The announcement of Hedi Slimane’s departure from the LVMH group has set the rumor mill abuzz: will the brilliant couturier take back the reins of the house of Chanel after the resounding departure of Virginie Viard last June?
The 56-year-old designer would in any case be a worthy heir to Karl Lagerfeld, who cut his teeth at Saint Laurent, the great rival of the “Kaiser”.
Son of a Tunisian accountant and an Italian seamstress
This son of a Tunisian accountant and an Italian seamstress, born in Paris and having studied at the Ecole du Louvre, was thus the first designer designing collections for men to receive the prize from the Council of American Fashion Designers in 2002 , the most sought after.
Artistic and creative director of Céline since 2018, he has enabled the brand to expand into new territories such as perfume and men’s fashion. According to the LVMH press release, Hedi Slimane has “remarkably enriched the house’s territories of expression with the masculine silhouette, couture and haute perfumery”.
The press release also underlines that “Celine has experienced exceptional growth and has established itself as an essential French fashion house. Hedi Slimane’s holistic vision, his demands and his rigor, made it possible to redesign Celine’s codes while reaffirming its feminine and Parisian roots.
The name of his successor was soon announced on social networks. Michael Rider is appointed artistic director of Celine.
The American designer is not unknown in Celine’s workshops since he worked alongside Pheobe Philo in the same house between 2008 and 2018. Before the announcement of this return, he was Creative Director of Polo Ralph Lauren until ‘last May.