Game of Thrones in fashion: creative minds play musical chairs

Who will take over at Chanel and where will Pierpaolo Piccioli go now that he has left Valentino?

The fashion world is awash with such questions at a turbulent time when sales are falling and artistic directors are playing musical chairs.

Resignations, new appointments: the whirlwind of changes is beginning to resemble a fashion version of “Game of Thrones” with the start of Milan Fashion Week.

Not a month has gone by this year without some shocking announcements: Piccioli left Valentino in March after more than two decades, and the Roman luxury brand announced a week later the arrival of former Gucci boss Alessandro Michele, whose official debut will take place in Paris later this month.

At Chanel, Virginie Viard, who took the reins after Karl Lagerfeld's death in 2019, stepped down in June, leaving the top job at the iconic French private label vacant.

Amid a flurry of rumours about who might take over the house of Coco Chanel, the name of Simon Porte Jacquemus, the young French designer with his eponymous label, keeps coming up.

Also in June, Dries Van Noten, the cult designer from Antwerp, took his final bow, retiring after almost 40 years at the top.

Last week, the suspense surrounding Givenchy, which had been left without an artistic head since the departure of American designer Matthew Williams in January, finally ended.

British designer Sarah Burton, who spent more than two decades at Alexander McQueen, will take the helm of the French haute couture brand.

This week in Milan, both Tom Ford and Blumarine are not walking the catwalk, due to recent changes at the top.

Tom Ford announced two weeks ago that Haider Ackermann will be his new artistic director, with his first collection for fall 2025 in Paris, while David Koma will take the helm of Blumarine, following the sudden departure of Walter Chiapponi after just one season.

'Results in record time'

Fired artistic directors are typically subject to one- to two-year non-compete agreements with the risk of a hefty financial penalty, preventing them from immediately acquiring rival companies.

But nothing prevents new employers from covering this cost themselves to allow a candidate to start working immediately.

In this context, rumours are growing: how much longer will Kim Jones stay at Fendi? What will happen to John Galliano, whose contract at Maison Margiela is about to end and who some predict will end up back at Dior or Fendi?

“Artistic directors have to crunch numbers for one season, two at most, and if the results aren't there, move on to the next,” said Alessia Pellarini, founder of The AP Archive, which rents out thousands of iconic fashion pieces.

The work of an artistic director at the helm of an iconic brand “requires time,” explains Pellarini, with the ability to understand its history and heritage and “to offer something new without turning everything upside down.”

“This short-term vision to satisfy market demands only reduces the cultural quality of the offer,” he said.

Pellarini, a former design director at Fendi, noted that even amid the conflicts seen in the industry, “the typical profile remains that of a white European man.”

Some designers are moving away from luxury and toward larger but more conventional brands.

Clare Waight Keller, a former Chloe and Givenchy designer who designed Meghan Markle's wedding dress, became creative director of Japanese casual label Uniqlo this month.

Meanwhile, Spanish fast fashion chain Zara said it was launching a limited collection by Italian Stefano Pilati, former creative director of Yves Saint Laurent and Zegna.