Fashion and sport have always gone hand-in-hand. But usually in terms of sporting apparel with the top names in sports signing long-term (lucrative) deals with the likes of Nike, adidas and Puma.
I’m going to have to rack my brain, but I don’t think even tennis stars Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova or Anna Kournikova landed high-end fashion ambassadorial roles.
So it came as a huge surprise to see tennis newcomer Naomi Osaka becoming the latest ambassador for Louis Vuitton; adding to her affiliation with Nike and Strathberry.
She wrote on her twitter account yesterday, “Wow this is actually crazy. Honored to be @louisvuitton newest House Ambassador.
Funny story : I first bought my mom a LV bag when I was 16 as a birthday present and it’s kinda been a tradition since. Do I call this a full circle moment? Yes 🥰”
Naomi’s – who is currently the highest paid female athlete – fashion stock was already on the rise when she graced the cover of the January 2021 edition of US Vogue, now this official announcement cements her fashion credentials.
I was going to say that perhaps the reason fashion brands haven’t collaborated with tennis stars in the past, is because the we don’t get many red carpet appearances from them, but then I gave my head wobble and remembered that both Serena Williams (who wears a lot of Versace and Armani Prive), and Maria Sharapova (who was very loyal to David Koma) have both shown plenty of love for fashion.
Naomi will officially make her debut as a Louis Vuitton ambassador in the brands spring/summer 2021 fashion campaign photographed by Nicolas Ghesquière.
He said, “Naomi is an exceptional woman who represents her generation and is also a role model for everyone. Her career and convictions are inspiring. I am in awe of Naomi, she stays true to herself and doesn’t compromise on her values.”
I’m really interested to see how this relationship will develop in the future.
Will we see an LV x Nike collaboration (like Gucci and North Face), will Nicolas Ghesquière give us a tennis inspired collection?
We will have to wait and see.
Credit: Louis Vuitton, Vogue
We earn a commission when you follow the link to make a purchase.
powered by chloédigital