At New York Fashion Week, Kiehl’s marked its first fashion show sponsorship as The Blonds celebrated two decades on the runway.
By Peter Koloff
You could feel the anticipation before ever getting inside.
Outside The Blonds New York Fashion Week show, a long line stretched around the entrance as guests waited to get into one of the week’s more anticipated anniversary presentations. Once inside, that anticipation turned into an electric room filled with people who genuinely seemed excited to be there.
The occasion was significant. The Blonds were celebrating their 20th anniversary, revisiting the glamour, theatricality and futuristic excess that have defined the label since designers Phillipe and David Blond launched it two decades ago.
For Kiehl’s, the evening represented a milestone of its own.
The 175-year-old New York skincare brand served as The Blonds’ Official Skincare Sponsor, marking Kiehl’s first-ever fashion show sponsorship and extending the brand’s presence into one of Fashion Week’s more theatrical environments.
Backstage, according to Kiehl’s, makeup artist Deney Adam incorporated the brand’s new 1CC CollaShot Plump Serum into skin preparation alongside Avocado Eye Cream, Ultra Facial Cream and other Kiehl’s products.
On the runway, The Blonds delivered exactly the kind of spectacle its audience had come to expect.
Paris Hilton walking the show was one of the evening’s clearest highlights. Her appearance felt completely at home within The Blonds’ universe, where celebrity, nightlife, fashion and performance have always existed comfortably together.
But one of the more interesting things about the night was how broad that universe has become.
Streamer N3on appearing in the same fashion conversation as French Montana is the kind of combination that would have felt unusual not long ago. In 2026, it makes perfect sense. Fashion Week increasingly pulls from music, streaming, nightlife, celebrity and internet culture as readily as it does from traditional fashion institutions.
Kiehl’s involvement extended beyond backstage skincare. The sponsorship formed part of the brand’s Culture Club, an initiative designed to bring its VIP community into fashion, entertainment and cultural moments around New York.
The evening also moved beyond the runway. Kiehl’s hosted a pre-game at Bar Bas before guests continued to The Blonds’ official afterparty at Nebula, with attendees including Christina Kirkman, Shea Durazzo and members of the recent Love Island cast.
At The Blonds, that culture was impossible to separate into neat categories.
Beauty was backstage. Fashion was on the runway. Music, streaming, celebrity and nightlife were all part of the same room.
By the time Paris Hilton had walked the runway and N3on and French Montana had entered the same Fashion Week conversation, the point was already visible.
The boundaries had disappeared.
Photo Credit: Michele Kammerman
