The fashion industry is among the most iconic industries in the world. There is always an emergence of new trends and new fabrics in the clothing industry. But the key to success is always in quality, perfection, and setting trends. Today, there are many different brands when it comes to fashion items. Each of us has our own favorite clothing, bag, and shoe brand that we depend on to make us look stylish. Many of us also dream of owning expensive luxury fashion items.
Of the hundreds or thousands of fashion brands in the world, there are the most iconic and successful ones that have stood the test of time. This means that these brands have been in the industry for many years and are still very popular today. If you want to learn more about these brands, you’re in the right place. In this post, we are giving you an infographic on the major fashion brands.
Louis Vuitton
Louis Vuitton is the second oldest fashion brand in the world that is still operating today. With this, it is no surprise that it has been one of the most valuable luxury fashion brands worldwide for decades. It has been such a huge part of the high-fashion world for a long time that it’s easy to forget that Vuitton, who was born in 1821 and founded the brand in 1854, was an actual person.
The founder of the brand was born in France. However, he was not born into luxury. In fact, his family had working-class origins. Louis Vuitton’s father was a farmer, and his mother was a milliner. After his mother died and his father’s following remarriage to a woman he did not get along with, he left their home in 1835. He was just a teenager back then. He spent two years walking from the small town of Anchay to Paris, getting into odd jobs and seeking temporary shelter along the way.
Louis Vuitton was 16 years old when he arrived in Paris. There, he became an apprentice to Monsieur Marechal, a craftsman who specialized in making luggage boxes used to be carried on horse-drawn carriages, trains, and boats. In that job, he learned craftsmanship by working with Marechal for 17 years before he left to begin his own workshop for his luggage creations.
In 1858, he designed his first branded steamer trunk, which was waterproof, flat, and easy to stack. Surprisingly, his original designs did not have the popular LV monogram. Instead, they were covered with durable gray canvas called Trianon. In 1876, he introduced a striped canvas pattern for his luggage. Then, after 12 years, he came out with the Damier print, which is the classic checkerboard pattern that the brand still uses today. These patterns were made to prevent counterfeiting, which was already a thing before the Louis Vuitton monogram was even made.
Did you know that Louis Vuitton did not design handbags or clothing? He only designed elegant cases that were meant to hold and protect fashion items. Handbags did not become part of the brand until the decades after his death, and clothing items came much later. Marc Jacobs became the creative director of Louis Vuitton in 1997. That was the time when he came up with the brand’s first ready-to-wear clothing line.
Today, Louis Vuitton remains one of the most popular fashion brands in the world, and it is unlikely to change any time soon.
Gucci
Gucci is an Italian fashion brand that was founded in 1921 by Guccio Gucci. It is among the oldest Italian fashion brands that are still operating today. Similar to many historic fashion houses, Gucci also started as a luggage manufacturer, making luxury travel goods for the upper classes in Italy, as well as equestrian equipment.
Originally, the brand produced leather goods and premium knitwear, shoes, handbags, and silk goods. During World War II, material constraints owing to the war effort forced Gucci to use cotton in manufacturing their products. It was during this time that the brand introduced its popular “Double-G” monogram and the iconic Gucci stripe that has two green stripes interrupted by a red bar.
Since the 1950s, Gucci has experienced great success as a brand of choice among wealthy travelers, Hollywood stars, and other rich shoppers. It was well-known for its extravagant and lavish designs. In 1953, Guccio Gucci passed away, but the business continued under the management of his three sons, Aldo, Vasco, and Rodolfo. The Gucci brand introduced luxury accessories like watches, eyewear, and jewelry to their product line in the mid-60s. These items, later on, became a cornerstone of the brand.
Over the years, Gucci has developed as a symbol of abundance. It represents not only the luxury fashion house but also a form of slang. Its most common argot usage is to describe something that is “doing well.” This can be seen in songs by different popular singers and rappers, including Kanye West and Cardi B. At the present time, Gucci is owned by Kering, a French luxury group that is also the owner of Yves Saint Laurent, Alexander McQueen, and Balenciaga.
Prada
In 1913, Prada was founded in Milan by Mario Prada as a luxury leather goods firm. However, it made little impact on the fashion industry until after Miuccia Prada took charge of her grandfather’s company in 1978. The first big success of the brand was the launch of a black nylon backpack with a triangular silver label. Later on, her shoe and handbag designs became the center of a genuine cult of fashionable consumers in Europe, Japan, and America.
In 1989, a ready-to-wear line was added to the brand, and inaugurated the younger, less expensive Miu Miu line in 1992, which was followed by Prada Sport. In addition, Prada also engaged in a series of complex ownership moves in the late 1990s. It bought and sold stakes in Gucci, Fendi, and other companies. It also formed a partnership with Azzedine Alaia in 2000.
