Paris Fashion Week is always a feast for the eyes and mind, and the highly anticipated Lacoste is back, triumphantly, on the calendar this March. This Fall/Winter 2024 also marked the debut Lacoste show by the newly-minted creative director Pelagia Kolotouros. It’s a serve, to say the least. The cherry on top is that you can now lay your hands and feel the pieces exclusively at the Lacoste store at The Exchange TRX.
For this season, Kolotourous pays homage to the illustrious René Lacoste, the founding designer and also a tennis legacy who blurred the line between fashion and tennis. Lacoste is a name loved by not just the fashion darlings but also the tennis sphere. Earning his moniker as one of the Four Musketeers, or “the crocodile”, it eventually became the brand’s emblem. As a brand that stemmed from the glorious style of the founder himself, its distinguished tennis heritage has been etched in our minds—a double-edged sword for the successors.
For the “Victory of 1927” collection, Kolotourous sent out elevated looks that bring our minds to the spirit of the Années Folle. Also widely known as the Roaring Twenties, fashion was a harmonious blend between embracing feminine silhouettes and prioritised comfort. While the designs revisit the country club style and archival elements, the traces of modernity are detectable. The crocodile motif, for example, was reimagined in various designs. Some in colourful graphics blown up and spread across trousers and blankets, and some in silver sequin embroidered on mesh lace garments like dresses and tank tops. They also appeared in stencil, stamped on bags that call back to the well-stamped vintage suitcase carried by René in 1923.
What stood out to us was Kolotouros’ prowess in creating contrasts, with textures of fabrics and between styles. Not only did these juxtapositions make these pieces wearable in different settings and climates, but they also remind us that while Lacoste is a fashion brand based on a sport, they do not compromise in garment making. Pleated tennis skirts—a reference to the renowned Suzanne Lenglen—was paired with well-tailored trousers. Double-breasted cashmere wool coats that are commonly associated with a comparably serious dress code too, were decorated with a varsity-jacket-like design featuring a scaled-up crocodile in yellow. Day dresses, on the other hand, were created with outdoor materials—apt to be worn as a utilitarian piece.
The Fall/Winter 2024 collection showcased the capabilities of the newly appointed creative director in conveying a conversation between the old and the new Lacoste. As athletic-inclined designs climb the chart, it’s safe to say Kolotouros hit home-run with her approach that breathes a new life into the heritage brand, without sacrificing the longstanding house codes appreciated by many. Available at The Exchange TRX, seeing the Fall/Winter 2024 collection in the flesh will deepen your appreciation for Kolotourous’ Lacoste.
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