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Looking back on our youth, we’re often enamoured by the freedom to make mistakes, which we only see in hindsight. But what if, instead of rigidly following the status quo, we could channel this infiniteness from within? After all, at any given moment, we are the youngest we will ever be. Perhaps all we need to realise our full potential is the nudge to stop getting in our own way. With its latest campaign, Coach compels us to embrace this ethos, exhibiting the power one can harness when we let go of the pressure to get it right.
Starring new global ambassadors Elle Fanning, Charles Melton, Nazha and Storm Reid, and returning Coach family members Jayson Tatum, Kōki, and Youngji Lee, this campaign introduces Coach’s Fall 2024 collection in a series of stories. Within each allegory, we see these characters galvanised by the pull of new-season designs, where self-expression lifts wearers far beyond the pursuit of perfection ever could.
As the newest exploration of “The Courage to Be Real,” a platform inspiring people to express their many sides, Camille Summers-Valli directs these stories that put courage and authenticity at the forefront, tapping major talents who embody this dynamic spirit. May December star Charles Melton is pictured arriving at a first date as a cagey ball of nerves before his Hitch backpack twists his focus—quite literally—helping him shed reservations and be his authentic self. Elsewhere, The Great actress Elle Fanning portrays a young woman, paralysed by nerves as she prepares for an audition, whose confidence is awoken by the Brooklyn bag she carries. In Nazha’s film, the actress plays a woman walking up to an intimidating party as her new Times Square Tabby bag provides her with all the assurance she needs to arrive in style. The new ambassadors are joined in the campaign films by returning Coach Family member, rapper Youngji Lee, depicting a woman approaching a family gathering with hesitancy and self-doubt before her Tabby bag pulls her out of her shell.
As creative director Stuart Vevers explains, this spirit of self-empowerment is inherent to the New York-born house’s designs.
“My approach to the “Unlock Your Courage,” campaign matched my design process for the Fall collection,” said Vevers. “We focused on the tension between something romantic and picturesque and something very real and spontaneous, a sense of the lived-in but compelling aesthetic that typifies the spirit of New York.”
These films are complemented by a series of photographs by British photographer Elaine Constantine, which capture carefree moments of inner liberation and feature the full cast, including Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum, the new face of Coach Fragrances. In the brand’s new season eyewear and watches, Tatum, along with newcomer Storm Reid and returning friend of the house Kōki, are portrayed through the lens of their newfound confidence. Working closely with each individual’s idiosyncracies, Constantine achieves a unique portraiture that evokes the spontaneity of human emotion and the confidence that radiates from the uninhibited.
Effortlessly portrayed in this campaign, Coach’s unique brand of expressive luxury puts wearers firmly in the driver’s seat, enabling them to forge on boldly without limits. While accessories and ready-to-wear are crafted with techniques refined over the decades, the freedom to be imperfect comes through these go-to pieces that take the guesswork out of getting dressed. Though it’s not always so clear, there really is no time like the present. And with Coach’s new ‘Unlock Your Courage’ campaign, harnessing life’s possibilities isn’t about tuning into what’s around you but unapologetically championing what’s already within.
DISCOVER THE FULL COACH ‘UNLOCK YOUR COURAGE’ COLLECTION HERE.
