And the game of musical chairs continues! Stefano Pilati will leave Yves Saint Laurent following the Fall 2012 show in Paris
Just three days after the Raf for Jil swap, Yves Saint Laurent has announced that creative director Stefano Pilati will leave the company’s helm following the collection’s Fall show later this week in Paris.
Pilati’s ride at YSL has been a bit of a bumpy one with critically inconsistent collections. But despite a lack of support from YSL heavyweights (Yves Saint-Laurent himself once told WWD, “Some of what he does is good. Some of it is not so good.”), Pilati has rocketed the house towards considerable commercial success (though not quite at Gucci-era Tom Ford levels) with his conception of hit accessories like the Muse bag and Tribute shoe. More than a feat in these financial times, right?
Of course, the rumour mill (having proven it’s shady credibility with the Jil Sander hullaballoo) is still churning; the latest gossip is that YSL-alum and enigmatic fashion darling Hedi Slimane will fill Pilati’s (debatably large) shoes.
Whoa—Slimane at YSL? Pinch us, please! With his super-sleek, androgynous aesthetic, Slimane is the pinnacle of all things cool. He’s so cool, in fact, that Karl Lagerfeld famously dropped 60 pounds just to fit into a pair of Slimane skinnies.
It’s great to see Pilati ending his YSL career on a high note (his menswear collection was lauded for its construction and innovation), but eight years at the helm of a big house is a long time. We are excited for some new life and fresh ideas at YSL—fingers crossed they are in the form of Slimane-esque separates.
Fashion FWD:
The next best thing to being a fashion editor - BTS access to trends, products & news.