The french fashion house of Dior will appoint Raf Simons as replacement for John Galliano. Galliano was ousted from Dior last year after he made some anti-semitic remarks to a young couple ath Café La Perle in the parisian cartier of Le Marré.
The appointment of Raf Simons ends a painstakingly complex search for the designer to head the creative efforts of the 66 year old firm. The search was conducted by Mr Bernard Arnauld himself, chairman of LVMH, the luxury conglomerate that owns Dior.
At 44 Mr Simons was heading Jil Sander, and his appointment follows a long courting of other designers such as Marc Jacobs. When conversations with Mr Jacobs fell through due to compensation, Mr Arnault and Dior’s Chairman, Sidney Toledano, started discussions with Mr Simons.
Dior was founded on frivolous yards of expensive French silk as Europe lay in ruins from World War II, shocking the world with its tiny waists and generous skirts. In 1996 Gianfranco Ferré was replaced with the hispano-british punk John Galliano, who pushed the boundaries of women’s design beyond the boundaries of traditional design, and fostered the growth of the firm’s revenue, growing steadily up to US$1.39 billion in 2011.
We wish Mr Simons the best of lucks, and he will undoubtedly need it, replacing a creative genios such as John Galliano isn’t going to be easy!
