Coach confirmed today that it is, in fact, joining forces with Selena Gomez. She'll star in the brand's ad campaigns and work with the Coach Foundation's charitable efforts with girls empowerment organization, Step Up, according to The New York Times. However, Gomez won't actually be whipping up a whole capsule collection, as was initially rumored; instead, she'll be designing a single piece in tandem with Coach's executive creative director, Stuart Vevers, as part of the brand's fall 2017 collection.
This story was originally published on December 12, 2016.
Though Selena Gomez has stepped back from public life in recent months, it looks like the performer has different plans for 2017. Various outlets are reporting that the singer/actress just inked a massive deal with Coach — one that's believed to be valued at $10 million, according to Page Six. It won't be one of those ambiguous ambassadorships, either: Rumor has it there's a possibility of a Selena Gomez-designed capsule for the label in the near future.
Most recently, Gomez has aligned herself with Nicolas Ghesquière's Louis Vuitton, starring in various ads, sitting front row at the French brand's shows, and serving as its muse. Her relationship with Coach, however, is much less established, despite the fact that the company has long counted on a string of very famous stylish folk, including Emma Roberts, Riley Keough, Rowan Blanchard, and Zoe Kravitz (all of whom were present at its 75th anniversary bash in New York last week) to rep its clothes.
Coach, once synonymous with mid-aughts logomania, has been on a much-publicized effort to reinvent itself — and become America's big luxury conglomerate, à la LVMH or Kering — under the creative leadership of Stuart Vevers. Having the most followed person on Instagram on board with that mission would definitely boost its efforts, especially if there's a design element involved, as Vogue suggestions. (Gomez's last fashion venture of this nature was her Dream Out Loud collection for K-Mart — so, we'd say it's past time for a new release.) And, if its anything like Tommy Hilfiger's capsule with Gigi Hadid, it's sure to be a sellout.
When reached for comment, a representative for Coach declined, stating that the brand has a long-standing policy of not responding to rumors or speculation. While the nature (or even existence) of this partnership comes to light, we're asking ourselves: How many of these five trends will we see represented in her inaugural collection for the brand?
This post has been updated with a response from Coach.