Listicle: 10 fashion-cartoon collabs we’re going crazy over

To celebrate 50 years of the cartoon in 2021, the Italian fashion house created a capsule of 50 items (sweaters, jackets, lush dresses, skirts, scarves, bags, shoes, iPhone cases). Their GG monogram shared space with the blue cat-shaped robot, adding a touch of fun to the luxury items. It didn’t come cheap; prices ranged between $189 and $5,350. It was launched during Chinese New Year, a bit of a miss, given that Doraemon is Japanese.

Parisian chic meets lemon-yellow kawaii. The French leather-goods brand put the beloved Pokemon on backpacks, pouches and handbags. The range, priced between $100 and $1640 was released in 2020, and had an additional Pikachu collection in three colourways. It sold out almost immediately. Pokemon fans could also customise their avatars with digital Longchamp backpacks when they played. Bright, interactive, unusual, it’s a collab done right.

In 2022, the French brand celebrated Disney’s much-loved doggies with a collection of black-and-white splotches. Perdita, Pongo and their 98 pups showed up on pet accessories, wool cardigans, distressed denim jackets and slim-fit jeans, sweaters, jogger pants, carryalls, sneakers, bucket hats and baseball caps. Some were even playfully woven into the brand’s iconic 4-G logo. Items cost anything from $320 to $5,320; Cruella wouldn’t have minded.

The American menswear brand’s nautical style is a perfect fit for the spinach-chomping sailor. So Popeye, anchor, pipe, roomy pants, girlfriend Olive Oyl and all worked well on wax jackets, striped shirts, trousers and T-shirts in the Spring-Summer 2022 collection. They launched towels caps and even an incense chamber in the shape of Popeye. Prices were low, between $128 and $168 and a portion of the proceeds went to water-conservation efforts. Toot toot!

A new spin on the 1941 Disney classic. McCartney created casuals – unisex T-shirts, jeans, maxi dresses, oversized shirts and even fringed kaftans – in vegan materials, organic cotton and recycled nylon. The film’s prints and rare posters covered the whole of each garment, a style that has been copied over and over since. Items ranged between £50 and £2,500. The handbags, in the resale market, are among the most coveted items in the collection.

The Spanish luxury fashion house has collaborated with the Japanese animation studio three times for Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro and last year’s Howl’s Moving Castle. Loewe’s expertise in appliqué, stitching and drawing on leather made characters such as Sophie, Howl, Calcifer and Markl come to life in new way. No wonder fans snapped up all leather accessories, T-shirts, silk shirts, jackets, shoes and bags (priced between £350 and £7,300) in a matter of hours.

Mickey Mouse isn’t rare, but limited-edition Mickey merch has a way of grabbing attention and selling out quickly. Coach’s 2023 range of bags, sportswear and sneakers featured the mouse, Minnie and Donald in classic cheerful poses, often with a thumbs-up. Prices ranged from $275 to $2,400. Disney’s cooler collab though was with the estate of American graffiti artist Keith Haring, which blended two very separate ideas of fun into one great drop.

A collection that would make even Mufasa proud. Balmain ushered in the 30th birthday of the Lion King this year with high-fashion immersed in the cultural richness of Africa. Local artists contributed to the project, creating pleated dresses, Tshirts and hoodies in striking colours, prints and patterns. At $450 to $8,600 the items were in keeping with Balmain’s range. The iced-out Rafiki necklace, though, was priceless.

A threesome! Fendi celebrated the Chinese Year of the Dragon by teaming up with streetwear label FRGMT early in 2024 and going all out with Pokemon characters. Dragonite on FF-monogrammed bags, merch featuring Dragonair and Dratini, bags, clothes accessories. The statement pieces each took over 30 hours of manual craftsmanship, and allowed gamers to access digital avatar items from the collection. Fans happily paid an average of $3,650 per item.

It might be LV’s most iconic drop to date. For the Manga series’ 30th anniversary in 2023, the brand paid homage in the best way. The spotlight was on boots, platform shoes, pumps and bags in the same pastel shades as the Sailor Scouts. Ranging from $650 to $1,605, the collection aimed to celebrate luxury, of course, but also Sailor Moon’s idea of individuality, self-belief and identity. And oh, so pretty!