Hedi Slimane Is Exiting LVMH’s CELINE.
The star designer is departing the Parisian fashion house after months of thorny contract negotiations. During his tenure, Slimane more than doubled Celine’s annual sales...
The star designer is departing the Parisian fashion house after months of thorny contract negotiations. During his tenure, Slimane more than doubled Celine’s annual sales to €2.5 billion.
During his tenure, the star designer known for his trademark skinny silhouette has transformed Celine, adding menswear for the first time in the brand’s 79-year history, as well as expanding into high perfume and beauty. In womenswear, Slimane reconnected Celine to its historic identity as a purveyor of leather goods that incarnate Parisian bourgeois style, helping to more than double annual sales to €2.5 billion, according to analyst estimates. (LVMH does not report performance by brand.)
While Slimane is widely regarded as an exceptional talent, he commands a high salary in addition to near total control over how hefty budgets are deployed across product development and communications.
Design teams regularly ferry sprawling collections of finished designs to Slimane’s South of France hideaway, where Slimane “shops” for favourite items and scraps the rest. Meanwhile, months and countless millions have been spent shooting the designer’s collection videos, which are typically dropped online without warning, limiting coverage by press and influencers.
Slimane’s commercially potent vision was worth the expense as it drove the business to new heights. But as LVMH tightens its belt in a slowing market, it may have been harder to stomach.
During his tenure, the star designer known for his trademark skinny silhouette has transformed Celine, adding menswear for the first time in the brand’s 79-year history, as well as expanding into high perfume and beauty. In womenswear, Slimane reconnected Celine to its historic identity as a purveyor of leather goods that incarnate Parisian bourgeois style, helping to more than double annual sales to €2.5 billion, according to analyst estimates. (LVMH does not report performance by brand.)
While Slimane is widely regarded as an exceptional talent, he commands a high salary in addition to near total control over how hefty budgets are deployed across product development and communications.
Design teams regularly ferry sprawling collections of finished designs to Slimane’s South of France hideaway, where Slimane “shops” for favourite items and scraps the rest. Meanwhile, months and countless millions have been spent shooting the designer’s collection videos, which are typically dropped online without warning, limiting coverage by press and influencers.
Slimane’s commercially potent vision was worth the expense as it drove the business to new heights. But as LVMH tightens its belt in a slowing market, it may have been harder to stomach.