PARIS, Oct 9 (Reuters) - Belgian designer Anthony Vaccarello is leaving Saint Laurent after a decade as the brand's creative director, its owner Kering said on Friday, adding his successor would be announced soon.
Saint Laurent follows other major Kering brands Gucci, Balenciaga and Bottega Veneta which switched creative directors last year as Kering CEO Luca de Meo seeks to overhaul the group amid a luxury industry slowdown.
Vaccarello, appointed in 2016 to succeed Hedi Slimane, turned the French
couture brand into a global powerhouse by tapping into strong Chinese demand, reaching well over €3 billion ($3.37 billion) in annual sales in 2023 before losing traction in the last couple of years.
The designer, 44, sought to preserve Saint Laurent's Parisian identity with runway shows staged against a lit-up Eiffel Tower, while expanding the brand's reach and pushing it into film production, including the Cannes Festival-winning "Emilia Pérez".
For his final runway show last week, Vaccarello presented gold dresses, gold trench coats and gold stilettos beneath giant gold chandeliers, inspired by the Salon Imperial ballroom of the Hotel Inter-Continental where Yves Saint Laurent staged haute couture shows from 1976.
Yves Saint Laurent founded his label in 1961 with his partner Pierre Berge.
"The focus of the new designer will be in currently under-represented product categories, such as women's daywear and menswear, in high-end leather goods, and less-penetrated regions such as China/Asia," Barclays analysts said in a note.
Industry speculation points to Chemena Kamali, currently creative director at Richemont-owned label Chloe and previously womenswear design director at Saint Laurent, as Vaccarello's likely successor. Neither Chloe nor Richemont immediately replied to requests for comment.
Kering, whose shares are down 31% this year, is due to report third-quarter sales on October 22.
Saint Laurent's gross revenue fell by 9% and 6% in 2024 and 2025 respectively, before largely stabilizing this year, according to Kering.
($1 = 0.8913 euros)
(Reporting by Tassilo Hummel; Additional reporting by Helen Reid; Editing by Makini Brice, Kate Mayberry and Susan Fenton)
