Confirmed: Maria Grazia Chiuri will lead Dior

In what has been the most anticipated round of designer musical chairs to
date, Dior has confirmed that Maria Grazia Chiuri, who was recently
confirmed , will be the next
couturier for the house. Details of the contract were not disclosed, but it
is said to be a long-term partnership.

Chiuri will start next week as Dior’s artistic director of women’s haute
couture, ready-to-wear, and accessories collections. Her first collection
will bow on September 30 for the spring 2017 ready-to-wear season at Paris
Fashion Week. Her first couture show will be staged next January, and will
coincide with the luxury brand’s 70th anniversary.

“It is a great honor to be joining the house of Dior; I measure the
tremendous responsibility of being the first woman in charge of the
creation in a house so deeply rooted in the pure expression of femininity,”
Chiuri said in a statement. “The endless wealth of its heritage continues
to be a constant source of inspiration for fashion, and I cannot wait to
express my own vision.”

Maria Grazia Chiuri, former co-creative director of Valentino, will be
the new couturier at Christian Dior

Bernard Arnault, chairman of Dior, called Chiuri’s talent “enormous and
internationally acclaimed. She will bring her elegant and modern vision of
the Dior woman, seamlessly attuned to the heritage and the codes defined by
Monsieur Dior.”

Prior to arriving at Dior, Chiuri had spent 17 years at Valentino with her
creative partner Pierpaolo Piccioli. Eight of those years were spent as
co-creative directors. Before Valentino, they spent 10 years together at
Fendi, where they met, and created one of the It bags of the 90s, the Fendi
Baguette.

Piccioli affirmed his commitment to Valentino in a statement saying “Valentino
and the people with whom I work with are a great part of my life. My
decision of bringing forward the creative guide of this maison is driven by
the strong passion that triggers my work and by the desire of continuing to
express here my stylistic vision.”

Creative
Directors Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli take to the runway
after delivering a dramatic yet romantic Fall/Winter 2016-17 #hautecouture
collection. #ValentinoLive #linkinbio

A photo
posted by Valentino (@maisonvalentino) on Jul 6, 2016 at 11:12am
PDT

Chiuri will have her work cut out for her at Dior given the current state
of the luxury goods market. While she is no doubt a brilliant designer, and
helped boost Valentino’s sales figures, between , Asia’s economic woes, and terror
fears impeding tourism, the luxury goods sector is taking a real hit this
year.

Revenues at Christian Dior declined 1 percent in the third quarter.
The house did close out 2015 with revenues of 2.08 billion dollars,
reflecting a gain of 17 percent at annual exchange rates and 7 percent at
constant rates.

Still, Chiuri is known for helping a brand see impressive sales figures.
Last year, Valentino posted revenues of over 1 billion dollars and a 48
percent increase in sales.

Chiuri joins a legacy that only few people post the namesake founder have
got to have. Others who have taken up the role of Dior’s couturier include
Yves Saint Laurent, Marc Bohan, Gianfranco Ferre, John Galliano, Raf
Simons, who exited the company last October. Simons no doubt , but his work began
to struggle as he proved to have difficult tackling six collection a year,
and Dior’s sales began to fall.

Simons is expected to become .

Dior’s most recent collection was done by studio directors Serge Ruffieux
and Lucie Meier. Their ready-to-wear has seen double digit sales increases
for the brand and clients praised their most recent haute couture
collection.

After seasons of minimalism under Simons, Dior can expect
something completely new under Chiuri. Her work for Valentino
brought feminine dresses with Renaissance flare, and high-neck gowns. It’s
a new chapter in Dior’s history, and we are all awaiting the first page.

photo via Dior website