Phoebe Philo has announced that her eponymous label will make its appearance in the eighth month of 2023

We now know that Phoebe Philo’s return is slated for September this year. Ms Philo announced just 12 hours ago on her Instagram page that the brand’s “inaugural collection will be revealed and available on our website… in September 2023.” This is indeed confirmation of a much awaited return. It is not, however, certain if this means that the label will be participating in the spring/summer 2024 show calendar or if the clothes—“available”—would be sold online through the Phoebe Philo website, which would indicate an autumn/winter 2023 first season. The IG message also tells us that “opening for registration” is in July. Is this for store buyers or consumers, we are unable to say for certain. There is little else by way of image to give us an idea of what the clothes would look like (would there be a men’s line?). At the end of the photo message on IG is the designer’s name, which could be in the label’s logotype. If so, Ms Philo could be joining the serif brigade, currently led by Burberry whose own logotype was recently redesigned under the watch of the brand’s new designer Daniel Lee.

It has been nearly four years since Phoebe Philo left Céline*, where she held the creative reigns for close to a decade. It is unlikely that her fans have stopped pining for her designs (#oldcéline is still active) despite good alternatives. In 2021, while the unpredictable pandemic raged on, it was announced that the world’s most powerful luxury conglomerate LVMH will back (“a minority stake”, reportedly) Ms Philo’s come back. A collective cry of delight was heard everywhere. According to Business of Fashion then, the namesake line would include clothing and accessories of “exceptional quality”. It is hard to imagine Phoebe Philo the label to be anything less. It was also thought that the line would launch last year, but 2022 came and left, and no news was heard of the launch, sparking speculation that her studio (she reportedly recruited two key members of the staff from Balenciaga) was not ready. Ms Philo, who has kept a very low profile (and whose new IG account contains only that one post), likely wanted to take her time to create something extraordinary. Many are expecting that. And until September may be just too long a time to wait.

*For this post, we’re keeping to the Phoebe Philo-era spelling of Céline