Fendi turns 100 with a collection that feels fresher than ever

IN FASHION’S CURRENT era of nostalgia, anniversary collections tend to look a lot like trips down memory lane, with iconic fits and nods to the work of past creative directors rehashed on the runway. It’s a clever move: social media loves an archival reference even more than it loves newness, and for new designers that enter historic houses, it’s also a strategic way to get customers (and board members) onside. After all, who doesn’t love a greatest hit?

Yet having grown up inside the house of Fendi – it was founded by her grandparents Edoardo and Adele in 1925 – Silvia Venturini Fendi didn’t necessarily need to crack open the archives to acquaint herself with the history of the brand. She’s been present for 64 of Fendi’s 100 years; it’s in her blood.

As such, the collection Venturini Fendi designed to commemorate her house’s centenary avoided feeling like a great archival rehash. Instead, her focus was on creating contemporary looks that were infused with the essence of the house that’s been in her family for five generations; that elusive spirit you can’t really bottle or even explain, but that makes the clothes feel like they belong to the opulent, intelligent universe built by the Roman brand.

After showing its men’s and women’s collections separately for some years, this time around – which also marks the first Fendi show since the departure of Kim Jones in October 2024, who moved in to design the house’s womenswear following the loss of longtime creative director Karl Lagerfeld – this season was a co-ed affair.

Fur coats and stoles were worn by both genders, as were mohair sweaters and cardigans adorned with swarms of colourful jewels. Silk pants in jewel tones and boxy wool coats in sorbet pink and lemon yellow were imbued with the quintessential energy of Fendi, which the creative director sums up as “reminding [her] of the future”.

“I didn’t want to spend too much time dwelling on the physical archives,” said Venturini Fendi in a statement. “For me, Fendi 100 is more about my personal memories – real or imagined – of what Fendi was and what Fendi means today.”

The most Instagrammed moment from this anniversary show happened before the first model hit the runway. Two of Venturini Fendi’s grandchildren, Tazio and Dardo (both six years old), opened a giant set of doors that were designed to look like those at the entryway of Fendi’s 1960s atelier. They were dressed in little equestrian-style outfits, which were replicas of the outfit Venturini Fendi wore in 1966 when, as a six year old, Karl Lagerfeld asked her to walk his runway for the house.

This was one of few literal references in this very contemporary collection. But it wasn’t a reference for references sake; it was deeply personal. A reference worthy of a designer who’s lived and breathed a brand her entire life.

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