H&M, an international clothing company with stores in 62 countries, is the second largest global clothing retailer behind Inditex (owners of Zara), bringing its products to people all over the world and making fashion accessible to everyone, wherever they are.

In contrast, the realm of high fashion is incredibly elitist; high-end labels cater to a certain client, namely one with cash to splash, resulting in the sky-high price tags which leave many of us astonished. This, in turn, has created a seemingly distinct divide in society, between those who can and those who cannot access this exclusive sartorial sphere.

In recent years, however, H&M has collaborated with the best and biggest names in fashion, from Versace to Margiela to Balmain, to create limited edition collections which combine high-fashion designs with high-street prices, thus broadening the fashion spectrum by allowing a larger demographic to buy into a piece of these brands.

The latest of these collaborators is French fashion house Kenzo, founded by Japanese designer Kenzo Takada. The label is now run by Humberto Leon and Carol Lim, who themselves established Opening Ceremony, a self-described “global community” exploring fashion, art and travel with locations worldwide stocking a variety of brands. Kenzo are renowned for their Asian-inspired identity within the European market, with designs influenced by animals, nature and the jungle (you’ve probably seen their infamous tiger-embroidered sweatshirts), while making use of bright colours and prints.

After the incredible success of last year’s collaboration with Balmain, Kenzo have a lot to live up to. However, in September, when the campaign for the collection was released, we were left with no doubts that Kenzo would deliver. Including the likes of musician, Chance the Rapper, and legendary supermodel, Iman, the campaign features seven diverse celebrities representing Kenzo’s youthful, energetic and spirited brand image. This was then added to just this month with the release of a full lookbook, confirming what is bound to be another sell-out collection for the Swedish powerhouse, this time with a collaboration which will force its consumers to push the boundaries of high-street fashion.

As anticipated, we are presented with an abundance of tiger print, from jackets to trousers, in blues, greens and reds, while oversized silhouettes in the forms of dresses and skirts are emblazoned with geometric patterns, making for an eclectic yet nonetheless wearable collection. My personal favourite pieces are an oversized black leather jacket with a pink faux shearling lining (worn in the lookbook by makeup artist Isamaya Ffrench) and a simple green tiger print long-sleeved top.

The new collection gives us classic pieces for a fraction of the price tag of a regular Kenzo collection (which would normally show at Paris Fashion Week). But, what is particularly appealing about this collaboration with H&M is the scope for gender-neutral clothing choices. While, at times, the lookbook and campaign portray seemingly ‘male’ and ‘female’ looks, the majority of the pieces themselves contain very similar elements, thus ruling out the idea of specified items for a particular gender and creating an immense range of choice for all compared to some previous collections.

Kenzo x H&M enters selected stores and online on the 3rd November, so keep your eyes peeled and prepare for the ultimate fashion catfight as the claws come out to grab this limited edition collection