centres of discussions, were established and became hubs where intelligent
people, opinion-seekers and the fashionable were found.
Paris became the centre of fashion and Rue Saint Honoré continued to
reign as the Mecca for the supply of textiles to the fashion industry including
French silk made in Lyon, which were the most highly priced textiles in the
world. Parisian fashion stores were highly reputed for their tantalizing fashion
goods notably at Palais Royal. A Russian visitor in awe of the luxury goods
found in Paris commented that ‘all the riches of the world are displayed to the
astonished eye... all the inventions of luxury to the embellished eye’
(Ribeiro, 2002, Dress in Eighteenth Century Europe, 52). This status of Paris
in luxury fashion was, however, boosted by the high demand for luxury goods
especially by Europe’s aristocrats and royal family members.
Fashion in this century continued to grow with the invention of prominent
fashion magazines from the 1770s in France, England and Germany. The
magazines provided a basis for the emergence of English tailors who first
began their craft through adopting the French featured style. They later devel-
oped a highly stylish and original English men’s fashion sector. A case in
point is the men’s coat, which was the focal point of men’s fashion of the
period. Particular attention was paid to the choice of fabric, trimmings, braid-
ing and embroidery lace. Men’s hats were also invented together with hat
cocking during this period. The retailing of clothing in London also grew
significantly in this century, especially at Covent Garden, the Royal
Exchange and Oxford Street.
The eighteenth century also brought about fashion role models or what
might be known today as fashion icons or ‘fashionistas’. These women, who
were mostly French, wielded high power and influence in European society
and were emulated by most Parisians. Since the rest of the world copied
Parisian women, everyone in the world indirectly copied these fashion role
models. Notable among them was Madame Pompadour who promoted
elegance and classic style and Marie-Antoinette who was the fashion icon of
the day. They changed clothes and accessories frequently and caused several
women to almost go bankrupt in the process of imitating their style. The
influence of Marie-Antoinette was so high that when she became pregnant,
women wore skirts stuffed with pillows to mimic the look of pregnancy.
One of the first prominent fashion merchants and designers, Rose Bertin,
also emerged in this century. Born in 1747, she rose to prominence as the
couturier and supplier of the best fashion to the aristocrats and royal family
members of France and beyond. She is perhaps the first luxury fashion
designer to own shops beyond her country’s shores, with the opening of her
London store in the 1780s. At the height of her fame, even royal family
members felt honoured to be on her client list including the Grand Duchess
of Russia who travelled to Paris to purchase her dresses. Although her fame
in Paris diminished during the years of the revolution, her London store
sustained her business until its eventual closure.24
luxury fashion branding