By Mimosa Spencer

PARIS (Reuters) – Fashion designer Hedi Slimane has left LVMH’s Celine brand

The company confirmed on Wednesday that Slimane’s departure marks yet another notable exit in the fashion industry, which is currently facing a sales downturn.

LVMH has appointed Michael Rider as Slimane’s successor, who will begin his role early next year. Rider has extensive experience, having worked with former Celine designer Phoebe Philo for over a decade.

Slimane’s exit fosters further speculation regarding shifts within the industry, with various prominent designers transitioning jobs. Notably, the coveted position of creative director at Chanel remains vacant after Virginie Viard‘s departure in June.

According to Luca Solca, a Bernstein analyst, it’s common for creative directors to leave when their influence on sales diminishes. “I don’t think this is an exception,” he remarked, suggesting that creative directors, like artists, risk predictability in their work over time.

Despite the speculation, Solca acknowledged Slimane’s successful tenure, stating he likely more than doubled brand revenue to around 2.5 billion euros.

Slimane joined Celine in 2018, making a significant impression with his signature rocker-chic style. He is also recognized for the skinny silhouettes implemented while at Dior Homme and Yves Saint Laurent, famously influencing Karl Lagerfeld to achieve a slimmer fit in his designs.

Exercising tight control over Celine’s brand image, Slimane infrequently conducted interviews and personally oversaw advertising campaigns and fashion shows, deviating from traditional timelines. He aimed to modernize Celine’s French bourgeois aesthetic for a younger demographic, using campaigns featuring model Kaia Gerber in contemporary styles.

Under Slimane, Celine expanded to include a menswear line, alongside fragrances and makeup offerings.

LVMH chairman and CEO, Bernard Arnault, set ambitious financial goals for Slimane, targeting an annual revenue increase at Celine to between 2 billion to 3 billion euros within five years, up from approximately 1 billion euros ($1.10 billion) when Slimane joined.

In January during LVMH’s annual results disclosure, Arnault indicated that Celine was experiencing “great success” with Slimane, surpassing 2 billion euros in sales. However, the company does not publicly disclose revenue per brand in earnings releases.

The luxury goods market has faced significant sales growth slowdown this year, especially as middle-class shoppers in China curtail purchases amid property slump and job insecurity.

Carole Madjo, a Barclays analyst, highlighted during a recent trip to China that Celine is potentially experiencing “brand fatigue” and may be underperforming in that market.

This change is part of a broader series of adjustments by LVMH, which recently invested in one of the industry’s successful firms, Moncler, and sold the streetwear brand Off-White, established by the late Virgil Abloh.

($1 = 0.9051 euros)