Elsa Schiaparelli herself was a woman who could change with the wind, a free spirit, shrouded in mystery, who wouldn’t be tamed; so it actually makes a great deal of sense that appointing a new leader for the House of Schiaparelli would be one of the hardest decisions in this industry’s game of thrones. Initially, Chinese whispers swirled that Giles Deacon would be involved. Then came Erdem Moragliu’s name. John Galliano was thrown into the rumour-mill’s endlessly churning conversation.
However, in 2012 the revered fashion label re-launched after almost 60 defunct years, first with a fleeting, one-off, sumptuous homage to the founder via a modern maestro of the outré: Christian Lacroix. Following this, owner Diego Della Valle (managing director of Tod’s Group) then handed over the House of Schiaparelli reins to ex-Rochas designer, Marco Zanini.
Now after a few months in the wilderness since Zanini’s partnership ended with the couture house last November after three seasons, an announcement comes today that Bertrand Guyon shall take up the role of Design Director across Haute Couture and pret-a-porter. His debut collection will be presented in Paris during the July Couture schedule.
Who is Bertrand you ask? A Frenchman, a veteran couture designer at Valentino, who also worked at Givenchy and… Christian Lacroix. It’s a small world this fashion one. How will this sleeping beauty brand be coaxed out of it’s slumber? Stay tuned for more.