Olivier Theyskens presented a stunning fall 2009 collection for Nina Ricci, but he left the house March 10 after being pushed out by Puig Fashion Group, which owns the label. The industry remains flabbergasted that Puig let Theyskens go six months before his contract was set to expire in October. Anna Wintour even voiced her disappointment in her April Vogue editor’s letter. Puig said in a statement announcing the dismissal that the brand “wishes to re-orientate its development strategy for the years to come.” Oh, why reorient when the Theyskens fall 2009 development strategy was so, so lovely?
But Theyskens is out, and there’s nothing we or Anna Wintour can do about it. He will hopefully move on to bigger and better, while Puig head Mario Grauso — whose thought process we will never, ever understand — said he plans to announce Ricci’s new designer “within the next few weeks.” Fashion Week Daily reports a “well-placed industry insider is ‘99% sure’” Copping will pick up where Theyskens left off. Copping designs under Marc Jacobs for Louis Vuitton. We’re sure he’s a lovely, talented man, but there is probably no way for him to fill Theyskens’s shoes next season. And we do not envy him that challenge, though we wish him the best of luck.
