Haider Ackermann and Augustinus Bader debut limited-edition The Cream

Haider Ackermann and Augustinus Bader are both brands that have inspired cult followings from the outset. The former, for impeccably tailored designs and androgynous silhouettes, the latter for skincare that uses stem cell science to achieve drastic anti-ageing. They also stand for the same thing – in Ackermann’s words, ‘luxury, attention to detail, results-driven [outcomes] and a dedication to craft’.

All those factors come into play for the brands’ first collaboration: the Haider Ackermann x Augustinus Bader vessel. The limited-edition launch is designed by Ackermann for Bader’s most famous product, The Cream, and its more intensely moisturising sibling, The Rich Cream.

Haider Ackermann and Augustinus Bader align

For Ackermann, the most essential part of the design was to create a mirrored finish. ‘The packaging needed to reflect its owner,’ he says. ‘To have a mirror where you could look at yourself, and apply your cream wherever you are and have it be a reflection of yourself. I also wanted to have something very pure to mirror the purity of skin, as well as the intimate moment when you are applying your daily ritual. It’s also very calming to touch and to look at, which is vital, because it's about trying to find peace with yourself in that moment of application.’

The Ackermann launch follows on from Bader’s previous collaboration with Victoria Beckham, which has now become its own subcategory of Bader products with serums and priming moisturisers. For Beckham, the collaboration made it possible for her to incorporate skincare into her successful beauty line with a brand she had long publicly praised and trusted. For Ackermann, the collaboration is a way to make his first move into beauty, following the recent debuts of other luxury fashion brands in the field (Prada Beauty, Dries Van Noten Beauty and Hermès Beauty are just a few). And for Bader, these projects are no doubt a way to accelerate the growth and reach of what is already one of beauty’s most impressive success stories.

While there are many reasons behind the brands’ working together, the Haider Ackermann x Augustinus Bader vessel is ultimately intended to be a showcase of their shared dedication to quality, and a collector's item for lovers of one or both names. 

As Ackermann puts it, ‘there's a lot of alignment here in the respect of the “metier” of hands-on luxury craftsmanship in the work that we both do as brands: whether it’s creating a collection by hand or creating a cream to be massaged into the skin - it's a very beautiful thing to do. I always come back to this idea of working around imperfection to elevate something to be the best that it can be.’

augustinusbader.com