LVMH closes deal with a controversial luxury rival

Off-White is an Italian luxury streetwear brand founded by the late American dressmaker Virgil Abloh.

Abloh became a household name contained in the trend industry brought on by his time as creative director of LVMH's Italian luxury brand, Louis Vuitton, and later for developing his own brand, Off-White.

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With the birth of his innovative fashion brand, Abloh successfully introduced streetwear into the posh fashion world unlike the opposite, earning the dressmaker a spot among the end designers contained in the trend world.

His challenging-working nature, undeniable style, and unique fashion sense granted him the honor and recognition he still holds as of late.

Virgil Abloh: a tragic death that came too soon

As Abloh became quickly rising to the height of his career, he unfortunately passed away on Nov. 28, 2021, at the young age of forty one, after a two-year battle against a cancer also is also known as cardiac angiosarcoma.

Though Abloh passed away best nine years after the inception of his clothing brand, the posh fashion world became no longer willing to let his young legacy die, either.

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To continue his legacy, Off-White appointed a new creative director, nevertheless the selection proved to be uninspiring.

In 2022, the former editor-in-chief of Dazed Magazine, Ib Kamara, stepped as much as the creative role of art and image director for Off-White, but his new vision failed to connect with the beloved brand's target market.

Regardless of how challenging the posh world tried to continue managing Abloh's legacy, the logo has no longer had the same impact without his creative leadership.

The tumultuous brand has moved around

Off-White became at the origin owned by the Milan-based New Guards Group, which also had an exclusive licensing deal, since 2014.

On the opposite hand, that ended after the London-based e-commerce company Farfetch acquired the streetwear brand in 2019.

In December that year, Farfetch became bought by the South Korean e-commerce company Coupang.

LVMH has a long history with Abloh, as the corporate gave him the opportunity to point off his talent, so in 2021, the same year of his death, the trend house brought a majority of the logo by increasing its stake to 60%, with Farfetch still holding the remainder Forty%.

LVMH offloads Off-White by closing a contend with its rival

Inching closer to the third anniversary of his death, LVMH made the harsh decision to slim down make a variety areas of its business after earnings didn't prove as expected.

On Monday, LVMH (LVMHF) announced it'd sell its Off-White stake to the logo management company Bluestar Alliance.

Bluestar Alliance's portfolio includes renowned brands such as Bebe, Tahari, Hurley, Scotch & Soda, and Justice.

The new acquisition would allow Abloh's legacy to continue to reside on through Off-White.

On the opposite hand, this new partnership does have some issues since Off-White is no longer contained in the same realm as any of the opposite brands the corporate already owns.

Bluestar Alliance's brands are no longer contained in the posh market; they're lower-priced and has to be found at most local shopping shops, department shops, and even some discount retailers.

Every other touching on detail is that Bluestar Alliance is known for getting shaky brands and licensing them to be sold at a cheaper price.

This prompts the question of whether Off-White will remain contained in the posh market or be downgraded to a discounted label.

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On top of the already touching on factors surrounding Bluestar Alliance, the corporate also has a troubled past.

In 2016, Bluestar Alliance became sued by dressmaker Nanette Lepore for a supposed breach of their contract.

The corporate allegedly fired Lepore from her role as creative director of her namesake brand and licensed the logo to develop defective, low-quality products that were then sold for a discounted price.

Though both parties resolved the feud privately, Lepore now no longer owns her brand and shut down her personal design line in March 2020. Currently, Bluestar Alliance still licenses Nanette Lepore.

Small print of the deal between LVMH and Bluestar Alliance have yet to be publically disclosed, nevertheless the New Guards Group still holds a licensing agreement with Off-White until 2026.

Bluestar Alliance failed to straight away return TheStreet's request for comment.

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