I’ve heard that we should be expecting an announcement soon regarding the future of LVMH-owned Givenchy, whose current designer, Matthew M. Williams, has had a tough time. A lot of people are lukewarm on him: retailers, editors, and consumers, even as the product and styling (shoutout Carine Roitfeld) have improved. Williams was appealing to LVMH, in part, because of the company he kept: he was in the Kanye West/Virgil Abloh circle, and his own line, 1017 Alyx 9sm—yes, it sounds like a bomb or a paint swatch—was more than merch at a time when merch was the thing. Williams was early to tap into the trend of late 1990s, early 2000s fashion nostalgia. Once upon a time, I asked him backstage at a show why he was using seat belts as belts, and he mentioned roller coasters… that’s all I remember. 

But the Kanye association doesn’t really do much for you these days. When Ye, as he is now known, was having his meltdown in the fall of 2022, he posted his own concerns for Williams’ position at the company on Instagram (originally in his customary all-caps style): “Matt I didn’t like the way Sidney Toledano spoke to you before your show the other day and they forced you to make clothes that weren’t you….”