Christophe Lemaire

The Fashion Statement: Who is Christophe Lemaire?

Filed under: Apparel, The Fashion Statement

If you don't know who Christophe Lemaire is, you're not alone. Last week, French couturier Hermès made the announcement that by fall of next year, creative director Jean-Paul Gaultier will be out and Christophe Lemaire will be in. See my colleague Deidre Woollard's post.

So who is Christophe Lemaire? Even people in fashion industry, who tend to be aware of any and all up-and-comers, were scratching their heads. Sure, Lemaire has been at Lacoste for the last decade and breathed new life into the brand. And, yes, he's had his own line since 1991. But haute couture houses at the level of Hermès is usually the stomping ground of well-established and well-known designers. Marc Jacobs for Louis Vuitton and Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel, to name a few. Surely, Michelle Obama's inauguration gown designer Jason Wu has gotten more ink of late.

Which is why we're all the more intrigued by this choice. "I think the appointment of Christophe is very ambitious," Hermès' general artistic director Pierre-Alexis Dumas told The New York Times. "Maybe in five years I will look back and think it was a terrible mistake-or a wonderful surprise. I like that. I think we need that. Hermès is really born out of movement. It's not that we were avoiding a famous name. What comes first now is talent."

Tags: Christophe Lemaire, Hermes, jean paul gaultier, Kelly bag, Pierre-Alexis Dumas

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Gaultier Officially Out At Hermes

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel

Another fashion world shake-up. WWD has reported that French designer Jean-Paul Gaultier will be leaving his job as the creative director of Hermes' women's ready-to-wear division. Gaultier, who had the job for seven years, was brought in by Jean-Louis Dumas, former president and chief executive officer of Hermes who died earlier this month.

Replacing Gaultier will be Christophe Lemaire, the man lauded for reinvigorating the Lacoste brand. He has served as that company's artistic director since 2001,Businessweek reveals that the spring-summer 2011 collection in October will be the last one created by Gaultier for Hermes. Hermes will retain its 45 percent share in Gaultier's eponymous brand.

Tags: christophe lemaire, hermes, jean paul gaultier, lacoste