Latest news with #DelphineArnault
CNA
30-06-2025
- Business
- CNA
‘Quality is key': Dior's CEO Delphine Arnault on opening a new chapter at the maison
Dior chief executive Delphine Arnault has said she is opening 'a new chapter' at LVMH's second-biggest brand, emphasising that 'quality is key' as new creative director Jonathan Anderson makes his runway debut amid a luxury downturn. The appointment of the Northern Ireland-born designer in May 2025 made him the first designer since the brand's founder, Christian Dior, to oversee both the men's and women's collections. He is assuming creative control of a brand with an estimated €9.5 billion (US$11.14 billion; S$14.21 billion) in revenues at a time of deteriorating luxury demand, especially in Asia. The choice of Anderson, 40, is the biggest bet by Arnault — eldest child and only daughter of LVMH chair and chief executive Bernard Arnault — since she took the helm in 2023 from former star executive Pietro Beccari, who moved to Louis Vuitton. Anderson, who grew up in the small town of Magherafelt during the Troubles, kicked off Dior's new era with a menswear show last Friday (Jun 27). 'Dior is a fascinating brand,' Arnault told the Financial Times from her office in Paris. 'I worked at Dior from 2001 until 2013, so it's the brand that I know. The growth was spectacular but I think my role as the CEO is to know when it's time to change. And now it's a new chapter.' 'I'm interested to see what is going to come up . . . in a way that's very elevated, very qualitative,' said Arnault of her hopes for Anderson's new designs. 'The next five years is going to be all about quality in the materials and the manufacturing. Quality is key.' Before the current downturn Dior had been one of the luxury industry's star performers. Revenues quadrupled to €9.5 billion between 2017 and 2023, according to estimates from HSBC, helped by extensive price rises. But Arnault's tenure has thus far coincided with a sharp slowdown in the luxury market, especially in China, and consumer pushback against price inflation. Already fragile consumer confidence could be damaged further by the escalating conflict in the Middle East. Meanwhile, a scandal involving labour practices at subcontractors in Italy — Dior agreed to settle a probe last month 'without establishing any infringement' — has tarnished the brand's image. 'The focus [for Arnault] is on reinvigorating sales growth in the aftermath of a period of booming sales,' said Zuzanna Pusz, European luxury goods analyst at UBS. 'But also focusing on re-establishing the value for money relationship in the eyes of the consumer, especially for leather goods.' In April, LVMH's chief financial officer Cecile Cabanis told analysts that Dior's first quarter organic sales growth was 'slightly below' the 5 per cent drop seen across its fashion and leather goods division. The appointment of Anderson is part of Dior's attempt to find a new creative impetus after nine years under outgoing designer Maria Grazia Chiuri. Anderson, formerly creative director of Loewe, left the Spanish brand last year with a catalogue of hits to his name, including its hammock and puzzle bags, as well as a series of critically acclaimed runway collections. Loewe's revenues rose from about €230 million to between €1.5 billion and €2 billion over the course of Anderson's 11-year stint, according to Bernstein analyst Luca Solca's estimates. At Dior, however, Anderson is overseeing a far bigger creative operation — especially in his combined role. Arnault does not expect the brand's new creative head to have an immediate impact on sales. 'I'm really excited about what's next but I think it takes a couple of seasons to understand the vision of a designer,' said Arnault, adding that Anderson was a choice that reflected 'long-term thinking'. Anderson's appointment coincides with a series of executive changes at Dior, including the appointment of former Louis Vuitton executive Pierre-Emmanuel Angeloglou as deputy chief executive. Following the subcontractor scandal in Italy, Dior has created a new industrial division to produce more designs in-house, overseen by Giorgio Striano, who was hired from EssilorLuxottica. Nicolas Carre, another former Louis Vuitton executive, joined Dior as industrial director for leather goods, shoes and fashion jewellery. 'It's about finding the best talents and making them work together,' said Arnault, who worked with many of the team in her previous role at Vuitton, from 2013 to 2022. 'I think we need to have the best teams in terms of creatives . . . but also in terms of the management of the company.' Arnault did not respond to questions about the impact of tariffs on the business but she reaffirmed that the US market — one of luxury's largest by sales — remained critical. Dior plans to open a new Manhattan flagship store in July, and another store on LA's Rodeo Drive in October. But the turbulence in the US under President Donald Trump — whose inauguration was attended by Delphine, Alexandre and Bernard Arnault — has blunted hopes that US shoppers would lead a luxury industry recovery this year. Pusz at UBS said that while the current environment was difficult for luxury Anderson 'seems well suited' for the challenge, citing his record of innovation, delivering a 'powerful brand message', as well as recruiting and managing teams of talented designers. Anderson, who is also creative director and majority owner of an eponymous brand, JW Anderson, will now deliver up to 18 collections every year. But Arnault seemed unfazed by the additional pressures on him, or the risk that the Northern Irishman could suffer creative burnout. 'He's 40, I think he's the most talented designer of his generation,' she said. 'I think he can do a lot of amazing things.'
