Maison Christian Louboutin has just announced the appointment of Jaden Smith as its first Men’s Creative Director. In this role, Jaden Smith will oversee the creation of four collections annually across men’s shoes, leather goods, and accessories, while shaping a distinctive visual and emotional universe that extends beyond product design to include fashion campaigns, events, and immersive experiences.
Christian Louboutin and Jaden Smith first met in Paris in 2019—an encounter that sparked a genuine dialogue built on mutual admiration for each other’s vision and individuality. Their conversations left a lasting impression on Christian Louboutin, who was deeply inspired by Jaden Smith’s inventive spirit, his respect for the Maison, his thoughtful awareness of the world, and his commitment to shaping a more conscious future.
From this mutual inspiration, their relationship has grown into a shared artistic journey, now crystallized in this new creative chapter. Jaden Smith’s philosophy—rooted in cultural curiosity and a fearless approach to creativity—resonates strongly with the values at the heart of the Maison. A multifaceted artist, Jaden Smithsteps into this role with the ambition to expand and enrich the men’s narrative. Drawing on nearly a decade of shoe collaborations, his own fashion label, and his ongoing dialogue with music, performance, and activism, Jaden Smith will interpret Christian Louboutin’s legacy through his unique creative lens.
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“When I first met Jaden, I saw in him a natural fit for the Maison, his world is rich and multidimensional, his style and cultural sensibility are inspiring and his curiosity and openness are remarkable. I felt that with his creative direction our men’s collection would evolve in an exciting and dynamic way. He feels like the perfect addition to our creative team and I am truly looking forward to having fun working with him on our men’s collections,” said Christian Louboutin in a formal statement.
“Merging my vision with Christian’s comes quite naturally because we see the world in a very similar way. There’s a shared respect for creative freedom, and I think that’s why it works. I want to continue the story, honoring the past while shaping the future through my own perspective. It isn’t just a title — it’s a creative home. Christian has given me a place to explore, to learn, and to create freely. His legacy is built on hard work and joy, and I want to carry that forward,” reveals Jaden Smith.
“We launched our Men’s line more than 15 years ago in a very genuine way, as we always do. Today, it represents 24% of our business, and we believe there is still tremendous potential. This is the perfect time to strengthen our creative team by welcoming Jaden alongside Christian. We share the same values and the Maison’s DNA”, says Alexis Mourot, Chief Executive Officer
Jaden Smith’s avant-premiere capsule will be available in January 2026 in select boutiques and on christianlouboutin.com, while his debut collection will be revealed during Men’s Fall/Winter 2026 Paris Fashion Week also in January.
ABOUT CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN
Born and bred in Paris, Christian Louboutin spent most of his time sketching shoes instead of studying, was reportedly expelled from three schools and moved out at the age of twelve to live with a a friend. Determined to polish his natural talent, he trained in drawing and the decorative arts at Académie d’Art Roederer and his fascination with shoemaking began when he visited Museum of African art in 1976 and was fascinated with a sign of a crossed-out stiletto. The image, intended to safeguard the museum’s parquet floor, motivated him to handcraft shoes that would “make women feel empowered and confident.”
Louboutin travelled to Egypt and India, and returned to Paris with sketches of sinuous heels “teetering on the edge of something outrageous.” After approaching couture houses with his designs, Louboutin began his career in 1982 at Charles Jourdan and then freelanced for Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent and Roger Vivier. In the Eighties, he gave up shoe designing to become a landscape gardener but missed working with shoes and set up his own brand in 1991.
When Christian Louboutin opened his first boutique on Rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau the following year, one of his first customers was Princess Caroline of Monaco. The legendary shoemaker counts Lady Gaga, Madonna, Oprah Winfrey, Danielle Steel, Joan Collins, Jennifer Lopez, Madonna, Tina Turner, Sarah Jessica Parker, Beyoncé and Britney Spears among his loyal clientele. Louboutin also collaborated with Alexander McQueen, Lanvin and Jean Paul Gaultier, and designed for Yves Saint Laurent’s showing which led to litigation involving the trademark of the red soles.
Speaking of red- lacquered soles, it was first designed in 1993 when he was working on a prototype inspired by Andy Warhol’s Flowers, with a pink stacked heel, fabric flower and black sole. At that time, he noticed an assistant painting her nails red, took the nail polish and coated the sole with red lacquer. The shoe ‘popped’ and he immediately perceived that red soles would be his signature style. The outrageous designs never cease to amaze the jet set — the iconic shoemaker has handcrafted shoes with mismatched heels, covered them in studs and spikes, fur and feathers and also designed boots with pockets.
Among his legendary designs are “Pigalle” pointed-toe, high -heeled pumps; “Resillissima” ankle boots with lace panels, Corset d’Amour boot fashioned from leather, black lace and satin and ‘Officier’ slippers with military-inspired gold thread-work. Another example is his elaborate Marie-Antoinette shoe, co-created with French embroiderer Jean-Francois Lesage, with its strong colours, cannetille embroidery using metallic thread and pearls.
The men’s dress shoes, spiked loafers and lu- kicks is hugely popular as well. In fact, when the first menswear store opened in New York in 2012, Louboutin offered a bespoke service that re-created customers’ tattoo as an embroidered element on the footwear. Per The New Yorker, he sells more than 500,000 pairs of footwear each year. In 2003, Louboutin expanded into women’s handbags. The luxury brand topped Luxury Institute’s Luxury Brand Status Index for three years when it was declared Most Prestigious Women’s Shoes in 2007, 2008 and 2009. In 2009 J Lo wrote her song ‘Louboutins’ in praise of his shoes, giving them a cross-generational appeal.
However, he made headlines for all the wrong reasons in 2011 for a trademark infringement claim of red-soled shoes. He claimed Yves Saint Laurent’s shoes with red upper, red outsole be revoked and reportedly sought US$1 million in damages. U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero denied the request to stop the sale of Yves Saint Laurent shoes with red soles. In 2012 the court finally ruled that Louboutin would retain the exclusive right to use red soles when the outer portion of the shoe is any color other than red, while Yves Saint Laurent could continue to sell shoes with red soles as long as the whole shoe was red!!
In 2014 Louboutin launched a beauty line and signed a beauty license with Puig in 2018. He later sold a reported 24 percent stake in his namesake label to Italy’s Agnelli family, valuing the business at an estimated $2.7 billion.
Jasmeen Dugal is Associate Editor at FashionABC, contributing her insights on fashion, technology, and sustainability. She brings with herself more than two decades of editorial experience, working for national newspapers and luxury magazines in India.
Jasmeen Dugal has worked with exchange4media as a senior writer contributing articles on the country’s advertising and marketing movements, and then with Condenast India as Net Editor where she helmed Vogue India’s official website in terms of design, layout and daily content. Besides this, she is also an entrepreneur running her own luxury portal, Explosivefashion, which highlights the latest in luxury fashion and hospitality.
