This past year seemed to serve as an endless shuffle of C-suite business executives, and the same could be said about creative talent.
From Sarah Burton’s exit at Alexander McQueen to Pharrell Williams’ arrival at Louis Vuitton men’s, this year was filled with an unexpected shuffle in the creative director world.
As we look back on the year, FN rounds up the 10 biggest fashion designer arrivals and exits of 2023.
Alexander McQueen
After 26 years at the company, Sarah Burton shocked the fashion world in September when she announced she would be stepping down as Alexander McQueen’s creative director. Burton, who was named creative director of Alexander McQueen in 2010 following Lee Alexander McQueen’s suicide, showed her final collection for the brand, spring 2024, in Paris in October.
“I am so proud of everything I’ve done and of my incredible team at Alexander McQueen,” Burton said in a statement at the time. “They are my family, and this has been my home for the past 26 years. Above all I want to thank Lee Alexander McQueen. He taught me so much and I am eternally grateful to him.”
Shortly after Burton’s final show, McQueen’s parent company Kering named Seán McGirr as her successor. McGirr most recently served as head of men’s ready-to-wear at JW Anderson, and has previously worked at Dries Van Noten on the womenswear collection. His resume also includes stints at Burberry and Christophe Lemaire for Uniqlo.
No clear reason was ever given for McQueen and Burton parting ways.
Louis Vuitton
In an unexpected move, Louis Vuitton named musician and entrepreneur Pharrell Williams as its new men’s creative director in February. His first collection for the French luxury brand was revealed in June during Men’s Fashion Week in Paris.
Williams’ appointment came less than one month after Brooklyn-based designer Colm Dillane showed his designs as part of a collective of creatives for Louis Vuitton’s fall/winter 2023 menswear collection. The KidSuper founder and designer came to the table with a 500-page book of ideas, but Vuitton’s in-house team had already designed a large portion of the collection, which revolved loosely around the theme of connectivity. “I was there to add story, add a little bit of spice and fantasy,” Dillane told FN sister publication WWD in an interview at the time.
The position had been left unfilled since the untimely death of Virgil Abloh in November 2021, fueling the industry rumor mill. Observers have speculated that Vuitton could tap an emerging designer, with names including Martine Rose, Grace Wales Bonner and Samuel Ross said to be under consideration, or someone from outside the world of fashion entirely.
Gucci
In January, Gucci finally revealed Sabato De Sarno as its replacement for former creative director Alessandro Michele, who parted ways with the Italian luxury brand last November.
De Sarno joined Gucci from Valentino, where he spent 14 years and rose through the ranks to become fashion director of men’s and women’s ready-to-wear in 2020.
He debuted in the fashion industry as assistant patternmaker at Prada in 2003 and left in 2006 when he joined knitwear manufacturer Annapurna until, two years later, he was named head designer of the women’s knitwear and jersey collection at Dolce & Gabbana. He is the fourth non-Gucci-family creative director in the brand’s history, following Michele, Frida Giannini and Tom Ford.
De Sarno’s first collection for Gucci debuted at Milan Fashion Week in September. The designer’s spring/summer 2024 collection ushered in a new look for the house as it offered up a “quieter” take on Gucci’s house codes following Michele’s maximalist approach to design.
Moschino
Tragedy struck the Italian fashion house in November when Moschino’s newly appointed creative director Davide Renne unexpectedly passed away at the age of 46.
“There are no words to describe the pain we are experiencing at this dramatic time. Davide joined us only a few days ago, when a sudden illness took him from us too soon. We still can’t believe what happened,” Massimo Ferretti, chairman of Moschino’s parent company Aeffe SpA, said at the time.
After two decades at Gucci, Renne started working at Moschino on Nov. 1, and his first collection was to debut for fall 2024 in February during Milan Fashion Week. Renne died on Nov. 10.
Renne succeeded Jeremy Scott, who exited the brand in March after 10 years. Upon his exit from the company, Scott described his tenure at Moschino as “a wonderful celebration of creativity and imagination.” He added that he was “so proud of the legacy I am leaving behind” and thanked Ferretti “for the honor of leading this iconic house” and his fans around the world.
Tom Ford
Just days after Tom Ford released his final collection for his eponymous label in April, his recently acquired luxury fashion brand named a new creative director.
The brand, which is now owned by Estée Lauder Companies, tapped Peter Hawkings for the top creative role. He most recently served as SVP of Tom Ford Menswear and has been working alongside Mr. Ford for nearly twenty-five years.
Hawkings’ ascension to creative director saw him take over direction of fashion, including womenswear, menswear and accessory categories, assuming the role of lead designer for the fashion segment and fashion shows.
He revealed his first collection for the luxury fashion label at Milan Fashion Week in September.