Yahoo
28-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Jonathan Anderson on Building His Dior World, One Show at a Time
PARIS — 'You cannot rebuild a house in one show. It's impossible. You'd have to be like Christ,' Jonathan Anderson said on the eve of unveiling his debut collection as creative director of Dior. It was the Irish designer's attempt to manage expectations ahead of the most highly anticipated event of the Paris men's collections, and one of the most closely scrutinized designer debuts in a year of unprecedented creative upheaval at leading luxury houses. More from WWD Sabrina Carpenter Goes Classic in Pleated Skirt and Satin Peep-toe Louboutin Pumps Dior Homme's Spring 2026 Show Jonathan Anderson's Dior Debut Draws Daniel Craig, Robert Pattinson, TXT and Rihanna Summer 2025 Fashion: City Escape Since Bernard Arnault, chairman and chief executive officer of Dior parent company LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, offhandedly confirmed his appointment as creative director of Dior menswear at the group's annual general meeting in April, the pressure has been building on Anderson, fresh off a stellar decade at smaller stablemate Loewe. Last month, the house confirmed he would also be in charge of women's collections and haute couture, making him the first designer since founder Christian Dior to have full purview over the house. His appointment coincides with a general slowdown in spending on luxury goods, which has seen Dior lag the rest of LVMH's fashion and leather goods division amid consumer pushback against a rash of post-pandemic price increases. Anderson and Delphine Arnault, chairman and CEO of Christian Dior Couture, are on a mission to fix this. The designer cautioned that fashion critics, and shareholders, will have to settle in for the ride. 'It's going to take five collections to break the cycle of it, and then you can kind of birth out a vision from it,' he said in an interview. 'So for me, it is a process of decoding the brand, and then from that, we hope to end up with a solution.' Though he's long been touted as a rising star in the LVMH firmament, Anderson admitted he had not pictured himself in the hot seat at Dior, the founding brand and crown jewel of Bernard Arnault's luxury empire. 'I would never have imagined five years ago that I would be here. So I'm trying to kind of go back to, 'What is Christian Dior?'' he said. 'I didn't know much about Dior, so in a weird way, it's a little like doing a Ph.D. You're going in and trying to absorb it and then reconfigure it.' Starting with menswear felt like a perfect entry point for Anderson, who launched his eponymous JW Anderson label as a men's line in 2008. 'I've always started with men's. I started with men's in my own brand, I started with men's at Loewe. I'm kind of a creature of habit and slightly superstitious, which Dior was as well,' he remarked. He teased his vision with a campaign featuring Andy Warhol's Polaroids of two cultural icons, Lee Radziwill and Jean-Michel Basquiat, and a couple of videos starring soccer player and Dior brand ambassador Kylian Mbappé. The idea was to project an attitude that will then filter into the nitty-gritty of new ready-to-wear and accessories collections. 'It's about style. Christian Dior, the man himself, was more about archetype,' he explained, noting Dior's proficiency at churning out architecturally inspired silhouettes. In addition to the Bar jacket, which famously launched the New Look in 1947, Anderson pinned three archival dresses on his men's mood board for spring 2026: the Caprice, the Cigale and the Delft. 'You could probably get a show out of each of these looks, because they were radical in their moment,' he mused. The 40-year-old was also inspired by Dior's world-building skills. 'For me, what makes Dior himself unique is that I think he has got huge amounts of empathy,' he noted. From the beginning, the founding couturier worked with decorator Victor Grandpierre to establish key house codes including its signature colors — gray and pink — and the Louis XVI chair. In addition to decorating the label's headquarters on Avenue Montaigne, Grandpierre designed the displays and packaging of iconic perfumes such as Miss Dior. Dior's obsession with the 18th century chimed with Anderson, who took it as a cue to explore historic menswear pieces, including a collection of 23 waistcoats, some of which he replicated for the show — an idea he credited to another design icon, Martin Margiela, and linked to the capabilities of Dior's haute couture workshop. 'On the first day being introduced to the couture team, it was really fascinating that some customers still today order looks from the '50s, and we make them for them still, which I think is remarkable,' he said. 'For me, that just shows you the power of the brand.' He's keen to embrace the history of the house, including the contributions of his predecessors. In addition to Dior, the women's side has been helmed by Yves Saint Laurent, Marc Bohan, Gianfranco Ferré, John Galliano, Raf Simons and Maria Grazia Chiuri, with Hedi Slimane, Kris Van Assche and Kim Jones steering the men's division since the new millennium. 