Ethical Fashion with Feminine Elegance

“I’m here to provide solutions,” Stella McCartney told WWD in 2019 as its Corporate Citizen honoree. Stella McCartney, daughter of Paul McCartney of Beatles fame and photographer and vegan food pioneer Linda McCartney, has carved her own path in fashion. At 15, she left London for Paris to apprentice with Christian Lacroix, later returning to attend London’s Central St. Martin. She invested time out of school learning the craft of tailoring on Saville Row, mixing her love for vintage pieces – the ones you can’t find in stores – to inform her design aesthetic. This definitive style, which intentionally mixes the feminine with the masculine, with sustainability at the forefront of fabric selections, design and development, remain the signature of the Stella McCartney brand.

In 1997, McCartney’s debut collection, a concise blend of the two, was the reset that top retailers and fashion fans wanted when it bowed at Bergdorf Goodman and Browns. Interest in her brand brought French luxury brand Chloé to her doorstep. She put her namesake label on hold, and joined the brand that same year. McCartney went on to replace Karl Lagerfeld as Chloé’s first full-time designer, from 1997-2001. Celebrating women, she took a cue from Chloé’s female founder, Gaby Aghion, who created the vision for the brand in 1952. She quickly proved her talent beyond her famous lineage while setting the brand up for a successful revitalization.

McCartney returned to her namesake brand in 2001 in a joint venture with the Gucci Group (now Kering). The partnership allowed her to champion sustainability without compromising the cool-girl style ethos she had become known for. She also partnered with Adidas in 2004, taking the brand’s workout wear to the fashion set and putting athleisure on the map, amongst other exclusive partnerships.

Her brand’s sustainable footprint was likely unrecognized by 90 precent of her consumers, she noted. Many remain fans despite being unaware of its ethical practices. In 2018, McCartney regained full control of her namesake from Kering. A year later, she sold the majority stake in her brand to LVMH Moet Hennessey, forming a partnership that continues her work in green initiatives. She also serves as a special advisor to LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault to champion ethical fashion.

McCartney is on a mission to inspire new voices in fashion to bridge the gap in sustainability and ethical practices. While the concept is not easy, she has succeeded in championing her cause with stylish, fashion-forward collections.

Here, a look at Stella McCartney’s brand of ethical, feminine-forward fashion from WWD and the Fairchild Archive.