Tiffany&Co. Brings Fifth Avenue to London #SelfridgesXTiffany

[Courtesy Image]

On Saturday 11th July, I went along to the exhibition FIFTH & 57TH at Selfridges. It was all about Tiffany & Co. bringing 5th Ave to London. Now initially when I had heard about this exhibition, I truly did not know what to expect. I have been paying a slight attention to the brand ever since the arrival of its new design director Francesca Amfitheatrof as well as other changes throughout the company within the past three years or so.

I remember reading an interview on the NY Times site in NYC last year, Amfitheatrof’s vision for the brand was discussed as well as sharing her view about the consumers attitudes towards the brand based on its energetic and romantic history. I remember reading on the train in NYC, how interesting it was to see somebody comment on a brand like Tiffany. Amfitheatrof talked about the brand in a new way; what really grabbed me was a possibility of patterns overriding the infamous tiffany blue, also demonstrated in Tiffany T collection.

This got me thinking, if you were to take a position like Amfitheatrof as design director of a brand like Tiffany, what is there to do with it? Continue? If so, are you truly a design director or a replica director? What would you really expect to change around a brand like Tiffany? (That is a question for you and I by the way ^_^)

What I have notice about Tiffany really is the way the brand really connects it’s relevance to New York City. How powerful is that? With the launch of the Tiffany T collection, Amfitheatrof really showed the measure of the city in regards to the energy, daring personality and its power qualities in a graphic way.

“I wanted to create a symbol for modern life and its relentless energy that flows through New York and drives art and culture around the world,” she says. “This is just the beginning of what I hope to accomplish.”

Also in October 2014, their interaction with consumers over social media turned up one notch; Google+ hang out session with Amfitheatrof, model Coco Rocha, Aimee Song of Song and Style and Elle fashion news director Anne Slowey. These high-profile women took the pulse of the moment, sharing their expertise in media, fashion and design and reflecting on the wider world of art, style and culture. 

I remember asking a few people I met out in NYC about the new appointments vision, and many said, if she doesn’t focus on what Tiffany is already striving in within the market, consumers wont react well, but will react quickly. Regarding my final project at university on Dior and Raf Simons; my research showed that consumers didn’t feel too pleased with the appointment of Raf because of his ‘minimalistic’ characteristics; however, his modernistic vision in the Dior woman of today continues to express the beauty of the female silhouette just like Mr Dior himself.

It’s all about modernity but clear references to the brands key values, and in Tiffany a rich heritage spanning over 175 years touching many pieces from home ware to engagement rings.