The Taylor Swift phenomenon is also a real fashion festival

Since the start of her tour in the United States and then around the world, Taylor Swift, beyond being a musical performance, has been a show worthy of the podiums. Pop stars and fashion brands have always had fruitful connections.

Versace bodysuit and Louboutin rhinestone boots, this is one of the costumes from Taylor Swift’s tour which arrived in Paris last week. The post-pandemic return of mega-concerts, launched by Beyoncé and Taylor Swift in 2023, has put the spotlight back on the lucrative links between brands and pop stars through their stage costumes, duly recorded by magazines, specialized blogs and social networks.

But “the relationships between stars and couture have almost always existed”, reminds AFP Delphine Pinasa, director of the French Center for Stage Costumes. Before Madonna and her conical breasts designed by Jean Paul Gaultier in 1990, there was the theater actress Sarah Bernhardt, first “star” internationally at the end of the 19th century or the stars of the music hall in the interwar period, such as Josephine Baker.

Delphine Pinasa identifies an acceleration since the 1960s, the rise of pop, with figures like Elvis Presley or the yéyés in France, the emergence of ready-to-wear and the democratization of television. For singers, “clothes or accessories are a way of making themselves known and recognized,” explains the specialist, citing Edith Piaf’s little black dress or Elton John’s fanciful glasses. For some, like Lady Gaga, “there is also a story told through the costumes”.

Gain of notoriety

On the brand side, we aim to “fancy“. Example of a formidable prescription capacity, the sales of mirrored or rhinestone cowboy hats, like the one worn by Beyoncé for her tour Renaissance, increased by 1,601% in the United States and several Western European countries in August 2023, according to online payment solution Klarna.

The same month, Launchmetrics, a technology company specializing in data, estimated the media impact for Alexander McQueen of having dressed at $7.7 million “Queen B” on stage and 6.3 million for Versace thanks to Taylor Swift.

The brands contacted by AFP did not give details of these partnerships, but some of those who have worked with Beyoncé spoke to Vogue Business in December. A dress by designer David Koma was found “exhausted” in one day on its website after the star wore a similar model. And Koma saw her Instagram followers increase by 53% in the month following her first concert.

The Dsquared2 brand also benefited from this gain in notoriety. “For us, the goal is not really sales, but the image and exposure that comes from being associated with a major artist,” explained designers Dean and Dan Caten.

“Code messages”

During its Eras Tour, Taylor Swift multiplies the costumes (13 on average): ball gowns for her debut in country, sequined ensembles for her pop productions or vaporous dresses for her forays into folk.

“For this tour, she collaborated with Cavalli, Louboutin, Versace… brands with established reputations that have demonstrated their ability to meet the demands of dressing her for concerts”lists Glenys Johnson, author of Taylor Swift, the story of a fashion icon (Place des Victoires editions). Christian Louboutin shoes the singer during her tour in Europe with custom shoes: the brand produced several existing and original styles in a variety of shapes and heel heights with crystals affixed one by one by hand in different shapes and colors .

Yet, “Luxury brands haven’t always been interested, because Taylor presents herself as very down-to-earth, unlike Beyoncé or Lady Gaga who position themselves as high-end and visually creative,” traces Satu Hämeenaho-Fox, author of Into the Taylor-Verse, at the heart of Taylor Swift’s universe (Gallimard Jeunesse). “But with his extreme fame [plus de 500 millions d’abonnés tous réseaux sociaux confondus]it has become a kind of classy institution, without being too daring, with which any brand would benefit from being associated.”

Especially since her outfits are dissected by her fans, because the singer sprinkles them with “coded messages”. “There are often several layers of subtext, particularly in the choice of colors, which blogs and social networks are excellent at identifying,” specifies Satu Hämeenaho-Fox. Before the start of her European tour, Taylor Swift released the album The Tortured Poets Department with a Victorian Gothic aesthetic. In her latest clip, the singer wears an outfit by the American Elena Velez, who claims to offend some “sensitivities” with her fashion “post-woke”. His fans are “I’m looking forward to seeing if this means Taylor evolves into a more controversial figure,” continues Glenys Johnson. “Her album is about wanting to go beyond what people expect of her, with her good girl image…”.