FASHION

Karl Lagerfeld Label Launches New Collaboration in India

Posted on December 28, 2019 | by Fusia

Karl Lagerfeld’s New Collaboration in India

Karl Lagerfeld was one of the most iconic faces of the fashion industry, known for his incredible work ethic and his ability to use his creative flair in projects outside of fashion. His trademark look of black sunglasses, a high collar, fingerless gloves, and, of course, his bright white hair, is instantly recognizable, as is the German’s work in fashion, home design, casino design, video gaming, and as a caricaturist. A man of many talents, his namesake label continues to collaborate for major fashion events around the world, most recently in India.

Karl Lagerfeld for Cover Story

In South Delhi, Karl Lagerfeld has teamed up with Cover Story to open two new concept stores, one in Select City Walk and another in DLF Promenade. It marks a collaboration between a major international brand in Karl Lagerfeld and an up-and-coming local brand, in Cover Story. The Indian brand is young, coming under the Indian retailer Future Group, but ‘Karl Lagerfeld for Cover Story’ is said to be much more than a marketing story.

As stated by Caroline Lebar, the Karl Lagerfeld label’s head of image and communications, the brand wanted to be in the country and alongside an India brand so that they could develop something true and not a publicity stunt. As such, “It is an inclusive story, exclusively for India.”

The collaboration between Cover Story and Karl Lagerfeld sees the release of a 90-sku capsule collection that will feature prominently at the DLF Promenade and Select City Walk mall stores. Cover Story also has 17 other brand stores across India, in which the collection will also appear.

It took little over a year for the brands to agree upon the collection, create the line, and then get it all in stores. The licensing director of the Karl Lagerfeld brand, Maggie Priori, saw India as an ideal location to continue Lagerfeld’s legacy. Karl Lagerfeld famously launched the first fast-fashion brand of H&M in 2004, a form of fashion that the Indian market had yet to experience.

However, as fast fashion didn’t wholly suit the market, the collaboration looked to create a collection with more customization, with Cover Story assisting in helping the Karl Lagerfeld label to understand the Indian market. The key, especially under the Lagerfeld brand, was to offer customers luxurious items of high quality but at affordable prices.

‘Karl Lagerfeld for Cover Story’ was the last project that the famous designer worked on prior to his death. Being famed for his work in the fashion industry, it was fitting that this major collaboration in the massive market of India was his final venture. However, it’s important to remember that he was a man who wore many hats – figuratively speaking, of course – with his exploits into other areas being just as impressive.

The Lagerfeld legacy extends beyond fashion

Karl Lagerfeld has left his fingerprints all over the world and across many artistic mediums, from venue design to featured caricatures. One of his most lavish and recent projects has been as the designer of the Grand Lisboa Hotel & Casino Macau. SJM, the Macau casino company behind the build, announced that it would complete the build in Lagerfeld’s image after his death, saying that it would stand “as a legacy to his creative genius.”

Moving one’s mind from fashion to a luxury casino design isn’t easy for anyone as the two are so different. While both forms of design require great amounts of creativity, the logistics of establishing both a sense of grandeur as well as including all of the necessary components of a casino gaming floor is much more difficult.

Macau is very much trying to become bigger and better than Las Vegas, but to become more appealing, the venues need to have everything that modern gamblers expect, and then some more. The rise of the internet and the great number of variants of games at the online casino have forced designers like Lagerfeld to make space for many more table games and slot machines. Online players have come to expect the option of playing everything in one place, from Lightning Dice to Ruby Roulette to Dragon Tiger, all of which can be played in the live casino gaming format. As such, players get the live table gaming experience from home, raising the standards required of top-class physical casinos.

Of course, the creative mind of Karl Lagerfeld was perfect for the Macau casino project as his unique sense of style will make gaming at the Grand Lisboa a very special experience. As you can see in the video above, Lagerfeld’s design was incredibly lavish, featuring a great deal of unique items, gorgeous décor, and it boasts a huge range of table games and variants on casino classics.

Lagerfeld’s eye for interior design has been touted before the Grand Lisboa Macau came knocking. His work on 80 homes on Dubai’s fashion island, Isla Moda, designing 72 himself and making the other eight to bespoke orders, has been praised around the world. The German creative director also conceived and designed the lobbies of the Estates at Acqualina in the United States, introducing many custom features.

Along with his creative talents being used in the design of clothing and venues, Lagerfeld has also featured in the world of video gaming. While he doesn’t feature in the game performing the usual acts that are associated with it, Lagerfeld lent his voice to Grand Theft Auto IV as a radio station host. In 2017, he also hit the headlines for his work as a caricature artist for Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Lagerfeld’s political cartoons had featured in the German daily newspaper for several years, but his depiction of German chancellor Angela Merkel caught headlines across Europe.

Karl Lagerfeld boasted many talents and became world-renowned for his creative mind. The Karl Lagerfeld for Cover Story may be the last project that he worked on, but his legacy will live on around the world in fashion and beyond.