Hedi Slimane is bidding adieu to Celine
The 56-year-old designer is leaving the French maison after nearly seven years at the top. LVMH, the owner of Celine, announced the leadership change via a brief statement on Wednesday but did not provide reasons for Slimane’s departure nor details of his next steps.
The Paris native was appointed artistic, creative, and image director of Celine in 2018, receiving some ambitious financial targets on arrival. LVMH founder, chairman, and CEO Bernard Arnault told investors at the time that the luxury conglomerate was aiming to grow annual revenue at Celine from €1 billion (about $1.1 million) to between €2 billion and €3 billion ($2.2 billion and $3.3 billion) within five years, as reported by Reuters. It is impossible to say whether Celine met this goal—LVMH doesn’t post revenue by brand—but Slimane certainly took the fashion house to new heights.
“Under his creative and artistic direction, Celine has experienced exceptional growth and established itself as an iconic French couture house,” LVMH said in a statement.
Over the past six and a bit years, Slimane has cleverly woven his edgy rock ‘n’ roll aesthetics with the high-fashion elegance for which the 79-year-old label is renowned. He has also taken Celine into bold new territory. In 2019, he presented the house’s inaugural menswear collection and first fragrance line.
“The holistic vision of Hedi Slimane, his exigence, and rigour have made it possible to redefine the codes of Celine while reaffirming its feminine and Parisian roots,” LVMH added. “The extraordinary journey taken together over the last seven years has made Celine a house with a formidable foundation for the future.”
Slimane’s exit comes on the heels of a series of designer departures. This year alone, Matthew Williams exited Givenchy, Dries Van Noten stepped away from his eponymous label, Peter Hawkings left Tom Ford, Pierpaolo Piccioli departed Valentino, and Virginie Viard farewelled Chanel. The leadership changes underscore the industry’s precarious position, with slowing sales and decreased revenue across the board. LVMH made $45.2 billion in the first half of 2024, marking a 1 percent drop in revenue year-over-year. The new creative director of Celine will likely receive even more aggressive targets from Arnault, then.
This story was first published on Robb Report USA
