Will Loewe fans now turn to Jonathan Anderson's JW Anderson brand?
The Christian Dior news is out. Northern Irish designer, Jonathan Anderson was announced as the creative director of the French brand in its entirety this week. He'd previously been confirmed as chief designer of the menswear wing and what the fashion industry thought it already knew – that he'd be heading up womenswear too – was finally announced after months of speculation.
His tenure at Loewe was a stealth masterclass in brand building. From sleepy Spanish luxury bag maker to glazed tile, arthouse fashion brand, Anderson put his entire workaholic self into that role. His 11 years there saw the ‘Puzzle’ bag become a cult style, along with countless other hits like the Flamenco clutch and the Paula's Ibiza raffia bags. Furthermore he created a ready-to-wear that was widely bought and worn, which is a huge deal for a brand that was previously only known for its bags.
The Loewe Paula's Ibiza collection
The curation of the Loewe collections felt extremely personal to Anderson and therefore there was always something of a crossover with his namesake brand, JW Anderson. Founded in 2008, the JW Anderson label felt like the playful and cheaper brother to Loewe and it was often difficult to see where the two separated. Many of the product produced for one could have been sold by the other. It meant double Anderson for his growing legion of admirers.
Anderson stepping away from Loewe is a huge opportunity for the JWA brand – if his time allows. The designer is currently teasing ‘New Beginnings July 2025 #comingsoon’ on his personal Instagram channel to his 1.3m followers. Slides of products as well as random finds and art pieces give a tantalising glimpse of what is to come.
The new belted version of the Loewe Puzzle
Anderson has been on something of a sabbatical – in fashion terms –since leaving Loewe in March and designing the Dior menswear (having officially taken on that role in April), giving him some time to invest and think about his JW Anderson brand and its future.
Anderson understood the foundation a £100 logo T-shirt gives a brand from the start, with the recognisable JW Anchor fast becoming a basic in fashion fans’ wardrobes. Or, the simple white 1970s style signature JWA geometric puller on knitwear for the IYKYK crowd.
Luxury consumers are trading down in pricing categories, and JW Anderson, especially with bags priced around £500-£1,000, has the potential to grow, given the right investment and visibility. The fashion-led Coach-level customer, who is still proving resilient, could justify the slight price jump to trade up to JWA and the bags have the benefit of not being everywhere. This is a brand with the cool factor. The JWA ‘Loafer’ and ‘Corner’ bags could easily become the next Puzzle, the designs are good enough, given the exposure.
The JW Anderson Loafer bag
Loewe currently has 6.5m Instagram followers compared to 1.7m for the JW Anderson official account. Anderson is yet to become a household name but the Dior position could change that.
For a creative like Anderson, Dior is more of a straight jacket - or Bar Jacket? - and rigid in its house codes. While we know Anderson will pour himself into the brand, he won’t quite have the freedom he did at Loewe. The scale is gigantic, so that leaves his eponymous brand for all the art, fun and experiment, hopefully.
Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez for Proenza Schouler have taken over at Loewe
The next iteration of Loewe will be designed by American designers Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez, founders of New York-based label Proenza Schouler. Loewe is currently running a 10-years anniversary marketing campaign for the Puzzle bag, which will help with the transition and continuity in product. The Americans will hopefully build on Anderson’s foundation rather than execute a complete overhaul.
Gen Z luxury shoppers love Loewe, as Liberty Managing Director, Retail Sarah Coonanrecently informed the audience at TheIndustry.fashion LIVE, Elevating the Post Purchase Experience, held in London on 23 April. JW Anderson has a similar demographic of consumer but Loewe also has appeal across all age groups (this is the brand that put the late Dame Maggie Smith in its campaign after all) so Anderson want to broaden the appeal of his namesake brand.
He may want to do something to appeal to a more mature customer, which is the opposite challenge most brands have. It could be the case that many older consumers are unaware of the brand and they haven’t seen the product (if they did, they'd find plenty to like). Luxury fashion buyers could well look to JW Anderson, especially if the new designers at Loewe don’t have the same appeal or aesthetic.
Jonathan Anderson
It's worth bearing in mind, however, that all of these brands – Loewe, JW Anderson and Dior – are owned by the French conglomerate LVMH. The group will want to make sure it doesn’t make the same mistake it made with Marc Jacobs, who also had the creative mix of designing for a large LVMH house (Louis Vuitton) and his eponymous brand, which went onto be diluted with diffusion lines and struggled to make a profit. There were moments when LVMH actively tried to offload the Marc Jacobs brand.
Dior will be LVMH’s priority, but it could have three very distinct brands appealing to different demographics. While Dior will have the investment and be the main focus, it would be a shame to waste the momentum that could easily transfer from Loewe to JW Anderson if well managed. A designer never wants to neglect their own name.
Main image: JW Anderson Loafer Bag @jw_anderson
