I’ve never been very good at keeping secrets, but an exception had to be made for H&M's hotly anticipated designer collaboration with Glenn Martens.
Yes, the partnership was announced almost a full year ago, but H&M x Glenn Martens only just hit the brand's site. I got a first look at the sure-to-sell-out collection, and I can confirm it’s well worth the hype.
Hot off the heels of its London Fashion Week show extravaganza, H&M is releasing a capsule designed by Martens, who's currently the creative director of both Diesel and Maison Margiela. (He recently left Y/Project, where he'd been creative director for over a decade.)
"We were always looking for somebody who has a very special style, a very special way of designing things, and a clear point of view," Ann-Sofie Johansson, H&M's Creative Advisor and Head of Womenswear Design, remarked in a virtual press conference about how the collaboration, which is almost two years in the making, came together. "Glenn is very special."
Choosing which H&M pieces to Martens-ify began with curiosity—and a trip into the Swedish retailer's archives. After that, he was able to apply his out-of-the-box approach to longtime best-sellers like bomber jackets, jeans, checkered shirts, and, somewhat surprisingly, underwear, reimagining these staples through his signature lens of sexy, cool humor.
Longtime fans of Martens' work will go straight for the riffs on some of his most recognizable designs, such as hip-high boots (a nod to his Y/Project days) and trompe l'loeil slip dresses and tops (something he's become known for at his various jobs).
Customization and self-expression are central to the H&M x Glenn Martens collection. Several of the pieces feature internal wiring and foiling as a part of their construction, so shoppers can literally sculpt pieces—like the lapel on an otherwise classic trench coat and the front of a plaid button-down shirt—to their heart’s content.
The coordinating campaign plays off this ethos, working in Martens's fascination with British culture and the Brits' signature dry humor. The images present a twist on the classic family portrait, featuring icons like Richard E. Grant and Joanna Lumley.
I got to test a few of the pieces ahead of time, and yes, they're just as fun IRL. My favorites were the ones that felt like elevated, slightly off-kilter versions of classics I already own, like an oversized trench coat and a classic blue button-down, both with foil inside the lapels for a customizable look.
On the sexier side of the spectrum, out-of-office-approved finds included a black tank top outfitted with clear straps at the front that gave a cut-out effect and an already-viral pair of boots that ended somewhere around my hip bone.
Ahead, you can shop the rest of the must-buy collection. Keep scrolling to see all the pieces.