'When you go into a house like Dior, which is so famous — taxi drivers know it, everyone knows it — I think you have to not be afraid of the past,' Anderson said. 'People want history from a brand that has history, but they want it reinvented.' That's why he's embraced Chiuri's bestselling Book Tote, offering his own take with versions that reprise the cover of 'Dior by Dior,' Christian Dior's autobiography; Irish author Bram Stoker's 'Dracula,' and an 18th-century classic, 'Dangerous Liaisons' by Choderlos de Laclos. 'I don't want to evaporate what every single person has contributed to this brand,' Anderson explained. 'It's not efficient, and it's just not respectful.' Revisiting the Bar jacket was almost a rite of passage. Anderson has kissed the ring by making it the opening look of his show. 'It's something that Dior has barked on about for probably too long, but I do think it is probably one of the most genius pieces of clothing, because ultimately it is taken from men's and it is reconfigured every time a designer comes in, which is kind of interesting, because it's not a bag,' he said. Still, he doesn't believe in being too reverential, nothing that the scale of Dior means he must speak to a large cross-section of potential consumers. Under Chiuri and Jones, the brand's sales quadrupled from 2.2 billion euros in 2017 to 8.7 billion euros in 2024, according to HSBC estimates. LVMH does not break out revenues by brand. 'It's a difficult balance, because the brand is bigger than it was 20 years ago, it is very democratic,' Anderson remarked. 'I'm trying to juggle this thing, which is, how do you give style, attitude and fashion? How do you give the classicism? And at the same time, how do you give, like, where the world is?' Some trial and error will be involved, but he's willing to take risks. 'It takes time to ultimately reject things within the brand through experiencing them,' he said. 'Being in a historical house, there has to be a respect for it, but at the same time, you have to be willing to challenge it, because if Dior had been alive today, he would have designed completely differently.' To those who have speculated how he will juggle double duty at Dior with his own brand and ongoing collaboration with Japanese fast-fashion giant Uniqlo, Anderson had a simple message: no, he will not be designing 18 collections a year, as some memes have suggested. Instead, he will focus on around eight Dior lines per year, between ready-to-wear, haute couture and pre-collections. 'Of course, I was not going to be doing four at my own brand, or at some point we were doing six, because there's no modernity, plus that people would just hate me after a while. It would be like Dua Lipa doing an album every month — it would become boring,' he said. Best of WWD Which British Royal Is Heir to Prince Philip's Style Crown? Milan Men's Fashion Week to Attract JW Anderson, 1017 Alyx 9SM, 44 Label Group Men Need Five Shoe Styles, According to Doucal's
Fashion Network
24-06-2025
- Business
- Fashion Network
Galeries Lafayette group sells the men's BHV building to Xavier Niel
The Galeries Lafayette group, which is in the process of selling off the BHV Marais, has announced the sale of part of its assets, namely the Homme building at 36, rue de la Verrerie, not far from the main building on rue de Rivoli. The bid was won by NJJ Verrerie, a company managed by NJJ Holding, controlled by Xavier Niel. According to sources close to the matter, the French businessman and billionaire reportedly paid around 50 million euros to acquire this 8,500-square-meter building where BHV's men's offer is sold. Xavier Niel, husband of Delphine Arnault, is active through his investments in telecommunications, real estate (URW in particular), and the press (Le Monde, Nice Matin...). The press release, more than succinct, makes no mention of Xavier Niel's intention to take over this four-storey building, which combines a modern architectural element with a Haussmann-style section. It has an entrance on rue de la Verrerie, as well as an entrance on rue du Temple. BHV's men's range (clothing, shoes, accessories, etc.) is to be transferred to the main building. The men's building was therefore not included in the scope of the takeover of the vast rue de Rivoli building, which has been operated by the SGM group since 2023. For the past two years, the Lyon-based property company has been trying to raise the funds needed to acquire the 45,000-square-meter premises of this retail behemoth. In mid-June, it announced that it had entered into exclusive negotiations with Banque des Territoires (an offshoot of Caisse des Dépôts) to put together the financial package, which still needs to be backed up by additional bank financing. With the sale of all the BHV buildings, the Galeries Lafayette group has embarked on a policy of concentrating its efforts on its core assets, including its department store chain of the same name and above all its flagship store on Haussmann. It has also stopped operating the Eataly franchise in 2024 and discontinued the Bazarchic destocking site.
