Over the last few years luxury fashion brands have been playing an ever-changing game of tag, you’re it. One day a designer is it and the next they’re not. And while three years ago Clare Waight Keller was the it pick for Givenchy, today, she’s out.
It was announced earlier today that Givenchy’s creative director Clare Waight Keller would be leaving her post at the French design house after just three years. Waight Keller was the first-ever woman to be named Artistic Director of the iconic French brand, and the designer took to instagram today to express her heartfelt sentiments, stating the honor it has been to breathe new life into Givenchy’s legacy. She went on to thank her colleagues writing “without all of you, I could not have brought my vision for Givenchy to life in such a beautiful way.” She ended her note by expressing excitement regarding a new chapter, but neglected to say what that chapter would entail.
Waight Keller was responsible for the creation of several new handbag designs for Givenchy, including the GV3 and the Mystic bag. According to the New York Times, parent company LVMH announced in a statement that the designer’s fall 2020 collection, shown at Paris Fashion Week in March, would be her final one for Givenchy. The brand has yet to name a replacement.
No! She’s so brilliant! Hoping she lands somewhere even better.
i miss her at chloe i followed her to Givenchy and just did not like it ……….. sorry i hope she can go back to a more boho free type house she does it so well
Givenchy was a cool girl brand. I didn’t get that vibe after she took over. The handbags were definitely going in the wrong direction with the handbags. It’s like she tried to do a 180 with the design house. I guess that it wasn’t working.
Was never the right fit…
I know some folks at Givenchy, she had planned on leaving for a while now and the reason is that her next role is going to be her biggest one yet. Rumors are swirling that it will be at Chanel. 🙂
This will be so interesting to see how it unfolds!
I heard that too! What do you think about it?
I’m looking forward to it! I think Clare is super talented and I loved her work at Givenchy and Chloe before that too. She’s gonna be very different from Karl, but it is time for a rapid change at Chanel anyways I feel. I speaking about Couture and RTW though.
In terms of bags I didn’t like any of her new bag designs at Givenchy, but I don’t think she really had a hand in designing them anyways, I’m sure her creative team focused on bags and accessories while she worked more on the RTW and Couture.
I agree with all of that. I think her RTW collection at Givenchy *became* more cohesive over time, and she had some lovely pieces. The accessories….not so much. And lots of the lower level RTW items with the big logos, just no. I think Chanel needs a good kick in the pants for both RTW and accessories, would love something fresh there!!
I agree with those saying that she was not the right person fit for Givenchy, she was brilliant att Cholé though. Chloé lost it’s appeal when she left it just like Givenchy did when she entered.
It was sad to see but hopefully she will get a chance to start over somewhere where her aesthethic will fit right in.