Hollywood stars braved the rain to open Paris Fashion Week at L'Oreal's giant outdoor show on Monday, as rumors swirled about musical chairs at the top of famed French brands. The cosmetics giant persuaded Jane Fonda – sporting snazzy silver sneakers – Kendall Jenner, Eva Longoria, Turkish actress Pınar Deniz and several of its brand ambassadors to walk in a spectacular public show in front of the gilded glory of the Opera Garnier. With invites to the big luxury shows strictly limited to the glitterati and fashion insiders, L'Oreal aimed to democratize the glamour of fashion week.
Introduced by singer Celine Dion, the "Walk Your Worth" show also featured Andie MacDowell, Indian star Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, models with prosthetic limbs, and Brazilian supermodel Luma Grothe proudly showcasing her baby bump. "The idea is to let the public see for themselves the beautiful clothes, settings and people that they would never normally have access to," L'Oréal's Paris director-general Delphine Viguier told Agence France-Presse - (AFP). Fashion's young guard endured a stormy start to the nine-day extravaganza as rising French star Victor Weinsanto staged his spring-summer show on the wet and windy roof of the Pompidou Centre.
His fishnet and mesh ensembles, created around Croatian drag queen Le Filip, faced challenging weather conditions. The Paris shows began amid falling profits at luxury giants LVMH and Kering, sending a shudder through the industry and fueling talk of a "Gam.