When Zendaya graced the Louis Vuitton spring/summer 2025 show on the final day of Paris Fashion Week, it was a major coup. The actor, an official brand ambassador since April 2023, has only graced two other shows since becoming part of Nicolas Ghesquière’s constellation of superstar muses. The fashion internet remains captivated by her partnership with the label, especially considering her penchant for wearing other designers and her unpredictable attendance at shows. This contrasts with Harry Styles, who consistently supports designers he admires, most notably Alessandro Michele during his Gucci tenure and now at Valentino. Intriguingly, Styles, unlike Zendaya, lacks a known contract with Valentino, at least for now. This highlights the subtle distinctions between a brand ambassador and a brand muse. While these terms are often used interchangeably, they carry different meanings and rarely overlap. One is official and marketed, the other ambiguous and more personal.
However, celebrities and their images remain crucial bridges between fashion houses, pop culture, and their audience. In the social media era, their influence is amplified, prompting a fierce competition among brands to secure the right celebrities, both under contract and organically. The appeal of individuals like Styles and Zendaya stems from their personal style, which drives public fascination. What they wear, whether paid or not, becomes a matter of interest. By following industry news, gossip, and social media buzz, audiences gain insights into who is close to whom, who receives compensation for appearances, and who doesn’t. The role of an ambassador seems straightforward – contractual pay-to-play – but the muse’s role is more nebulous. Timothée Chalamet and Tilda Swinton, close friends of Haider Ackermann, have championed his work for both Berluti and his own label, supported his guest designer role at Jean Paul Gaultier, and are likely to follow him to Tom Ford. The muse embodies authenticity, inspiring the audience in a unique way: “If this person I admire is inspired by this designer, then I should be too.” This dynamic plays out most prominently on social media.
The celebrity contingent at a show serves as the initial frontier for virality. This is essential for brand engagement, encompassing not only the brand itself but also the content economy surrounding it – magazines, influencers, editors, and more rely on celebrity content for engagement. (I’ve witnessed this firsthand, filming Rihanna, Beyoncé, and Madonna in the front row.) Engagement is undeniably crucial in determining a runway show’s success. While the link between this success and sales was once unclear, brands have shifted their strategies to promote in-season product. It’s no longer about attendance, but about filling the front row with pieces the audience can buy. The power of those who can occupy these seats and wear those products is steadily growing. Brands previously focused their marketing efforts on a select few megastars, but the internet has drastically changed the landscape. Last season, at Chemena Kamali’s Chloé debut, the front row featured a constellation of stars, including Sienna Miller – a Chloé OG – and a host of celebrity guests all sporting the same pair of clogs. This concept was replicated this season by labels like Tory Burch – her popular Pierced flats were prominently displayed – with brands increasingly aiming for diverse celebrity camps rather than a single A-list star (think Loewe, Balenciaga, and Miu Miu). Ten or so lesser celebrities can now equal a superstar, as the focus is not only on engagement but also on product. With the front row serving as prime real estate, brands have more opportunities to promote specific pieces, making the ambassador game more competitive than ever.
Brands are requesting exclusive appearances from talent, negotiating campaigns and awards show dressing in exchange for their presence at shows, and securing other back-end deals. They want their talent to simply wear their brand, not endorse a multitude of them. Remember Jonathan Anderson’s Loewe men’s show in January, which went viral for featuring a constellation of “internet boyfriends” in the front row? That’s the name of the game now. What’s particularly intriguing and successful about Anderson and Loewe is their ability to forge close relationships with their ambassadors or cultivate ambassadors from their close talent friendships. Josh O’Connor and Greta Lee, for instance, are Loewe ambassadors, in addition to their personal relationships with Anderson. In an era where the internet dissects celebrity relationships obsessively, and the star power behind a designer constitutes valuable brand equity, this makes a difference. Muses also present an editorialized ideal of the label, highlighting a designer’s vision rather than solely promoting the fashion brand. This is ideal for designers like Ackermann and Michele, renowned for their auteur status. While the general public may not be aware of the intricacies of these relationships, in the case of Chalamet and Styles, their friendships with Ackermann and Michele, respectively, are well documented, amplifying the designers’ star power. These muses’ willingness to follow their designer friends to the labels they work for endears them to their audiences, fueling those elusive feelings of authenticity and community that brands often strive for but rarely achieve.
Ultimately, a brand’s success, and its runway shows in particular, hinge on virality, which is driven by both the fashion and the guest list. The element of surprise, like Lindsay Lohan at Balenciaga SS25, or the endearing nature of an attendance, like Styles at Valentino or Queer star Daniel Craig at Loewe, are critical factors. In terms of formal ambassadors, these figures rarely transcend their poster-person role. Louis Vuitton has skillfully navigated this, leveraging Ghesquière’s friendships with stars like Jennifer Connelly, Sophie Turner, and Emma Stone to create muses who act as ambassadors. These women not only showcase the label but also emphasize Ghesquière’s distinct vision. While Zendaya may not have a personal relationship with the designer, her sartorial presence has made her the ideal ambassador, first for Valentino and now for Louis Vuitton. The public admires her and loves her style. Her endorsement is valuable from a brand perspective, but her partnership with one of the most prestigious luxury labels also amplifies her personal brand. This relationship is more transactional, yet it proves that in the ambassador-versus-muse game, the difference only truly matters if the ambassador fails to deliver a convincing message.
