FIRST AMBASSADOR: Ferragamo has found its own K-pop artist. The Florentine fashion house has tapped Jeno Lee, best generally known as Jeno, as its first global male brand ambassador.

A member of South Korean boy band NCT, Jeno attended the brand’s fall 2023 fashion show in Milan in February, sharing behind-the-scenes moments of his Italian trip along with his roughly 6 million followers on Instagram.

“Jeno Lee has a charismatic personality and an uncanny ability to attach with a young international audience through his music, style and persona,” said Maximilian Davis, who took Ferragamo’s creative helm last yr. 

“We’re driven by the identical passion for creativity,” underscored Davis, while Jeno said he was “excited concerning the opportunity to create synergies with the brand,” which he praised for its “incredible heritage, style and craftsmanship.”

The Korean artist just isn’t recent to the world of fashion. In September last yr, he was the primary K-pop star to open a Recent York Fashion Week runway show, strutting down the Peter Do catwalk in a backless black suit, which was a part of the designer’s seminal menswear collection.

Over the previous few years competition in the posh arena has heated as much as secure South Korean idols, with many local stars being anointed ambassadors at one or several brands.

Most famously, Lisa, Jennie, Rosé and Jisoo of Blackpink, the most well-liked all-girl group, have secured partnerships with top luxury names akin to Celine, Chanel, Saint Laurent and Dior. NewJeans’ members Hyein, Hanni, Danielle and Haerin have also been tapped as ambassadors at Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Burberry and Dior, respectively. 

Other examples this yr include Dior and Tiffany & Co. each signing BTS member Jimin; Louis Vuitton and Calvin Klein choosing fellow band members J-Hope and Jungkook, respectively, while Valentino picked BTS’ Suga. Givenchy tapped Taeyang, a member of Big Bang and a solo artist, as brand ambassador, too.