Bill Gaytten Leaves Dior as Raf Simons Steps In
While the last year at the house of Christian Dior has, for the most part, centered on talk of who might fill the shoes of John Galliano, plenty of attention—both good and bad—fell on Bill Gaytten. The former right-hand man to Galliano, Gaytten designed six collections for the label, and while Dior purists criticized them for their lack of Galliano’s signature showmanship, Dior execs insisted that the pieces sold well at retail—sparking some discussion about whether or not Gaytten might just be the right man for the job after all. (Gaytten, for his part, said he wanted the gig.)
Now, with Raf Simons officially in as Dior’s new leader, Gaytten’s time at the line is coming to an end: the Telegraph reports that the designer will be departing the house immediately, having taken his final bow at a Dior couture show staged in Shanghai this weekend.
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Gaytten lacks the star power of other bold-named designers who have been playing the game of fashion musical chairs in the industry recently (Simons, Stefano Pilati), and his time at the helm of Dior has been relatively thankless, but there's no doubt he's played a very important role in this often-dramatic period at the house.
It will be interesting to see where Gaytten lands next.
