JACQUEMUS

BRAND AND FASHION DESIGNER ,   J

Jacquemus: Fashion house founded by Simon Porte Jacquemus in 2010

Simon Porte Jacquemus: the enfant prodige of French fashion

The enfant prodige of French fashion. Simon Porte was born in 1990 in the south of France among the lavender fields, precisely in Bramejean, a small town between Marseilles and Avignon.

Simon Porte

Supported by his parents’ sacrifices, he started studying at the prestigious Esmod fashion academy and he moved to Paris. But his studies didn’t last for long; after his mother’s premature death he decided to abandon his studies and he founded his brand in 2010. He dedicated the project to her, calling it with her maiden name: Jacquemus. Since then Simon has been designing clothes for the girl who was his mother, a constant fulcrum and inspiration for her creativity.

The turning point came when his third collection was noticed by Rei Kawakubo and Adrian Joffe. An encounter that changed his life. Adrian offered him a job as a salesman at Comme des Garçons and he was the first to order his collection to sell it at the Dover Street Market in London, with great success.

In 2015 he won the LVMH, destined to young fashion talents. With the collection “Les Santos de Provence” he won over the whole world.

The arrival of menswear

In 2018 he announced the menswear line for Jacquemus. At the end of “Le Souk” fashion show, he appeared on the catwalk with a sweatshirt with the writing “l’homme Jacquemus”. The wait rose and for the SS19 collection he presented the first menswear collection “Le Gadjo” celebrating Marseilles, the sun and the sea.

“My man and my woman are not a couple. She is sophisticated and sensual, he is much younger and naive, but in a positive sense. He wears colourful, simple and informal clothes.”

Jacquemus SS19

The Jacquemus style: romantic minimalism

His style is the exact opposite of the current fashion trends. Forgetting the world of the underground and subcultures, oversized garments, and overlays. Simon frees the woman’s body, giving back grace and femininity. Clean dry lines, slits, covered shoulders, and accessories enrich her looks. Raw fabrics with warm tones. Minimalism celebrates women but also the 90s. The decade in which Simon was born and inspired, by the icons of those years. Mainly, Laetitia Casta. Bringing her back to the catwalks in January 2019. Since then, the French model has been back in vogue, both in cinema and fashion. She was chosen for the advertising campaigns of Saint Laurent and Valentino. Laetitia Casta was the protagonist of the campaign for the fall/winter 2021 collection, L’année ’97, shot by Valentin Herfray. She was surrounded by objects with a pop allure: a walkman, an old Nokia 3310, a magazine featuring Rachel from Friends.

Laetitia Casta for Jacquemus

The iconic fashion shows

“I don’t just make clothes, I write stories and then the clothes arrive”

His goal is to tell a story, and he does so through his clothes and fashion shows, which have become iconic. The story in lavender fields for the spring/summer 2020 collection, in wheat fields for the “L’Amour” collection for the SS21, that Simon dedicated to his collaborators. The bucolic and dreamy atmosphere is his trademark. Minimalist elegance, crossed by a continuous nostalgia for life in the province. All with a touch of French charme.

The communication of Jacquemus

Its communication is engaging, modern. Social media are its medium. During the Vogue fashion Night out of 2010 of the Paris Fashion Week, he made his friends wear his creations inviting them to enter the most famous boutiques. The event in front of the Dior fashion show, with the models dressed as workers. The announcement of the men’s collection through a sweatshirt he wore at the February 2018 fashion show, # NewJob L’Homme Jacquemus. He knows how to capture the attention. His Instagram page collects spontaneous shots: citrus fruits, nature, colours, a lookbook of images from which he took inspiration. How can we forget the campaign for the spring summer 2021 collection. The shots were taken by Simon himself, the protagonist was his beloved grandmother Liline. He wore the coolest pieces of the collection, in a mix of authenticity, realism and sentiment.

Simon’s grandmother

At the end of March 2021 Jacquemus launched a collaboration with Les fleurs de Paul (a company that grows seasonal flowers) by opening a floral delivery pop-up store. A project that was created to bring a little carefreeness and good mood to Parisian homes, all in accordance with sustainability. The very colourful buttercup bunches are wrapped with scraps of fabric from the Jacquemus collections.

 

Jacquemus posted gross revenues of 212 million euros in 2022 versus 102 million euros in 2021, he reported.

Current situation

A representative for the company confirmed that Bastien Daguzan is resigning from his position as chief executive of Jacquemus with immediate effect.
In a statement, Daguzan stated:

“I would like to thank Simon for his trust and the incredible journey we have been on together with the team. He has always been an immense source of inspiration; I am so proud to have been a part of this adventure”

Although he had a long history with the brand—he had regularly attended its runway shows and consulted with Jacquemus while he was the general manager of Paco Rabanne—Daguzan only became an official CEO of the brand in May 2022. After brand founder Simon Porte Jacquemus, who had previously served as both the company’s creative director and CEO, he became the first CEO.

“Bastien has been the company’s and its leadership’s main motivator. We hope he succeeds in his new venture”  Jacquemus announced. 

Also read:

Dolce & Gabbana

Valentino

Dover Street Market