The clothes and accessories offered by Prada have been described as classic and eccentric, plain but fashionable. On the other hand, its style is modern, which draws on northern Italian traditions of subtle elegance and good craftsmanship. The eccentricity of the fashion items by Prada appeals to artists and intellectuals, while fashion editors are drawn to the brand’s constant experimentalism.
Versace
Versace is an Italian luxury fashion brand and trade name founded in 1978 by Gianni Versace. It creates upmarket Italian-made ready-to-wear and accessories, along with haute couture pieces under the Atelier Versace brand. It is a popular fashion brand known for its innovative designs having flashy symbolic prints and bright colors that are truly stylish.
Did you know that the Versace siblings were born into fashion? Their mother was a dressmaker with a little empire of her own in Reggio Calabria, Italy. Gianni worked as an apprentice for his mother, where he learned the art of dressmaking and design. He later on, moved to Milan to create the Versace brand along with his brother and sister, Santo and Donatella.
The iconic logo of Versace is the head of Medusa, but only a few people know about its meaning. Medusa was the Greek mythological figure popular for having hair made of snakes and eyes that could turn men into stone. Gianni Versace wanted to use her as a symbol due to the devastating beauty that made everyone fall in love with her. He hoped that his clothing would produce the same effect on consumers.
Years after Gianni’s death, Versace is still among the thriving brands in the fashion world. Many people are still dreaming of owning their very own Versace piece today. The brand’s designs also appear in museums all over the world. This only proves that Gianni Versace’s legacy continues.
Fendi
Fendi is a fashion brand that was founded in 1925 in Rome by husband-and-wife duo Edoardo and Adele Fendi. It was the first handbag and fur store on Via del Plebiscito avenue in Rome, Italy. Even though the brand is now among the worldwide fashion empires, it only focused on furs and leather goods before.
Edoardo and Adele’s five daughters handled the business in 1947. They brought in a youthful spirit and expanded the brand to include women’s clothing and accessories. However, the brand only became truly successful when Karl Lagerfeld joined the company in 1965. He used the popular Fendi fur on their accessories, ready-to-wear designs, and anywhere else he could think of. This idea breathed new life into fur and fashion while making it more accessible to the average customer of the brand.
Lagerfeld worked for Fendi for 54 years. He was responsible for the popular double F logo that is still used today. He was able to create 70,000 original sketches for the brand. Fendi is also the first fashion brand to stage a runway on the Great Wall of China, where they presented their Spring/Summer 2008 collection. The show featured 88 models walking 88 meters along the popular place. It was strategically planned as 8 is a lucky number in Chinese culture.
For almost a hundred years, Fendi has been pushing forward, stirring its creative minds to do fresher and more innovative things while keeping its collections inspiring and reachable to customers.
Giorgio Armani
Giorgio Armani, commonly known as Armani, is an Italian luxury fashion brand that was founded by Giorgio Armani. It designs, manufactures, distributes, and retails ready-to-wear, leather goods, shoes, haute couture, watches, accessories, jewelry, and eyewear. It is the second-biggest fashion group in Italy, next to Prada. The brand maintains the aura of a real luxury brand. In addition to becoming one of the most respected and known brand names in the fashion industry, it is also among the most highly valued fashion companies worldwide.
Armani was born in 1934 in the northern Italian town of Piacenza. He attended medical school at Piacenza University for two years before he left for military service. While he was on leave from the military, he got a job as a window dresser at a Milan department store in La Rinascente. He worked there up to a buyer position, which marked his first foray into fashion. He began working as a designer in 1965 at fashion house Nino Cerruti where he met Sergio Galeotti. They started the company together in 1975.
Since Armani was a designer himself, he made apparel with his sense of aesthetics, luxury, and beauty, which appealed to the elite of the society. It started as a privately held company with the founder Giorgio Armani being the sole shareholder. The brand has become one of the strongest fashion luxury brands in the world, with many sub-brands designed under the parent umbrella brand of Giorgio Armani to cater to the specific needs of different market segments.
Giorgio Armani is a brand that is built on three pillars which are class, quality, and exclusivity. It covers all corners of fashion, such as apparel, accessories, swimming, bags, shoes, watches, eyewear, and more. Today, it is still one of the most successful fashion brands in the world.
Burberry
Burberry is a popular high-end fashion brand that is based in London. It was founded by Thomas Burberry in 1856. It is an embodiment of high-quality clothing, eyewear, and accessories. Before Thomas established the brand, he first worked as an apprentice in a local draper’s shop.
The first trench coat of Burberry was made using the material Gabardine. It is a strong, firm, and durable material that can withstand extreme weather conditions. The creation of the Burberry trench coat revolutionized rainwear, which had not been comfortable to wear by polar explorers. At the present time, the trench coat is a staple on the runway, and it is continuously reimagined in different fabrics, prints, and patterns.
