Clare Waight Keller has replaced Chloé s Hannah MacGibbon, whose contract wasn t renewed earlier this year. MacGibbon had more successes at the label than her predecessor, Paulo Melim Andersson, did, but she never quite managed to recapture the magic of Chloé s Phoebe Philo years. So, what are the new girl s chances?
Waight Keller s credentials include a fairly long stint at Pringle of Scotland, where she did a good job of getting to the soul of the cashmere company. Her stint at Gucci under Tom Ford doing knits couldn t have hurt. The challenge at Chloé, which will celebrate its 60th anniversary next year, will be which roots to return to—the Karl Lagerfeld years? Philo s heyday? The latter isn t as strange a proposition as it sounds. Now that the nineties have been plundered, the aughties are inevitably next. Some saw shades of Phoebe in a navy silk and cream chiffon tuxedo shirt. But it was Karl s name Waight Keller checked; the hyperreal flower embroideries on crisp shirts and flowy shorts date to his era.
Aside from those florals, though, it didn t feel like a radical departure from MacGibbon s recent work. "Fluidity and femininity, but boyish" were Waight Keller s buzzwords backstage; she made them reality with lots of pleats, tented A-line shapes, foundation colors, and full trousers. The highlights were the belted, below-the-knee pleated dresses with marquetry patterns. Overall, the collection was pretty, but perhaps a bit safe. Right now, Waight Keller has the fashion world s goodwill. We ll be watching next season, rooting for her to loosen things up.
