In 2025, McCartney repurchased LVMH’s 49% minority stake in her fashion house, becoming fully independent, but remains an adviser to LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault and the group’s executive team on sustainability issues. “I’m a very independent person,” she says, “and it just became the right time for me.”
That independence is clear in her hands-on approach, whether that’s working with the suppliers of sustainable materials, styling models for the runway, or getting “very involved” in the musical choices for her shows. “My ear, I guess, is trained pretty precisely on the musical experience,” she says. “I can be a nightmare, I’m sure!”
Perhaps her fastidiousness is no surprise, given the attention her brand gets. The front row at her Paris show is studded with stars including Oprah Winfrey, Anna Wintour, Edward Enninful, and her supportive father. After the show, VIPs pour into an unusual backstage area: a courtyard by the stables. The horses from the show mill around nearby as glasses of champagne are served. McCartney holds court next to an aesthetically piled stack of hay bales, graciously taking selfies with one person after another: celebrities, influencers, fashionistas, stable staff. “Eco weirdo” no more. She brings her dad out to enjoy the horses up close, posing together for photos bathed in the golden-hour light.
Reflecting on what her legacy will be, McCartney says the concept is “a heavy thought in my particular family. Do you buy into that legacy thing, or do you just go, ‘F-ck that, we’re all gonna die and who cares?’” She’d much rather focus on the here and now. “I would like to think that I’m trying to contribute in a positive way to my time here, and as a female-founded British brand in fashion, doing things very differently,” she muses. “I hope to inspire and just let other people know that you can have a business model that works in that way… I think it’s a much nicer way to work.”