5 Things To Know About The Martin Margiela x H&M Collaboration

As you may have heard, this week started with a bang when WWD speculated that H&M is collaborating with Martin Margiela next. After only a day of media frenzy, H&M sent a press release to confirm the rumour. Now I'm writing this.

Instead of the usual accompanying photo of the creative director, a comparative CV was released in the press release.

1. Martin Margiela has been designed by a team since 2009 when Martin Margiela (the person) stepped down as the creative director. Designers have had a big role in the marketing of these collaborations and for the first time ever, H&M will have to do without one.

2. Martin Margiela is the latest Paris-based fashion house to collaborate with H&M since Lanvin. They are usually the most high end and showcase designs that push boundaries. If Lanvin's collection was any indication of what to expect, we're in for a treat again this fall.

3. Fashion houses with diffusion lines are often ruled out for doing a collaboration. With Martin Margiela's MM6, this will be the first design house to collaborate with H&M that has a diffusion line.

4. Martin Margiela has (only) previously collaborated with Opening Ceremony just last fall. The collection was based on a 3-in-1 concept. It was mildly successful with pieces currently still available (and heavily discounted). It's interesting to see how the two collaborations will differ from each other.

5. The initial response has been a mixed bag.

Some are excited:

"In retrospect this doesn't seem all that surprising, due to Diesel owning the brand, they are far more commercial, but I would never of guessed this would happen. This will definitely be one I will be queuing up for, for sure."

While others are questioning the unlikely partnership:

"[Martin Margiela] garnered a very distinct reputation for being uncompromisingly esoteric and idiosyncratic...so why now all of sudden are they exploiting the label to commercial commodities in this "masstige"?"

Still, the jury is out with many unsure how they feel about the collaboration. The collection and the marketing will slowly unfold in the next few months and personally, I'm looking forward to see how it all turns out. For now, here are two teaser videos.

Martin Margiela X H&M will be in 230 stores worldwide on Nov. 15. The collection will includes womens and mens.