Welcome to Dior-land: French fashion house arrives with fanfare at Harrods

France’s prestigious fashion house has joined forces with the capital’s finest emporium. It’s what Dior would have wanted, says Karen Dacre 
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14 March 2013

Love affairs in fashion, much like their “real life” counterparts, are often mismatched arrangements that end with one party in tears while the other runs off into the sunset. Take Hedi Slimane’s recent pairing with Yves Saint Laurent. What first appeared to be a perfect romance made in heaven could soon be on the rocks as the designer struggles to live up to the expectations engendered by those who came before him. Then consider Sex and the City stylist Patricia Field’s ill-fated collaboration with our dear old M&S, a coupling which saw rails of sheer polyester blouses and ruffle-trimmed dresses left swinging on the shopfloor for weeks.

But it doesn’t always have to end in tears, provided both parties have taken adequate time to mutually acquaint themselves before jumping into bed. When Dior announced plans to procreate with Harrods earlier this week, there were few who questioned the compatibility of the pair — or expected the results to be anything less than perfect.

On Saturday morning, Christian Dior and Harrods will unveil the fruits of their lifelong friendship. The pairing which begins at the store’s famous front doors will see Harrods’ iconic bottle green flags and awnings transformed with Dior’s signature shade of grey until April 14. Window displays combining famous London iconography such as red post and telephone boxes with ready-to-wear designs by Dior’s Belgian artistic director Raf Simons will outline the store. Meanwhile, Harrods’ fourth floor will find itself transformed into a sort of Disneyland for Dior lovers. Nine separate spaces spanning an exhibition housing miniature versions of Dior couture through the ages and a 50-seat Dior Café serving lobster sandwiches and cupcakes created from Monsieur Dior’s own recipes offer endless opportunities for shoppers to worship at the altar of France’s most prestigious fashion house.

For those keen to take home their own piece of the love-in, a series of limited-edition products, including “Dior-ified” Harrods bears, snow globes and a Lady Dior bag, will also be available.

But this fervent friendship is no new- found one. Rather, it is the result of a 60-year flirtation between Christian Dior and England.

Born in January 1905, the second son of a successful businessman, Dior spent his childhood in Granville, Normandy, overlooking the English Chanel. At an early age he learned to speak English.

“I love English traditions, English politeness, English architecture — I even love English cooking!” the quintessentially French couturier wrote in his memoirs. Aged 21, he embarked on his first visit to London before enlisting for national service. In 1947, he would return to the capital to show his debut collection to an audience that included the Queen Mother and Princess Margaret. The princess would become a lifelong fan and an ambassador for his game-changing New Look dresses.

The French couture house’s friendship with Harrods is equally as rich. In 1953, having secured support from Harrods to promote his increasingly successful offerings, Dior inaugurated the department store’s fashion theatre with a fashion show.

“Like the House of Dior, Harrods has a reputation for astounding and satisfying its elegant women all over the world,” notes Dior’s chief creative officer Sidney Toledo, who believes the collaboration is about drawing attention to this special relationship. Toledo will also, of course, be hoping to cash in on the spending power of the 250,000 customers who visit Harrods each week.

It certainly seems like the perfect time for Dior to entice new customers to the label. Currently riding high thanks to Simons, who has reaffirmed Dior as a destination for clean, elegant minimalism, the label is arguably the most coveted in the world right now.

Nowhere more so than here in the UK where Simons’s easy-to-wear elegance is both adored and emulated.

It must be love.

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