Black Label [EN]: Chapter 293

Black Label Episode 44

The Paris Fashion Week, held twice a year, was another resounding success.

“Excuse me, would you mind if I took a picture?”

Reporters from various magazines were busy photographing people on the streets.

“Oh? That person…!”

The crowds were filled with famous actors, singers, sports stars, influencers, and other celebrities.

“What’s on the schedule today?” the new editor of Paris Vogue asked.

Geraldine Sagliogio replied quietly, “Since it’s the last day of Paris Fashion Week, there are so many brands holding shows.”

“For example?”

“Chanel, Celine, Vetements, and so on. It’s going to be a hectic day.”

Most people don’t get notified of the location of the brand’s show, so they tend to follow various influencers around, hoping to catch a glimpse.

Conversely, there are those who are invited to almost every show, like them, and have to travel all over Paris according to the schedule.

“Some brands have overlapping times, so we might have to skip a few.”

At Geraldine’s words, the new editor looked at the schedule in her hand again and muttered, “Hmm, that’s true. We should prioritize the brands we absolutely must see and then plan the route.”

Then Geraldine Sagliogio paused, and quietly said, “Actually, I can’t.”

“Yes?”

“Let’s rest today.”

She had been traveling around the city for the entire two weeks of Paris Fashion Week without a single day off.

As a result, she was not only exhausted, but she also felt like she couldn’t draw any inspiration from the clothes she was seeing.

“Anyway, the brand that will be the finale of this Fashion Week is a separate event, right?”

At her question, the new editor briefly cleared her throat.

“Ah, then… are you talking about Cardo?”

The show for the brand 「Cardo」, which Lee launched using all the brands in the LVMH Group [a French multinational luxury goods conglomerate] as inspiration, was scheduled for the next day.

As if declaring that it was completely different from other premium brands, he openly announced on a TV show that he would hold the show the day after the official Paris Fashion Week schedule ended.

“Yes, Cardo.”

Not only them, but countless people came to Paris specifically to see Lee’s new work, Cardo.

She was one of them.

Since becoming editor-in-chief, she had been reviewing the data from her editors without having to run around on her own during Paris Fashion Week.

‘It’s been a while,’ she thought.

The reason why she left the stuffy editor-in-chief’s office with its single window and walked around the city where Paris Fashion Week was taking place was because of Cardo.

She didn’t particularly care about other brands, but she wanted to see Lee’s large-scale project with her own eyes.

“Anyway, let’s rest today.”

“Then…”

“Other people will cover it anyway.”

Her words made sense, so the new editor reluctantly replied, “Then what about today?”

“We need to conserve our energy.”

Geraldine Sagliogio continued, striding across the square with a confident step.

“I guarantee you there will be a huge show tomorrow. To avoid collapsing from shock, we should rest well today, eat a lot of delicious food, and drink alcohol.”

“Yes?” the new editor, who was busily following her, asked. “Is that really okay?”

She felt a sense of guilt as she listened to the details of the dereliction of duty that she would be following her senior’s lead on.

“Of course.”

Geraldine Sagliogio added, “Anyway, this Fashion Week is just a warm-up for Cardo.”

At those words, the new editor asked, “Are you so sure?”

“Of course.”

“You trust Lee.”

Geraldine Sagliogio replied, “He’s never disappointed me.”

Lee had presented a great show that would shock the industry every year since his debut.

Regardless of friendship or the degree of closeness, everyone in the industry had strong expectations for ‘Lee’.

“Well, shall we go rest?”

Geraldine hurried back to the hotel.

As soon as she returned to her room, she took a nap, relieving the fatigue that had accumulated over the past two weeks.

“Well, shall we go for a drink now?”

She headed straight to the bar on the top floor of the hotel.

As expected, the bar was crowded with industry people.

Most of them were reporters or columnists from magazines and broadcasting stations.

Geraldine, who was well-connected, greeted the people she met cordially.

