British designer Louise Trotter is to exit Carven in January, the French heritage house where she has been creative director for almost two years and is heading to Bottega Veneta, to take over from Matthieu Blazy, who in turn is said to the favourite for the top design role at Chanel.
Trotter, whose career has taken in stints at Lacoste, Joseph, Gap and Whistles, has been credited with injecting new life and direction into Carven since she joined. Prior to her arrival the house, originally founded by Carmen de Tommaso or “Madame Carven” in 1945, had had a string of creative directors, including Serge Ruffieux. The brand has been owned by Chinese group Icicle since 2018 and made its return to Paris Fashion Week under Trotter.
Carven made the announcement of Trotter’s departure on its Instagram page with a short quote reading: “On January 24th, Louise Trotter will close this chapter with us. Every ending is a new beginning. Best wishes to all of our creative peers.”
Trotter is the second high profile British designer to leave their role in the past two days. Yesterday John Galliano announced he was leaving Margiela, prompting speculation that he may be returning to head up Dior, the LVMH-owned powerhouse he lead for nearly 15 years until he was let go in 2011 amid controversy surrounding anti-semitic comments made in a bar under the influence of drugs and alcohol.
John Galliano
Galliano spent a number of years out of the industry, where he undertook rehab and a period of soul-searching, before returning to head up Margiela in 2014. He is, however, not the only name linked to Dior. Northern Irish designer Jonathan Anderson, who has taken fellow LVMH house Loewe to new heights both creatively and commercially, is also being linked as a possible new lead designer at Dior. However the womenswear chief designer role is still occupied by Maria Grazia-Chiuri and, as yet, there has been no confirmation that she is departing. Another British designer, Kim Jones, is artistic director of menswear at Dior.
Speculation has been mounting that Trotter may head to Bottega Veneta, which has also enjoyed a successful period under Matthieu Blazy. His departure has yet to be confirmed but several reports suggest an announcement confirming this could come early next week. Chanel, meanwhile has remained firmly tight-lipped about who will be taking over what is arguably the most coveted chief designer role in fashion. Since the passing of its legendary designer Karl Lagerfeld in 2019, the house had been led by his former right-hand woman Virginie Viard, however she left earlier this year amid criticism that her vision lacked cohesion.
Many big names have been linked as a potential successor to Viard including Marc Jacobs, Hedi Slimane and Simon Porte Jacquemus. Blazy’s name has only latterly been linked to the role but speculation has gained momentum in recent weeks that he has indeed landed the job. However, Slimane who left Celine in October, has not yet announced his next move and nor has Galliano, opening up the possibility that they too could be in the mix. Pierpaolo Piccioli, formerly of Valentino, has still not revealed his next move, though he has been linked to the vacant top job at Fendi.
Big Creative Director Moves of 2024
March: Valentino creative chief Pierpaolo Piccioli announces departure. He is replaced by former Gucci creative lead Alessandro Michele
June: Virginie Viard announces she is leaving Chanel, having led the house since the passing of Karl Lagerfeld in 2019.
October: Hedi Slimane announces he is leaving LVMH-owned Celine, prompting speculation he is heading to Chanel. He is replaced at Celine by Michael Rider, formerly of Polo Ralph Lauren (and prior to that Celine, where he worked under Phoebe Philo)
October: Kim Jones relinquishes the role of artistic director of womenswear and couture at Fendi to focus fully on his role at artistic director for menswear at Dior. His replacement at Fendi has yet to be announced. Word has it that Pierpaolo Piccolo, formerly of Valentino, could be in the mix.
November: Speculation mounts that Bottega Veneta’s Matthieu Blazy has fought off all competition to land the top job at Chanel. This has yet to be confirmed.
December: John Galliano announces he is leaving Margiela. He has been linked to a potential return to Dior, with rumours suggested Maria Grazia Chiuri could be heading back to Italy, potentially to head up Gucci.
December: Louise Trotter stands down at Carven, adding weight to rumours she has been lined up to take over from Blazy at Bottega Veneta.
