The biggest surprise of Milan Fashion Week was revealed last Sunday. Fendi and Versace had swapped to present two distinct visions, Versace by Fendi – Fendi by Versace, colloquially dubbed Fendace.
The show was everything you would expect from such a significant cross-over. The looks were filled with Versace and Fendi logos. Jones presented a much more streetwear version of Versace whilst Donatella brought sexiness to Fendi. Rumours had been circulating that this partnership was happening since Donatella released a signed white and gold letter on Instagram inviting people to tune into “an intimate creative experience”. Many guessed that it would be a Fendi and Versace collaboration after Kim Kardashian posted a photo of her with Jones and Donatella captioned “LEGENDS!!!”.
Versace and Fendi released a joint statement saying that “The coming together of two iconic fashion brands in this wat presents a unique moment in fashion and a first for the industry. Both a celebration of Italian fashion and a disruption of the established order of things, the swapping of roles stands for freedom, fun and friendship.” This sentiment was echoed by Donatella and Jones on their personal Instagram accounts, emphasizing their love for each other and the exciting and creative energy that went into this project.
Furthermore, the partnership did not just celebrate Italian fashion through the friendship of Donatella and Jones but also lauded the friendship of Karl Lagerfeld, Jones predecessor, and Gianni Versace, and the models who helped make it with the model lineup, including many past and present modelling icons. Most notably was the inclusion of supermodel Naomi Campbell, who was the only past model there who had modelled for both Karl Lagerfeld and Gianni Versace. Other high-profile models included Kate Moss, Amber Valletta, Karen Elson, Kristen McMenamy, Gigi Hadid, Adut Akech, Evan Mock, Emily Ratajkowski, Lila Moss Hack and Paloma Elsesser. It wasn’t just the runway that was filled with stars. The front rows of the show were packed with celebrities such as Dua Lipa, Demi Moore, Chiara Ferragni and Fedez, Jon Kortajarena, Iris Law, Niall Horan, Winnie Harlow, Ester Exposito and Elizabeth Hurley.
This isn’t the first time that luxury brands have joined together. Prada and Raf Simons announced their surprise partnership back in February 2020, and Gucci and Balenciaga partnered earlier this year in April. Fendace is a unique exploration of friendship and its impact on fashion. Whilst, it was enjoyable as a surprise one-off, many in the fashion industry hope it doesn’t happen too frequently because it will lose its lustre. Furthermore, the fewer partnerships like this happen, the rarer and more luxurious the looks from the collections will be. If that happens then, Fendace will be a once-in-a-lifetime partnership, and the looks from the collection will become timeless classics.