“Choose what you want,” she said.

As she skillfully sat down and looked at the menu, the new editor carefully asked, “Editor-in-chief, most of the people here seem to be from the fashion industry?”

Geraldine immediately continued as if it were natural, “Yes, most of them are big names, including famous critics and columnists.”

“Is that so…?”

“They’re people who are staying in hotels that cost tens of thousands of dollars a night during Fashion Week, right?”

Then she added again, “Originally, they should have gone back a long time ago, but seeing them staying at this hotel until today…”

She trailed off.

“Maybe they’re all staying in Paris to see Cardo’s show.”

“Is that so….”

“Well, in fact, aren’t we in the same position?”

She added again, “If it weren’t for Cardo, we would have already gone back and been immersed in compiling the various data we collected this time and editing the contents of the next issue, without even thinking about enjoying it like this.”

Then she ordered expensive champagne and a salad.

“The interest in Cardo must be enormous.”

Geraldine replied immediately, “It’s an attempt that has never happened since the fashion world was established, right?”

“Yes, well….”

“Isn’t it a natural phenomenon since a miraculous thing is happening?”

Then she continued, “Personally, I think I’ve been constantly excited since the reports on the Cardo project started.”

“Geraldine?”

“Yes, it’s something that everyone has dreamed of at least once in their lives, but it’s realistically impossible, right? Experts are pouring out negative evaluations that the entire LVMH Group’s sales could be directly hit.”

“Of course, it will be a great project that will go down in history, but if you consider all the losses and risks, it’s really unrealistic….”

Then the waiter brought the ordered champagne.

“Thank you,” she replied briefly and carefully poured champagne into the new editor’s glass and continued, “Lee, who has the determination to take all those risks and carry out such a large-scale project, feels really great.”

Geraldine added again, “Sometimes I think.”

Her eyes were filled with melancholy.

“If Lee hadn’t appeared, the industry would have been much more rigid.”

“Is that so?”

“He’s one of the pioneers who are leading the industry, right?”

In the past few years, he has been influencing the trends and flows of the fashion world.

Now, the name Lee felt like the name of someone who manages and supervises trends.

“It’s been several years since all brands started to change according to the direction presented by Wallflower [Lee’s previous brand name].”

She sipped her champagne.

“Perhaps Lee had the influence of the actual owner of the fashion world even before he was entrusted with all the management rights of the LVMH Group….”

After a moment of silence, the new editor asked again, “Now he’s really the owner?”

“Since he has inherited all the management rights of the LVMH Group, isn’t it practically safe to say that he is now the emperor of the fashion world?”

I thought it was meaningless to determine who was the best person in the fashion world.

Wouldn’t the criteria be different?

Some would use profitability as a standard, while others would use artistry.

“That’s right.”

On the other hand, it’s different now.

“Lee has now established himself as a person who will not be inferior to anyone, no matter what criteria you apply.”

Geraldine smiled.

“The oriental high school student who sent an invitation to the show of a new brand to the editor of Paris Vogue has really become the emperor of the fashion world.”

In the meantime, the Philharmonic Orchestra’s collaboration echoed in the bar.

Schubert’s Erlking [a famous art song].

She closed her eyes and savored the sweet collaboration and champagne at the same time.

Tomorrow.

What kind of show will the brand Cardo, which will leave a huge mark on the history of the fashion world, present?

Lee….

What kind of show did he prepare while enduring losses that could amount to hundreds of billions or trillions [of currency, likely won or dollars]?

Where is the final destination that his name will be directed to, and how many more achievements will he make in the future?

“We…,” Geraldine added again, “Perhaps we are living in the same era as a designer who is so great that he cannot be compared to anyone in the entire history of the industry.”

The new editor nodded, thinking that the target of her words must be Lee.

That’s how the last day of Paris Fashion Week passed.

Before long, the morning of the long-awaited Cardo show dawned.