As was widely suspected in fashion circles from New York to Paris, LVMH announced Monday that Nicolas Ghesquire would be the next Artistic Director of Louis Vuitton. Filling large clown shoes left by Marc Jacobs who exited the empire after sixteen years, Ghesquire is sure to bring a modern edge to the brand. Although Louis Vuitton is all about bags, Nicholas could actual make young women interested in LV RTW.
Marc Jacobs is no doubt planning the inevitable IPO of his namesake brand. As Jacobs became one of the most famous fashion designers during his tenure at Louis Vuttion, he watched as other, more mainstream designers like Tory Burch and Michael Kors became billion dollar babies. My sources say that the powers that be at LVMH pushed Jacobs out, as the image of Vuitton had hit a plateau. Publicly the IPO is the perfect reason for him to leave and if all goes well, both parties laugh all the way to the bank. If I looked into a crystal ball, I would predict that after the IPO Jacobs will set his sights on his ultimate dream job - Artistic Director of CHANEL. Of course, he'll have to wait for Karl Lagerfeld to step down.. and Karl doesn't seem like the retiring type, Octogenarian or not.
Bravo to Nicholas Ghesquire! The designer makes the big jump from one fashion giant to another. When he left Balenciaga without many details it was understood his creative vision was not commercial enough for the powers that be at parent company Kering. It seems they were intent on turning Balenciaga into Gucci. However, over at Louis Vuttion, Bernard Arnault gave Marc 16 years to run amuck with the RTW - as long as the bags were selling. So Nicholas might be able to do whatever he wants on the runway! We can't wait to see what he will do with one of the biggest fashion empires in the world. Additionally, look for a namesake label for Mr. Ghesquire..... but you knew that was coming!
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