Leaving behind New York Fashion Week, John Elliott takes his collection on the road. The journey leads to Paris Fashion Week, where Elliott showed his latest fashions to buyers in small intimate appointments. Unveiling the spring-summer 2018 season to a global audience, Elliott enlists social media stars such as Luka Sabbat and Victoria’s Secret angel Josephine Skriver.
Related: John Elliott Looks to the Basketball Court for Fall ’17 Collection Inspiration
The pair are among a group of twelve who showcased choice looks from the new range. Not a far detour from the simple everyday essentials, associated with the brand, the lineup takes on a color palette influenced by the desert. Elliott was inspired by a recent trip, where he visited Joshua Tree, the Mojave desert, and Death Valley.
John Elliott Spring/Summer 2018 Collection
On Friday, John Elliott answered a question the men’s industry had been asking for weeks; how will the designer execute his SS18 collection debut in Paris. At 6:30 PM, Paris time, Elliott in collaboration with friends of the brand, rolled out the collection within minutes and without warning.
The collection, Field Manual, was revealed to a global audience from individual Instagrammers that included a mix of male and female artists, models, athletes and musicians. Model Luca Sabaat revealed the first look and led followers to preview the next in the series, modeled by Victoria Secret Super Model Josephine Skriver. Thus, a chain reaction unfolded taking viewers on a social media journey through Elliott’s interpretation of desert style.
“Our motivation coming to Paris was widely a business decision. We wanted to come here and present the collection to the industry in an intimate way but reinvent the way we present and involve the consumer with the debut of a new season,” said Elliott of his SS18 strategy and concept.
“We don’t only want the world to see and experience the collection in a way that is engaging and interactive, but it was also important for us to see our clothes styled on some of our friends we look to for inspiration. They exemplify the qualities of our brand – pushing yourself out of your comfort zone and breaching boundaries.”
The 24-look collection was inspired from a road trip Elliott and his girlfriend went on earlier this year. The two traveled the South West visiting Joshua tree, Death Valley, and Mojavi desert which influenced the patterns and pallet of SS18.
“That trip made me want to take the nucleus of our brand to the desert,” said Elliott of the inspiration. “The tones and colors reminded my girlfriend and I of summers growing up – we’d leave out t-shirts out in the sun for hours and when we ended up throwing them back on, they’d be a pale, washed out version of before taking them off. We both knew I had to adapt that into the collection.”
New styles featured indoor soccer shorts, washed corduroy thumper jackets and tonal tie-dyed tech-pieces. Three Japanese based brand collaborations were incorporated throughout including an ongoing partnership with leather artisans Blackmeans (leather jacket), Suicoke Slides, and transformative two in one bags, perfect for travel, by Briefings.
