Lanvin, France's oldest couture house, teaming up with Swedish high street giant H&M may just be the most exciting designer/high street collaboration to date - if the rumours prove to be true.
According to industry insiders, H&M will unveil Lanvin's Alber Elbaz as its next high profile designer collaborator within the next week after an internet video campaign sent the rumour mill into overdrive.
The online teaser clip launched yesterday shows a man sitting at a desk drinking coffee reciting a number of cryptic quotes as clues including: "Men and women who are comfortable in their own skin are gorgeous." A second video similarly shows a woman in a power shoulder blouse talking about fashion.
Aside from Elbaz, other names being mentioned in online forums and blogs as to who the designer could be include Tom Ford, Burberry's Christopher Bailey, Carolina Herrera and Tommy Hilfiger.
However, many believe that the quotes used in the viral video clips are typical Elbaz and that the voice used has been digitally altered to keep everyone guessing.
If the rumours are true, he will follow in the footsteps of previous designer H&M collaborators including Karl Lagerfeld, Stella McCartney, Roberto Cavalli, Matthew Williamson and, most recently, Sonia Rykiel, with the collection set to sell out just as fast.
"Regarding the designer, there are indeed a lot of rumours around our next designer collaboration at the moment with many different names flying about," was all H&M would say today. "We will keep you posted with any announcements."
H&M are due to reveal the designer's identity on 9 September.
Here's hoping it's true.
Take a peek at the video below to decide for yourself.
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