We Speak Fashion

Bhavitha Mandava’s Fairy-Tale Rise: From a Brooklyn Subway Platform to the Cover of British Vogue

Published

9 months ago

February 12, 2026

Bhavitha Mandava’s route to the cover of British Vogue began on a New York City subway platform. The 26-year-old, born in Hyderabad, India, fronts the magazine’s March 2026 issue — her debut Vogue cover — photographed by Oliver Hadlee Pearch and styled by Julia Sarr-Jamois.

In her editor’s letter, British Vogue editor Chioma Nnadi recounts the discovery: Mandava was a graduate student at NYU when she was spotted on the subway in 2024, and within weeks she was walking the Bottega Veneta runway under designer Matthieu Blazy. When Blazy was appointed creative director of Chanel, Mandava followed him to the house — a partnership that produced two historic firsts in a matter of weeks.

In December 2025, she opened Chanel’s Métiers d’Art 2026 show, staged in a decommissioned Bowery subway station in Manhattan, becoming the first Indian model to open a Chanel show; a video of her parents watching the livestream from Hyderabad, reacting with tears and applause, went viral. In January 2026, she closed the Chanel Haute Couture Spring 2026 show in Paris as the Chanel bride — again, the first Indian model to do so. In March 2026, she was reported to have become the first Indian model named a Chanel house ambassador.

Before modeling, Mandava completed architecture studies and graduate work at NYU, at one point walking fashion weeks around her classes. There is a symmetry the industry has not missed: the model spotted on a subway platform made her Chanel debut in a show staged inside a subway station. In her British Vogue interview, released February 11, she spoke about representation and colourism, and about the messages she receives from South Asian women — including mothers who show her photographs to their daughters.

A subway sighting, two Chanel firsts and a debut Vogue cover inside two years: Mandava’s rise is the rare fairy tale the industry still manages to produce.

We Speak Fashion

L’Oréal Powers Past the Beauty Market: €35.33 Billion in Nine Months as Salon and Derm Brands Lead

Published

4 days ago

October 22, 2026

We Speak Media

The world’s largest beauty company is growing faster than the market it leads. L’Oréal reported sales of €35.33 billion for the first nine months of 2026, up 6.9% like-for-like and 7.7% as reported, in a statement released on October 22. Third-quarter sales reached €11.56 billion, up 7.2% like-for-like.

CEO Nicolas Hieronimus called it “an exceptional third quarter,” saying the global beauty market “once again proved its resilience” and that L’Oréal “continued to significantly outpace it” — company commentary put the wider market’s growth at roughly 5% for the quarter.

The quarter’s heavy lifting came from the group’s two professional-facing divisions. Professional Products — home to Kérastase, Redken and L’Oréal Professionnel — sold €1,469.1 million in Q3, up 12.1% like-for-like, while Dermatological Beauty (La Roche-Posay, CeraVe, SkinCeuticals) sold €1,871.6 million, up 12.2%. L’Oréal Luxe added €4,176.6 million (+6.4%) and Consumer Products €4,044.3 million (+4.3%), as fragrances and haircare drove growth, skincare continued to accelerate, and e-commerce sales grew around 17% — well ahead of the online beauty market.

The brand highlights told the same story. Kérastase grew double-digit, powered by Gloss Absolu, Genesis and Chronologiste; La Roche-Posay launched Mela B3 Double-Dose and Anthelios UV Air; Yves Saint Laurent’s Libre and MYSLF fragrances grew double-digit; and the newly acquired fragrance house Creed performed strongly.

Regionally, SAPMENA-SSA was the standout at +19.2% like-for-like, followed by Europe at +9.9% and North Asia at +7.8%; North America grew 2.2% (5.6% adjusted), and Latin America was the only region to decline, down 1.0%. During the period L’Oréal also closed its acquisition of a majority stake in Innovist, a digital-first Indian personal care house of brands — a results statement that underlines a simple point: at €35 billion in nine months, L’Oréal is not just leading the beauty business, it is widening the gap.