hindsight 200
Esquire Singapore|April 2022
Age may just be a number for the living. But if you’re the late founder of a storiedluxury maison, 200 years old is certainly a cause for a massive celebration.
Asri Jasman
hindsight 200

According to the Guinness World Records, Frenchwoman Jeanne Louise Calment remains, to this day, the oldest known person to have ever lived at 122 years old. It was said that Calment, born in 1875 (before the Eiffel Tower was even constructed), lived a relatively quiet life until her death on 4 August 1997.

That particular date just so happens to be the birthdate of one Louis Vuitton. He was born on 4 August 1821 with a life that was perhaps a stark contrast to Calment’s. The Frenchman was, after all, the founder of what is now known as one of the world’s most recognisable brands, calling mega-celebrities the likes of South Korean boyband BTS and tennis champion Naomi Osaka among its growing list of ambassadors.

The Louis Vuitton business has grown from its trunk-making roots to become a multifaceted luxury maison that includes everything from menswear and womenswear to objets d’art for use in interior spaces. But the legacy set by the late founder has endured the test of time, even with the trunk no longer commonly used for travelling. Trunks are still continuously referenced by the maison’s artistic directors. In menswear, the late Virgil Abloh’s invention of the Soft Trunk—essentially a pliable and more mobile version of a Louis Vuitton trunk in leather—exemplifies the kind of ingenuity that has helped propel the maison into contemporary consciousness.

This story is from the April 2022 edition of Esquire Singapore.

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This story is from the April 2022 edition of Esquire Singapore.

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