- Magazine Magazine
- Fashion Fashion Fashion
For ten years, the two designers brought their minimalist, timeless and functional style to the flagship line of Japanese brand Uniqlo, turning it into a fashion benchmark. The duo will end their partnership in early September to focus on their label Lemaire.
Lire en françaisSubscribers only
A bright, geometric space organized around long white tables, glass partitions and light wood. Light flowed everywhere, softened by translucent walls, while meticulously arranged work tables punctuated the space beneath a ceiling lined with technical ducts. It was here, in the Paris research and development center of the Uniqlo U line, located just steps from the new Fondation Cartier on Rue de Rivoli in the 1st arrondissement, that Sarah-Linh Tran and Christophe Lemaire welcomed us in mid-July, immersed in their archives.
Spread out around them were 10 years of research, trials and fine-tuning devoted to reimagined basics: everyday clothes, simple and comfortable, that they set out to modify and improve, sometimes almost imperceptibly, until they created an entire wardrobe. After a decade spent shaping Uniqlo U, the duo was preparing to close that chapter. "It was a very difficult decision to make. This collaboration meant a lot to us and we are truly very proud of it," Christophe Lemaire explained. "But we have decided to hand things over." From the very beginning, the designers had anticipated this possible transition. "The line was designed so it would not end with us. It will continue on its path and function as a laboratory," added Sarah-Linh Tran.
You have 88.4% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.
