The busy girl’s comprehensive guide to pronouncing designer names

You spot a Loewe from 10 paces away and you turn to your friend to gush over it… only to realize you don’t actually know how it’s pronounced. Don’t worry – you definitely aren’t alone. We get stumped too when it comes to wrapping our mouths around some of the biggest names in fashion (mostly thanks to those complex pronunciations).

To aid you and ourselves in avoiding future fashion-speak embarrassment, we’ve come up with this comprehensive guide to ensure you pronounce even the hardest names correctly, so you’ll never have to awkwardly mumble your way through ‘Maison Martin Margiela’ ever again.

Simply say it out loud as you read the phoentic counterpart, and repeat until you've aced it. Easy. 

Altuzarra: ahl-too-zah-rah

Anna Sui: anna swee

Badgely Mishka: badge-lee meesh-kah

Balenciaga: bah-len-see-ah-gah

Balmain: bal-mahn

Bottega Veneta: boh-teh-gah vehn-eh-tah

Bvlgari: bool-gah-ree

Carolina Herrera: cair-oh-lee-nah her-rair-ah

Christian Louboutin: christian loo-boo-tahn

Christian Lacroix: christian luh-kwa

Comme des Garçons: cohm dey gah-sohn

Dolce & Gabbana: dol-chey and gab-ana

Dries Van Noten: drees van no-ten

Ermenegildo Zegna: air-men-eh-geel-doh zehn-yah

Gareth Pugh: gareth pew

Giambattista Valli: gee-am-bah-tease-ta vah-lee

Givenchy: zjee-von-shee

Hermès: air-mehz

Herve Leger: air-vay leh-zjay

Issey Miyake: ees-sey mee-yah-kay

Jean Paul Gaultier: zhon paul goh-tee-ay

Junya Watanabe: jun-yah wat-an-ah-bey

Lanvin: lahn-vahn

Loewe: loh-wev-eh

Louis Vuitton: loo-wee vwee-than

L’Wren Scott: la-ren scott

Maison Martin Margiela: may-sohn martin mar-jhell-al

Marchesa: mar-kay-sah

Mary Katrantzou: mary cat-trant-zoo

Miu Miu: mew-mew

Monique Lhuillier: Monique le-hu-lee-ay

Moschino: mosh-kee-noh

Narciso Rodriguez: nar-see-so rah-dree-gezzs

Olivier Theyskens: oh-liv-ee-ay tehs-kenz

Prabal Gurung: pruh-bul gooh-roong

Peter Pilotto: peter pil-ott-toh

Proenza Schouler: pro-ehn-za skool-er

Ralph Lauren: ralf lohr-en

Rochas: roh-shahs

Rodarte: roh-dar-tay

Roksanda Illincic: rok-san-da ill-in-chik

Salvatore Ferragamo: sal-vah-tor-re fer-ra-gah-moh

Saint Laurent: sahn loh-rahn

Sonia Rykiel: sewn-yah reek-key-el

Thakoon: tah-koon

Thierry Mugler: tea-eh-ree moo-gler

Versace: vur-sah-chee

Vetements: vet-mahn

Yohji Yamamoto: yoh-jee yam-ah-mo-to

via GIPHY