Le Figaro
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Le Figaro
Inside Dior's Bold Move: CEO Delphine Arnault Reveals Why Jonathan Anderson Was Chosen as Artistic Director – Exclusive Interview with Le Figaro
Réservé aux abonnés In an exclusive interview with Le Figaro, Dior CEO Delphine Arnault confirms that the talented Northern Irish designer will be joining the fashion house as creative director. She reveals the details behind this bold appointment, which is in line with parent company LVMH's other major creative choices. Jonathan Anderson's long-awaited appointment at Dior finally became official on Monday. As we wait to discover his first men's show on June 27, during Paris Fashion Week, his women's collection in October and his haute couture debut in January 2026, Dior CEO Delphine Arnault gives us a behind-the-scenes look at this crucial decision for the Avenue Montaigne house — a decision inevitably shared with her father, Bernard Arnault, whose special attachment to the company, as head of LVMH, is well known. In this exclusive interview, the Parisian CEO talks about her vision and ambition for Dior, her childhood memories of fashion and her sincere interest in designers. LE FIGARO . — You've decided to create a new chapter for Dior, which has resulted in several powerful resolutions. At the end of January, Kim Jones stepped down as artistic director of men's collections; last Thursday, the house announced the departure of Maria Grazia Chiuri, artistic director of women's collections since 2016. Today…
Irish Times
02-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Dior appoints Irishman Jonathan Anderson as sole creative director
Jonathan Anderson has been announced as the first creative director for men's, women's and couture collections at Dior , bringing to an end speculation about the luxury brand's future. The 40-year-old rugby player's son, from County Derry in Northern Ireland , will be the first designer to hold complete creative control of the fashion house since Christian Dior. Delphine Arnault, the chair and chief executive of Dior, described Anderson as 'the most talented designer of his generation'. He has long been compared with Karl Lagerfeld by fashion insiders. Anderson said: 'It is a great honour to join the house of Dior as creative director of women's and men's collections. I have always been inspired by the rich history of this house, its depth, and empathy. READ MORE 'I look forward to working alongside its famous ateliers to craft the next chapter of this incredible story. I would like to express my sincere thanks to Delphine Arnault and Bernard Arnault [the chief executive of LVMH] for their trust and loyalty over the years.' The significance of this moment is reflected in an unprecedented move for the famous house, skipping the haute couture shows for the first time in its 78-year history in July. It had already been confirmed in April that Anderson was to become the artistic director of men's wear, and he will present his first collection this month. He is due to debut his primary womenswear collection later this year. In a statement on Instagram, Dior said: 'For the first time at Christian Dior couture, since Monsieur Dior, a creative director will work on all the women's, men's, and haute couture collections, further strengthening its global creative vision.' Anderson's arrival has been the subject of front row gossip for a year. Maria Grazia Chiuri, the outgoing creative director of Dior womenswear, was still officially in her role last week when she took a bow at the end of her show in Rome. His ascendance reflects the fashion world's shifting view of him. In a short time, he has gone from a critically acclaimed but left field talent to the centre of power in the global fashion industry. But it was Anderson's eye-catching success at the formerly sleepy Spanish handbag brand Loewe that prompted the billionaire LVMH boss, Bernard Arnault, to reward him with the top prize. The decision to entrust a young designer with complete control is a roll of the dice for Dior, which has tended to play safe since being engulfed in scandal by the departure of John Galliano in 2011. A French court found Galliano guilty of making anti-Semitic remarks later that year and he was handed €6,000 (£5,060) in suspended fines. In 2023, Anderson crafted the outfit which Rihanna used to announce her pregnancy during the Super Bowl half-time performance, as well as Ariana Grande's Met Gala gown in 2024. He also created the patchwork cardigan worn by Harry Styles that went viral and was inducted into the Victoria and Albert Museum fashion collection this year. Delphine Arnault said: 'I am convinced that he will bring a creative and modern vision to our house, inspired by the fabulous story of Monsieur Dior and the codes he created.' - Guardian