Burberry has grown from offering not just comfort but also style. Its products are made from high-quality materials, crisp fabrics, and cool modern apparel. It is among the top British brands because of its emphasis on fabrics and quality designs. It offers both men’s and women’s collections. But its main target is the woman with a high disposable income.
Today, Burberry’s growth in the fashion industry and expansion to other sectors like the stock market show that it will continuously and consistently keep on growing in the years to come.
Ralph Lauren
Ralph Lauren is an iconic American fashion brand that started out by making rags into ties, which made it a true rags-to-riches fashion and lifestyle label. The brand was founded in 1967 by Ralph Lauren. He began on a humble note by working out of a drawer in the Empire State Building in New York and selling men’s ties under Beau Brummell. With this support, he quickly expanded to a whole line of menswear which he called “Polo” to pay tribute to his love of sports.
After two years, Ralph Lauren was given his own in-store shop in the Manhattan department store Bloomingdale’s. After this, he launched a full women’s collection and opened his first store on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills. It was his first freestanding store for an American designer.
At the present time, Ralph Lauren Group has a total of 17 fashion brands and 4 lifestyle brands in 493 directly operated stores in 30 countries. It is most well-known for the Polo shirt from the oldest brand in its portfolio, Polo Ralph Lauren. The products of this brand cover all areas of apparel fashion, such as men’s and women’s wear, watches, jewelry, and sportswear. It has a multitude of sub-brands under the umbrella brand of Ralph Lauren, which caters to the needs of different market segments. With this, it has truly become one of the strongest and biggest fashion brands in the world.
Chanel
Since its founding in 1909, Chanel has evolved into one of the most recognizable fashion brands. It is among the brands that create top-quality designer handbags, clothing, accessories, and more using the best materials in the world. Chanel was founded by Coco Chanel, who was born in 1883 in Saumur, France. When her mother died, she was brought up in an orphanage as her father was unable to raise her.
Coco Chanel learned to sew in the orphanage. Before she opened her major fashion house, she had a short stint as a singer. It was during her time as a singer that she got her nickname “Coco.” Her real name was Gabriel Bonheur Chanel. Her first shop was opened in 1910 on the Rue Cambon in Paris. She designed clothes but did not become successful until her iconic make-shift jersey dress. Not long after, she expanded to the perfume market. The success of Chanel no. 5 made the brand a household name.
As the brand started to thrive, Chanel emphasized comfort. She said that luxury should be comfortable, or else it is not luxury. This led her to design iconic clothing like the Chanel suit and the Little Black Dress. At the present time, the brand has expanded massively. Chanel now designs everything from makeup to luxury accessories. It is among the brands that we know will continue to thrive and maintain its popularity in the years to come.
Hermes
Hermes International, also known as Hermes of Paris or Hermes, is a French luxury brand that has been consistently ranked as the most valuable luxury brand in the world in different valuation and ranking studies by leading consultancies. The brand is a combination of rich heritage, exquisite craftsmanship, an eye for detail, and high levels of quality and professionalism.
The company was founded in 1837 by Thierry Hermes as a harness workshop in Paris, France. His original intent was to serve the needs of European noblemen by offering saddles, bridles, and other leather riding gear. In the early 20th century, his son, Charles-Emile Hermes, transferred the company’s shop to 24 Rue Du Faubourg Saint-Honore in Paris, where it is still today and the company’s global headquarters.
The product offering of Hermes expanded gradually through generations. From 1880 to 1900, the brand started offering saddlery and introduced its products in retail stores. In 1900, it started selling the “Haut a Courroies” bag, meant for riders to carry their saddles. In 1918, the brand introduced the first leather golf jacket with a zipper, which was made for the then Prince of Wales. In the 1920s, accessories and clothing were added to their portfolio.
The first leather handbags of Hermes entered the product line in 1922. In 1925, travel bags were introduced, which were a global success. In the 1930s, Hermes launched products that are now fashion icons, such as the leather Sac a depeches or the Kelly bag in 1935 and the Hermes scarves in 1937. The company entered the United States in the 1930s with an initial tie-up with the Neiman Marcus department store in New York.
The popular Hermes Birkin bag was introduced in 1984 after a conversation between the then CEO Jean-Louis Dumas and actress and singer Jane Birkin on a flight from Paris to London. She told Dumas that she needed a medium-sized bag. Each Birkin costs between $12,000 to $300,000. Making one takes between 18 to 25 hours via hand.
At the present time, Hermes operates 311 stores worldwide with more than 15,000 employees. It is among the largest and most admired luxury fashion brands in the world.
Conclusion
These are the major fashion brands that are very popular around the world. In addition to these brands, there are many more out there that are admired by fashion enthusiasts from different countries. But the ones we’ve included here are the ones that made a huge impact in the world of fashion. These brands are mostly the inspirations of many newer fashion brands today. It’s amazing to know that the biggest luxury fashion brands that we know today all had their humble beginnings before they became successful and iconic. We hope this post helped you learn more about the major fashion brands.