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Creative Class

How Fashion Went Corporate: Creativity, Commerce and Collateral Damage

Tim Blanks talks to the creators of ‘Kingdom of Dreams,’ a new documentary series on how the corporatisation of luxury fashion made superstars of designers John Galliano, Alexander McQueen, Tom Ford and Marc Jacobs, and built gilded empires for bosses Bernard Arnault and François Pinault.
LVMH chief Bernard Arnault with then Christian Dior designer John Galliano in 2003.
LVMH chief Bernard Arnault with then Christian Dior designer John Galliano in 2003. (Getty Images)
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“A French entrepreneur uses young punk talent to reinvigorate fading fashion couture houses and become the richest man in the world. What could possibly go wrong?” IMDb’s synopsis of “Kingdom of Dreams,” the documentary series that debuted on Monday in the UK, with other markets to follow, makes the rise of Bernard Arnault’s LVMH and rival François Pinault’s Gucci Group (now Kering) sound a little like a Gothic fairytale, an impression that is soon confirmed by the lush visuals, the dramatic soundtrack and a title sequence which is straight out of the “Game of Thrones” playbook.

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About the author
Tim Blanks
Tim Blanks

Tim Blanks is Editor-at-Large at The Business of Fashion. He is based in London and covers designers, fashion weeks and fashion’s creative class.

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