It is an understatement to say that he dusted off this flagship of LVMH founded by Céline Vipiana with her husband in 1945. From a store of custom-made shoes for children, in Paris, the brand experienced various fortunes until its entry into the luxury group in 1996, while maintaining a classic and conservative image. But it was with the arrival of Hedi Slimane as artistic director in January 2018 that Celine took off in force.
The rock chic, non-gendered and sexy style of the designer, who motivated Karl Lagerfeld to the point of losing 42 kilos in one year, in 2001, just to fit into the suits and tapered pants that he designed at Dior, works wonders wherever it lands. The mysterious Hedi Slimane, based in Los Angeles, has the reputation of being less interested in clothing itself than in a certain way of being in the world, he who is above all an immense photographer. He will have left his own mark on the double C label, infusing it with a new and sultry youthfulness although he had to, at a certain turning point, resign himself to a little less radicality. He deprived the logo of its “é”, definitively freeing it of its last French dross to better internationalize it. He developed the know-how, taking it beyond excellence with niches of high perfumery and high leather goods. “Under his creative and artistic leadership, Celine has experienced exceptional growth and established itself as an iconic French fashion house,” the house said. “Hedi Slimane’s holistic vision, his demands and his rigor made it possible to redefine Celine’s codes while reaffirming its feminine and Parisian roots,” continued the brief press release formalizing his departure. Informed critics saw in his latest collection for Celine, presented on video at the end of September during Paris fashion week, a few nods in the direction of Chanel, which has not yet replaced its artistic director Virginie Viard. Will Hedi Slimane be Chanel’s new aesthetic guru?
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While waiting to find out, Celine did not wait to announce his replacement: it will be Michael Rider, an unknown to the general public who, until last May, supervised the creation of Polo Ralph Loren. This American, a graduate of Brown University, began his career in 2004 at Balenciaga where he was senior designer with Nicolas Ghesquière. His arrival at the head of Celine’s creation is not a surprise, having worked for ten years with Phoebe Philo, from 2008 to 2018, when the latter headed the brand’s creation. Immediately after thanking Hedi Slimane, who exploded its profits, the house welcomed Rider, rejoicing at his return to Celine “which he knows intimately”, in the words of the press release which adds that “his creative vision, his talent, his personality and his deep attachment to Celine’s heritage make him a natural choice to continue and sustain the success of the house.” The fashion microcosm is already wondering what the stylistic choices will be for Michael Rider, for whom the time has come to express himself solo. And especially if he will give Celine back her accent, and if her fashion will be as sharp as the lost accent.
It is an understatement to say that he dusted off this flagship of LVMH founded by Céline Vipiana with her husband in 1945. From a store of custom-made shoes for children, in Paris, the brand experienced various fortunes until its entry into the luxury group in 1996, while maintaining a classic and conservative image. But it was with the arrival of Hedi Slimane as artistic director in…
