Fendi Celebrates The Iconic Baguette at NYFW
Fendi, the luxury designer brand that usually shows in Milan, brought its SS23 runway show to New York City to celebrate the success of the Baguette. The Fendi Baugette was created 25 years ago and named for the long French loaf of bread that, like the bag, is also carried under the arm.
The Baguette had early success and pop-culture resonance in New York, after it appeared in a season three episode of Sex and the City, when a mugger tried to take Carrie Bradshaw’s purple sequined Fendi bag and apparently had no idea what it was called.
"Gimme your bag," the robber in the alley demanded. "It's a baguette!" Carrie screamed as he took off with her shiny purple version.
The Fendi show on Friday night was a big birthday party for the bag and its long-lasting claim to pop-culture fame. It's safe to say everyone knew their bags from their baguettes on Friday night, when about 600 people packed into the ballroom - some on the main floor and others in high balcony seating - to celebrate the bag and its many iterations over the years.
The only person missing from the audience was the Costume Designer who chose to feature the bag on U.S. networks in the first place - Patricia Field. In fact, Sarah Jessica Parker notes that Fendi was one of the first major brands to loan to the show, hence costume designer Patricia Fields’s front-and-center placement of the brand.
Carrie’s beloved purple sequin Fendi Baguette made regular appearances in the show. And in the debut of the series And Just Like That, Bradshaw can once again be seen toting her favorite bag thanks to Costume Designers Molly Rogers and Danny Santiago. Featuring the baguette in the series caused a 1011% increase in searches for it, according to discount store WeThrift. It also reported that Google searches for 'Fendi Baguette' have increased by 150%, compared to just 24% during the original run of the show.
WWD editor Booth Moore said in a recent article, “Streaming TV Costume Designers who are creating worlds, viral fashion trends and influencing runway collections are hoping it will finally mean more recognition.” The Fendi runway show at this year’s New York Fashion Week highlights not just future influence, but that the influence has been there all along.
