Givenchy () is a
French brand of clothing, accessories,
perfumes and
cosmetics with
Parfums Givenchy.
The house of Givenchy was founded in 1952 by designer
Hubert de Givenchy and is a member of
Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture et du Pret-a-Porter. It is owned by luxury goods behemoth
LVMH and in 1993 achieved a total sales worth of $176 million, making it the second largest apparel division of
LVMH after
Dior.
Under Hubert de Givenchy, 1952-1995
During his reign as the designer of the label bearing his name, Hubert de Givenchy was known for his modern, ladylike styles, which earned him many loyal clients. The most famous patron of the brand was
Audrey Hepburn in films such as
Sabrina, for which
Edith Head claimed the
Academy Award,
How to Steal a Million and
Breakfast at Tiffany's. His other famous patrons include the
Guinness,
Grimaldi and
Kennedy families, who famously wore Givenchy clothes to the funeral of
John F. Kennedy. Hubert de Givenchy retired in 1995.
Womenswear, 1995-Present
John Galliano succeeded Givenchy upon his retirement but was in turn promoted to
Christian Dior less than two years later, prompting the hiring of
Alexander McQueen. In 2001, designer
Julien McDonald was appointed Artistic Director for the women's lines, which consist of
haute couture and ready-to-wear.
The reins for both collections were ultimately passed on to
Riccardo Tisci in 2005 when he was named chief designer of womenswear. Tisci's apparent fascination with gothic touches (dark, languid dresses on sickly-looking models for fall couture) and space-age minimalism (one ready-to-wear show featured white-clad models drifting aimlessly around a sterile-white sphere) have drawn new attention to the brand. Reviews and output so far have been mixed and inconsistent, but many, including influential fashion critics (such as
Cathy Horyn of the
New York Times and
Suzy Menkes of the
International Herald Tribune) have homed in on Tisci's conceptual leanings, as well as his future potential for revitalizing the Givenchy brand and infusing it with his precision and imagination.
Menswear
Givenchy menswear was relaunched for Spring 2005 with
Savile Row suitmaker
Ozwald Boateng at the helm. Despite initial fanfare , Boateng was thought to have missed the high fashion mark being set by his rivals and completed his tenure at Givenchy with the Spring 2007 collection. From there the men's line seemed to drift , absent for Fall 2007 and then designed by a nameless Givenchy in-house committee for Spring and Fall 2008. For Spring 2009, the task finally fell upon womenswear designer Riccardo Tisci, who brought the sleek, darker themes prevalent in his women's collections to the traditionally more conservative menswear division.