Known internationally as one of the world’s finest luxury brands, Louis Vuitton holds a rich and interesting history including a humble rise to fame that began in the 1800s. While the LV you’re familiar with might be a powerhouse within the world of street style, it wasn’t always this way. In fact, Louis Vuitton became an established luggage manufacturer well before its foray into fashion began.
Join us here at Crepslocker as we retrace the famous designers' first steps into the industry and take a deep dive into how Louis Vuitton grew into the brand it is today, along with some interesting and lesser-known facts from along the way. Whether you’re a seasoned luxury fashion veteran or new to the game, you’re bound to find this interesting and also learn a thing or two about the legendary label, so without further ado, let’s jump right in.
The Early Years
To understand the early years of LV, we need to rewind all the way back to 1837. A young aspiring designer named Louis Vuitton was heading to Paris on foot, from his hometown of Jura in eastern France. Vuitton was making this epic journey to start work as an apprentice for Monsieur Maréchal, an established luggage maker.
Louis Vuitton quickly became a skilled craftsman under Maréchal’s guidance, rising up the ranks to become one of the most respected names at the atelier. He stayed under the helm of Maréchal for 17 years, often crafting one-of-a-kind luggage pieces for high profile clients. Eventually, Louis Vuitton opened his very-own workshop in 1854. Starting out business exclusively making luggage, LV trunks, holdalls and bags quickly became popular amongst Parisians, especially with the rise in rail and automotive travel around this time.
By 1886, Louis’ son George Vuitton had become fully-involved in the now family business, launching the popular travel lock in LV products for the first time. Still used today, this lock proved incredibly popular with travellers and made for many more bags sold.
Celebrity Clientele
In 1892, the founder of the label Louis Vuitton passed away. He had successfully created his very-own luggage empire, with his son George taking the helm of the brand that same year. Four years later in 1896, the LV monogram appeared for the first time. This signature pattern was created by George and is still used widely across Louis Vuitton products today.
Over the next 30 years, the label grew to unprecedented heights, with famous designer Coco Chanel commissioning Louis Vuitton to make her a custom bag in 1925. This bag was eventually mass produced in the 1930s, becoming what is known today as the Alma bag. Eventually, LV became the go-to for celebrity clientele, with worldwide superstar actress Audrey Hepburn often pictured carrying the Speedy travel bag. In fact, Hepburn liked the bag so much that she requested it be made in a smaller size, therefore the Speedy 25 was born.
LVMH
George Vuitton continued to lead the brand from strength to strength until his passing in 1936, when his son Gaston-Louis Vuitton took the reins, continuing the family business. By 1977, Henry Racamier (Gaston’s son-in-law) had taken over the house, and he had big plans. Intending to conquer the globe, Racamier signed a deal that combined Louis Vuitton with Moët & Chandon and Hennessy in 1987, creating the LVMH group.
The LVMH group still exists today and is now a huge conglomerate, owning brands such as Dior, Tiffany & Co., Givenchy and Dom Perignon, to name but a few. This newfound business venture helped elevate Louis Vuitton to previously unreached heights, continuing the label’s onslaught of commercial success.
Marc Jacobs and the Late ‘90s
While the birth of LVMH acted as a rebirth for Louis Vuitton, the high-fashion powerhouse that we know today didn’t start life until relatively recently. In 1997, a young Marc Jacobs was appointed as creative director at LV. The American designer ended up remaining in his role for over 16 years, totally transforming the somewhat-dated brand into a modern-day cult classic. He created the label’s first-ever ready-to-wear line, injecting a fresh attitude into LV that made it street ready and a must-have for celebrities and fashion icons alike.
Supermodels such as Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell walked for the fashion house, helping establish Louis Vuitton as the hottest brand on the planet. Jacobs worked at LV until 2013, leaving behind an impressive record that’s fairly unrivalled in terms of fashion careers.
Collaborations & More
It’s hard to think of any modern-day luxury fashion house without considering collaborations, with Louis Vuitton being absolutely no exception. While collaborating within the space is now a common occurrence, just a few years back this wasn’t so much the case. Back in 2017, LV shocked the world when it announced a full collaborative capsule with Supreme, one of streetwear’s biggest brands. This was the first time ever a fully-fledged luxury house had acknowledged the growing world of streetwear, and we have Kim Jones to thank, as the well-established designer was heading up LV’s menswear department at the time. Launching an entire range of apparel, accessories and even a skateboard deck, the joint effort had its very own runway show at Paris Fashion Week and remains one of the most important collaborations ever.
Louis Vuitton’s relationship with streetwear continued into 2018, when the late Virgil Abloh was announced as the brand’s new menswear creative director. Having already grown his own brand into a world-renowned global fashion force, it was time for Abloh to elevate LV to new heights. After launching several well-received collections with stand-out pieces such as the famous aeroplane bag and neon-coloured luggage options, Virgil unfortunately passed away in 2021, leaving an unreleased runway collection and LV x Nike collaboration unreleased. In the months after, both ended up launching to widespread commercial success, proving once again just how influential Abloh was to the world of fashion.
In mid-2023 it was announced that Pharrell Williams would step into the creative director role at LV, with the designer remaining there at the time of writing. Here at Crepslocker we’re huge fans of the Parisian label and can’t wait to see what Pharrell will create there, so watch this space for more stories in the future! In the meantime, stay locked in right here for all the latest sneaker and streetwear drops and while you are with us, check out the rest of our luxury brands too.