Disneyland Paris to host Coperni fashion show during Paris Fashion Week

MAGIC KINGDOM: Coperni, the French fashion brand known for staging viral moments like Bella Hadid's spray-on dress, is preparing to make headlines again with its choice of venue for the upcoming edition of Paris Fashion Week.

In a historic first, co-founders Sébastien Meyer and Arnaud Vaillant plan to stage their show on October 1 at Disneyland Paris, WWD has learned.

Known for their love of technology and approach to show formats, the duo seized the opportunity to host an event with broad crossover appeal.

“It’s a childhood dream come true,” Vaillant said. “We grew up in the south of France and when you’re little, the first time you go to Paris is not to see the Eiffel Tower, but to go to Disneyland.”

They've been traveling back and forth between their studio and the theme park to fine-tune what they promise will be a “complete experience,” with the invitation-only show set to take place around 10 p.m. in the park's Fantasyland area.

“It’s going to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. They’ve never done this before, so it’s a gamble for them,” Vaillant said of the event, which marks the first time Disneyland Paris has hosted a runway show during Paris Fashion Week.

Disneyland Paris is Europe’s most visited theme park with a record 9.93 million visitors in 2022, according to the latest annual report from the Themed Entertainment Association and infrastructure consultancy AECOM. Disneyland Paris said it has welcomed 375 million visitors since it opened in 1992.

The complex is undergoing a €2 billion renovation as part of a €2 billion investment that saw the opening of the Marvel Avengers Campus two years ago. Next up is the transformation of Walt Disney Studios Park, Disneyland Paris' second park, which will be renamed Disney Adventure World with the opening of a new Frozen World.

The entertainment giant has partnered with brands including Balmain and Givenchy on clothing lines and last year tapped artists and designers including Schiaparelli's Daniel Roseberry and Kenzo's Nigo to contribute pieces to the Create 100 project marking its centenary.

The Coperni show will be inspired by Disney princesses. “Of course, we will give it the Coperni touch, we will approach it in a cool, contemporary, innovative and cutting-edge way, but we always like to evolve the style of the Coperni woman,” said Vaillant.

“As you can imagine, we’re going to be leaning into the more glamorous side of the brand,” he teased.

While details of the show are being kept under wraps, the duo plans to host a cocktail party at the royal-themed Disneyland Hotel, which reopened in January after a two-year renovation. “The backstage area will be at Cinderella’s Inn, it’s so fun,” Vaillant said.

The after-party will take place in Discoveryland, home of the Space Mountain attraction.

Coperni is known for bringing an unexpected dimension to its shows. The brand hosted a drive-in fashion show during the coronavirus pandemic and even unveiled a collection atop the Montparnasse Tower, the tallest building in Paris.

Meyer said the label shares with Disney a “passion for entertainment.”

The designer is fascinated by founder Walt Disney, who died in 1966, noting that he nicknamed the members of his research and development team Imagineers, because their work involves the imaginative application of engineering.

“He was a great innovator and he was one of the first to revolutionize animation and film, but also theme parks, with new technologies,” Meyer noted. “I put Walt Disney on the same level as Steve Jobs. They were visionaries.”

The duo hopes the show will resonate with a broad audience. “Fashion can be a little snobby,” Vaillant said. “We always like to take it to a bigger stage.”