Split Decisions
This has been a big year for fashion - not only because of the bold sartorial statements being made (insert Nike swoosh here) - but also due to the big-label fashion houses that are seeing their co-founders split up. The brands promise the continuity of excellent service and unparalleled style and I have nothing but high hopes that they’ll hold up their end of the bargain.
Most recently, both Malone Souliers and Cushnie et Ochs watched this change take effect. Mary Alice Malone (the design side of Malone Souliers) took her leave, bequeathing the company to her business partner, Roy Luwolt, who will now have sole custody of the luxury shoe brand and its future. In addition, Michelle Ochs made the decision to depart from her eponymous brand, Cushnie et Ochs, allowing for her design partner, Carly Cushnie to forge ahead on her own.
So far, we’ve seen nothing but success come from these splits, with Luwolt organizing a collaboration between Malone Souliers and Emanuel Ungaro (which, as of 2017, he is the newly minted CEO) and Cushnie heading her first solo NYFW show, channeling her Carribean heritage for design inspiration. Cushnie is also looking to expand the brand by adding handbags and a denim collab with Lee to the docket. Considering how recent the break from Ochs is, it’s truly amazing that Cushnie has been able to not only maintain the brand, but propel it forward.
Luwolt is facing his own hurdles with the Emanuel Ungaro rebrand. The fashion house has seen some dark days with a few less-than-qualified creative directors (*cough cough* Lindsay Lohan) leading the brand to near ruin. Thankfully, his marketing and business acumen steered him to the Malone Souliers x Emanuel Ungaro collab, which will work to elevate the Ungaro name once again while broadening the scope of Malone Souliers’ reach in the fashion world.
Only time will tell how these divides affect the brands. I, for one, am rooting for both to take off into further success. Perhaps the prospect of Luwolt and Cushnie’s solo endeavors will excite both brands and add a new flavor to the mix that we never saw when they were both ruled with two hands.