MUSICAL CHAIRS

Clare Waight Keller Leaves Chloé After 6 Years of Designing Feminine, Floaty Dresses

The designer will leave her post as creative director after Paris Fashion Week.


chloe-claire-waight-keller-3

The game of designer musical chairs never stops spinning.

It was announced today that Clare Waight Keller will be stepping down as creative director of Chloé after six years in the position. According to a release issued by the Paris house, her departure is a mutual decision between Keller and management, led up by chief executive officer Geoffroy de La Bourdonnaye, who hired the British designer in May 2011 following the departure of Hannah MacGibbon.

“After six extraordinary years at Chloé, I would like to thank Geoffroy and all my colleagues for their enormous efforts over the past years,” Keller said in a statement. “Working for this Maison has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career. Chloé is a brand with values close to my heart and I have truly enjoyed working with some of the best talents in the industry. I feel privileged to have worked for a Maison with such a heritage and I am very proud of all that has been achieved.”

Keller’s last collection will be for Fall 2017, which will be shown as part of Paris Fashion Week on March 2nd. According to the brand, the show will also serve as a celebration of Keller’s contributions to the brand.

Over the course of six years, Keller has injected a sense of femininity and ease rooted in the Seventies to the French brand that has resonated with both critics and celebrities alike; Dree Hemingway, Clemence Poesy, Karen Elson, Alexa Chung, and Katy Perry are just a handful of the bold-faced names who have worn the label on the red carpet in recent years. The designer also created some of the most popular It-bags on the market, including recognizable for their intricate stitching and silver-ring detailing.

In departing the French label, the British designer joins an impressive class of Chloé alumni, including Phoebe Philo, Stella McCartney, and Karl Lagerfeld. While her successor has yet to be announced by Richemont, the label’s parent company, it has been rumored that Natacha Ramsay-Levi, Louis Vuitton’s design director and right-hand woman to Nicolas Ghesquière, will take the role.

In any case, 2017 is shaping up to be another tumultuous year for designers.

The Airy-Fairy Chloé Girl Gets Polished Up for Spring 2017

Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
Photo by Ambra Vernuccio.
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