lancel

PARIS — French leather goods brand Lancel hosted a cocktail at its historic store across from the Paris Opera on Thursday to celebrate the announcement of its new brand ambassador, Lili Reinhart.
The “Riverdale” star, dressed in a black vintage Valentino skirt suit with gold buttons, toured the stations where craftspeople demonstrated how they stitch and finish the bags, filming some of the action on her phone. She gamely ran through a gamut of poses with her white Ninon handbag, which also features in one of the campaign images shot by Peter Ash Lee.

“I can’t work with a company or a brand unless I actually would wear or use their product in real life,” the U.S. actress told WWD. Reinhart, who flew in from Vancouver and was heading back to Los Angeles, said she favors dinky styles. “I’m a minimalist. These days I definitely carry around a smaller bag on the day to day, but I like a big bag for the airport.”

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Founded in 1876, Lancel is a household name in France but is less well-known in the U.S., where it doesn’t have a presence. The brand’s most high-profile campaign to date was in 2008 and featured Isabelle Adjani, who also designed a bag for the house.

Lili Reinhart with the Idylle bag in Lancel’s spring campaign.

Peter Ash Lee/Courtesy of Lancel

“Being, obviously, in the industry, I’m exposed to a lot of designers that I otherwise wouldn’t have been, so I had heard of the brand, but I didn’t know how well-known it was in France,” Reinhart noted. “I appreciate the history of it, so that’s kind of what inspired me, and that it’s French and it’s not, maybe, a partnership that people would expect me to do.”

Acquired in 2018 by Italian accessories and luggage company Piquadro SpA, Lancel has stores in countries including China, Vietnam, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, Croatia and Greece, said the brand’s recently appointed managing director Francesco Pesci.

“I believe it’s the first time that Lancel has an international brand ambassador,” he said. “This decision is part of the strategy to rejuvenate the brand and also to develop the brand internationally.”

Most of Lancel’s customers, particularly in its domestic market, are aged between 35 and 45, but a growing number are in the 25 to 35 age bracket, he noted. That generation is increasingly sensitive to social values, making Reinhart — who has been vocal about issues including mental health and body image — a particularly good fit, according to Pesci.

The star, who plays Betty Cooper on “Riverdale,” was fresh off the premiere of the final season of the CW teen drama, which is streamed worldwide on Netflix. The brand had decked out the store with fragrant lilies in her honor, though Reinhart revealed she wasn’t named after the flower, but after the actress Lili Taylor.

The event went off without a hitch, despite coinciding with another round of nationwide protests against the French government’s pension reform. Perhaps it was down to the lucky charm in Reinhart’s handbag. “I keep usually a crystal with me, some sort of crystal for good energy,” she said with a smile.

Lili Reinhart with the Rodeo bag in Lancel’s spring campaign.

Peter Ash Lee/Courtesy of Lancel

PARIS — French leather goods brand Lancel hosted a dinner at its historic store across from the Paris Opera on Thursday to celebrate its collaboration with influencer-turned-designer Jeanne Damas on a version of its signature bucket bag, signaling a new era of growth for the brand after several challenging years.Tables were decked out in colorful mismatched glasses and crockery for the dinner by French chef Pierre Touitou, accompanied by a live piano performance. Italian entrepreneur Marco Palmieri said it was the first collaboration since his accessories and luggage company Piquadro SpA acquired Lancel in 2018.
Having successfully weathered the antigovernment gilets jaunes protests and the coronavirus pandemic, Lancel is expected to return to profit in the 2021-22 financial year, which ends on March 31, Palmieri reported.

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Sales between April and December totaled 45.8 million euros, up 32.6 percent versus the same period a year earlier, with all channels improving. Wholesale was up 46.3 percent, retail 29.7 percent and e-commerce 29.1 percent, Lancel said in its most recent financial statement in January.
When Piquadro bought the company from Compagnie Financière Richemont, it had an annual turnover of around 53 million euros, with negative earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of approximately 23 million euros.
“The turnover this year is higher that the pre-COVID[-19] situation,” Palmieri told WWD, noting that the brand opened 10 stores in Asia during 2020 and 2021, in addition to locations in Germany, France and Russia. “Now we’ve found a new stability and we hope to start to grow fast again.”
In 2022, Lancel plans to open another five stores in China, one in Malaysia and one in Vietnam, Palmieri said. It was also due to open an additional two stores in Russia, though that project is temporarily suspended as the European Union has banned the export of luxury goods to Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine.
As part of its turnaround plan, Piquadro appointed Barbara Fusillo as head of design in 2017 and moved manufacturing to Italy. The brand maintains an important foothold in Paris, having recently inaugurated its new headquarters in an Art Deco building in the 8th arrondissement, where its design studio is based.

The Chéri bag design by Jeanne Damas for Lancel.
Courtesy of Lancel

The Opera flagship, open since 1929, is a landmark for many locals, including Damas herself. “This square is so incredible. When you look at this view, you feel really privileged,” she said, pointing at the light-flooded façade of the opera house.
“What I love is that we all have a memory associated with this brand,” Damas continued. “It’s luxury, but it feels accessible because it seems like everyone’s grandmother, at least if you’re Parisian or French, had a Lancel handbag. That was definitely the case for me, so I really feel like it’s part of the fashion landscape in France.”
The founder of the Rouje label is a big fan of straw baskets, so she wanted to translate that spirit into her version of the Chéri bag.
“I use them winter and summer, so the challenge was how to make a leather handbag that looks like a basket. We ended up using a woven leather technique that gives it a real luxury feel,” she explained. “They had never worked with woven leather before so it’s cool, because it’s a real collaboration. We didn’t just change the color of the bag.”

Available in two colorways, Snow and Carmine, the bag retails for $1,850. Palmieri and Damas celebrated their partnership on the dance floor by dancing wildly to a selection of French pop hits.
SEE ALSO:
As Her Rouje Label Turns Five, Even Jeanne Damas Is Over French Girl Style
In a Flurry of Deals, Richemont Completes Sale of Lancel to Piquadro
Lancel Celebrates Its 140th Birthday With a Paris Bash