Clare Waight Keller‘s successor as Givenchy‘s creative director, after the British designer left the French fashion house in April, is the founder of 1017 ALYX 9SM (ALYX), Matthew M Williams.
LVMH, the multinational company that owns Givenchy (in addition to Vuitton, Dior, etc.) announced that from today June 16, 2020 Williams will start his work in Paris.
34 years old, Californian, Matthew M Williams left university at the age of 19 and started working for a brand owned by a friend of his where he realized that his passion for fashion could become his profession. Raf Simons and Hedi Slimane his “masters of style”, in 2015 he founded 1017 ALYX 9SM which a year later became a finalist of the LVMH Award, in 2017 he debuted the men’s line becoming one of the most influential brands in the fashion world.
“I am extremely honored to join the House of Givenchy, I am looking forward to working together with its ateliers and teams, to move it into a new era, based on modernity and inclusivity. In these unprecedented times for the world, I want to send a message of hope, together with my community and colleagues, and intend to contribute towards positive change.”
These are the words of Williams, while Renaud de Lesquen, CEO and President of Givenchy said:
“I want to warmly welcome Matthew M Williams to the beautiful Maison Givenchy,” continued Renaud de Lesquen, CEO and President of Givenchy. “I am convinced that, with his unapologetic approach to design and creativity and in great collaboration with the Maison’s exceptional ateliers and teams, Matthew will help Givenchy reach its full potential.”
As Creative Director, Williams will be responsible for creativity by overseeing and developing the men’s, women’s and accessories collections as well as deciding what the brand’s new image will be.
Williams has the difficult task of bringing Givenchy back to its former glory from all points of view, especially from an economic point of view: Business of Fashion wrote that the former CEO of Givenchy, Philippe Fortunato, stated in 2018 that LVMH was aiming to increase Givenchy’s turnover to Dior levels, which at the time meant around €2 billion. LVMH does not issue individual revenue reports for most of its brands (except for Louis Vuitton and Dior), but independent analyst firm Owler has estimated that Givenchy currently invoices around $718 million.
Now we just have to wait for the first Givenchy show, with Matthew M Williams in the lead, in October.
