How Marchesa Is Staging A Red-Carpet Comeback

On a rainy November night in 2004, Renée Zellweger arrived in London for the premiere of Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason. The American actress was fresh from her Oscar win for Cold Mountain and in high demand among designers who were clamouring to dress her. In recent months she had worn strapless Carolina Herrera and floor-length Prada, but on this occasion she chose a red bandeau dress by an unknown label. “This is a new British designer, it’s Marchesa,” she told red-carpet reporters. “It’s weighted and hand-embroidered. I just love it so much.”