Can luxury brands hack their own growth?

Originally published in The Guardian on November 3, 2015

When Olivier Rousteing of Balmain opened his Instagram account in 2012, he was among the first creative directors in luxury fashion to do so.

Rousteing’s “Balmain army” — a group of his personal friends who also happen to define the cultural zeitgeist of today — has become as known as his designs. T…