insights:

• Roach’s first memories of fashion are from his childhood in Chicago. “My first runway show was church on Sunday morning, watching those women with the hats and the outfits, but high fashion had always been something that was very aspirational but also seen very unattainable at the same time.” He then began his career selling vintage pieces from the trunk of a friend’s car before moving to a brick-and-mortar storefront. “That turned into a revenue stream for me and which then turned into a boutique, which turned into Kanye West coming in one day,” he said. That celebrity attention led to “global recognition about this little store in Chicago.”
• Roach has worked with his most high-profile client, Zendaya, since she was a teenager. Back then, he had trouble finding brands that were willing to dress her, which forced him to get creative. “She became one of the best dressed, most looked at stars on the red carpets and had not even worn any of these brands. So at that point I was like, ‘I kind of don’t need you.’ We had just worked so hard to make her this thing that everybody wanted without using the traditional tools of getting there,” he shared.
• With his new online learning platform, Roach wants to encourage greater representation and open up opportunities in the industry. “Ours is a comprehensive collegiate level, educational, educational coursework. Everything that I’ve used to become who I am is in there.”
• Despite the various challenges in his career, Roach’s unwavering self-belief has carried him to where he is today. “No matter how many doors are closed, no matter how many times people ask me to get out of my seat at a fashion show, no matter how many times people say no, I came to L.A. to be considered the best or one of the best, and there was no way that anybody could deter me from that. I really, honestly believed in myself.”

Additional Resources:

• The Business of Being Law Roach: The celebrity stylist has built a business that goes well beyond the red carpet, from magazine covers to judging reality television competitions and getting billionaires seated at couture shows. He spoke with BoF about his approach to building a multi-hyphenate empire.
• Black Stylists Form Collective for Support and Advocacy: Co-founded by Law Roach, Jason Rembert, and Lacy Redway, The Black Fashion & Beauty Collective will serve as a kind of “black glam union” for behind-the-scenes creatives.
• What Makes a Red Carpet Moment in 2024: The race to dress fashion’s biggest stars has gotten tighter — and brands are deploying fresh, social media-friendly tactics to generate buzz.