Bally
In May, the Swiss luxury brand named Simone Bellotti design director after the unexpected departure of Rhuigi Villaseñor earlier that same month.
Bellotti quietly joined Bally last October after a 16-year tenure at Gucci. Previously, he held senior design positions at Dolce & Gabbana, Bottega Veneta, and Gianfranco Ferré, boasting an experience in both ready-to-wear tailoring and accessories — the latter category Bally’s core business.
Upon his exit from the company, Villaseñor, who had served as creative director of Bally since January 2022, said in a statement that his experience at the brand had been an “incredible honor.” “I wish the brand nothing but the best in all its future endeavors and look forward to enjoying its next creative chapter,” he said.
One month after his exit from Bally, Villaseñor faced allegations of stealing company funds from his Los Angeles-based streetwear label Rhude to support his own “lavish lifestyle.” In a federal lawsuit filed by George Robertson, an owner of a 20 percent stake in the Rhude brand, Villaseñor was accused of allegedly “pilfering the Rhude Companies’ coffers” to front his expensive bills, including those for “private jet travel, Italian vacations, Ferraris, Lamborghinis and a collection of $100,000 watches.”
Givenchy
Earlier this month, Givenchy and its creative director Matthew M. Williams announced they were parting ways after a three-year collaboration. The change will be effective Jan. 1, 2024.
Williams’ departure comes at the end of his initial contract — and only weeks after the American designer forged a business partnership with Hong Kong entrepreneur Adrian Cheng to ramp up development of the designer’s signature brand, 1017 Alyx 9SM. Plans include opening freestanding boutiques and beefing up high-potential categories including jewelry, shoes and accessories.
Williams was announced as Givenchy’s seventh designer just as the coronavirus pandemic gripped the world in 2020. Indeed, he had completed his contract negotiations with LVMH via Zoom and unveiled his first collections during coed showroom presentations, everyone masked and distanced. His arrival seemed to thrust Givenchy back into the realm of buzz, cool and cultural urgency that it last enjoyed under Riccardo Tisci, creative director from 2005 to 2017.
The Chicago-born talent, who worked with Kanye West and Lady Gaga earlier in his career, founded his 1017 Alyx 9SM brand in 2015, and was shortlisted for the LVMH Prize for Young Fashion Designers the following year.
Helmet Lang
Peter Do, known for his effortless cool factor and fine tailoring, was named creative director of Helmut Lang in May. He still remains at the helm of his own eponymous brand.
Before Do’s arrival, Helmut Lang had been designed by a studio team. In the past, others who have held creative roles at Helmut Lang include Mark Howard Thomas, who was creative director of menswear, Thomas Cawson, who was design director and creative director of denim, and Shayne Oliver, who served as a designer in residence.
“We are thrilled to have Peter Do join Helmut Lang as creative director,” Dinesh Tandon, CEO of Helmut Lang, said in a statement at the time. “His clear and innovative approach to design very much aligns with the brand’s ethos and heritage. His experience with luxury fashion houses and his acclaimed eponymous label makes him a natural choice for this role.”
His first collection for the label was unveiled during New York Fashion Week in September.
Tod’s
Tod’s confirmed in December that Matteo Tamburini joined the Italian brand as its new creative director, in charge of both the women’s and men’s collections.
Tamburini’s debut at Tod’s will be the fall 2024 women’s collection, to be presented as part of Milan Fashion Week in February. Tamburini arrives at Tod’s from Bottega Veneta, which he joined in 2017.
“I am honored and excited to join the Tod’s family and become part of a brand that is so closely tied to my origins and memories,” Tamburini said. “I identify myself with the brand’s values and the continuous pursuit of high quality and style it has undertaken until now, and I look forward to contributing with my expertise.”
Tamburini succeeds Walter Chiapponi, who departed the Italian fashion label in July. Chiapponi joined Tod’s in October 2019, and his first collection bowed with the fall 2020 season. Both Tamburini and Chiapponi have worked at Bottega Veneta with former creative director Tomas Maier.
Ann Demeulemeester
In May, Ludovic de Saint Sernin unexpectedly parted ways with Ann Demeulemeester after just one season with the label.
Known for his sensual and gender-fluid creations, de Saint Sernin was named creative director of Ann Demeulemeester last December and unveiled his debut collection for the brand in March during Paris Fashion Week. The 36 look-collection served as a tribute to Ann Demeulemeester’s past archive looks but reinterpreted and imbued with de Saint Sernin’s signature racy aesthetics.
Born in Brussels and raised in Paris, de Saint Sernin graduated from the École Supérieure des Arts Appliqués Duperré in Paris. The designer, who cut his teeth at Balmain, launched his eponymous label in 2017.
Prior to de Saint Sernin’s arrival, the Ann Demeulemeester label was designed by an in-house team since the departure of creative director Sébastien Meunier in July 2020.
