At 29, the ready-to-wear designer dresses Madonna, Barbara Pravi, Izia and Afro fusion star Burna Boy.
The appearance, in the middle of the Olympic opening ceremony, of a Joan of Arc in leather armor made of belts, that’s her: Jeanne Friot. « I like to transform the belt, a utilitarian object, into an ornament. Creating a garment by interlocking belts together is like creating a second skin like armor. », explains the young woman who collaborated, for the occasion, with Robert Mercier, master of leather for the great houses. Since she posted on social networks Thursday evening, a video where Daphné Bürki, in charge of costumes for Thomas Jolly, presents her as one of the notable artists of the evening, her phone has not stopped ringing.
At 29, the ready-to-wear designer is one of the spearheads of French fashion. Jeanne Friot dresses Madonna, Barbara Pravi for her tour, Izia at the Victoires de la Musique, actress Anya Taylor-Joy, as well as Afro fusion star Burna Boy. From her workshops set up at La Caserne, an eco-responsible fashion incubator in the heart of Paris, her collections come out, from the 70-euro cap to unique models with several zeros.
This platinum blonde was born in Paris in 1995 in a family turned to the arts. Her mother Sandrine Runser, artistic director of music, launched Diam’s, the actor-rapper Younès Boucif or Lucky Love. Her father, Vincent Friot is a painter, visual artist. « I grew up in a very open environment with a lot of madness but in a positive way. My father listened to Nirvana, Chett Backer, the Stones. My mother is more urban. My taste for indie music came from my stepfather who made me listen to the rocker Nosfell, who sings in an invented language, kloklobetz. », she testifies.
From a very young age she knew she wanted to work in fashion, inspired by her grandmothers, one very Coco Chanel, the other Thierry Mugler. « My paternal grandmother, navy blue knee-length skirt, ran a Burberry boutique in the East of France. She gave me a taste for beautiful cuts, beautiful fabrics, and crafts. My other grandmother had studied Fine Arts. She passed on her taste to me through the decoration of her house or the iconic pieces by Sonya Rykiel and Thierry Mugler that she wore », she remembers.
« 100% eco-responsible and gender-neutral »
At 18, she joined “Duperré”, the only high-level public school in fashion. “It was great, we were always drawing, we went to see exhibitions with notebooks,” she remembers. First internships at APC, Kitsuné, Wanda Nylon, a young fashion house where she worked in all positions. She spent a year with the artistic director Clémence Cahu. « I was hesitating between working in fashion imagery for adverts and magazines and clothing. », explains the woman who dresses the electro pop group Hyphen Hyphen, including the singer Santa. Then she joined the French Fashion Institute, the Harvard of Couture, nestled on the banks of the Seine. “I met my mentor there, Josephus Thimister, who had taken over Balenciaga. A great man of fashion who has now passed away, she says. This house hired me.” In 2020, Jeanne Friot created her brand, for which she only uses recycled materials. She buys “dead stocks”, rolls not used by major luxury houses. « This allows me to be sure of the quality of the fabrics and their composition.” It produces capsule collections of ten to sixty models, « 100% eco-responsible and gender-neutral ».
Gabrielle Langevin
In June, on the roof of the Duperré school, she presented her fifth collection, winter 2025. She was inspired by Debby Harry, the singer of the group Blondie, Grace Jones, Françoise Sagan and Maggie Nelson. Her dress made of small metal hearts with the words “Love & Lounder” engraved is a marvel. As are her asymmetrical dresses with pretty pleats and her high white thigh-high boots with cosmonaut soles. For the second season in a row, her friend Daphné Bürki is walking the runway for her. These two met on the show Drag Race from France Télévision, where the presenter wore two of her dresses. « A year ago, Thomas Jolly and Daphné Bürki came to see me in my studio. They suggested that I work on the theme of Joan of Arc for the opening ceremony. For the young designer, Joan of Arc is an obvious choice. Like her, Jeanne Friot has a strong personality, a taste for risk and a fighting spirit that she puts at the service of the LGBT cause. « France has many luxury houses created by women like Gabrielle Chanel and Jeanne Lanvin but 90% of the artistic directors are men. They are mostly gay but there are no lesbians. I am the only one, at least the only one who is not afraid to say it, she explains. I want to change that and serve as a role model for future generations. To show that it is possible.”
On Friday, she followed the river parade from the Rosa Bonheur guinguette moored under the Quai d’Orsay. And then? The coming weeks promise to be very busy. In mid-August, we will discover her creations for the new season ofEmily in Paris. Then those worn by Barbara Pravi on stage. Jeanne Friot will already be designing her next collection.