Kering to pay Hedi Slimane 13 million US dollars

The commericial court of Paris has ordered Kering, the parent company of Saint Laurent, to pay a total of 13 million US dollars in damages to its former creative director Hedi Slimane, according to Hervé Temime, Slimane's lawyer, reports AFP.

The ruling comes after the Slimane filed a lawsuit concerning the non-compete clause signed with Saint Laurent against Kering, calling for the non-compete clause to be reinstated after it was lifted by the parent company. Kering has also been ordered to pay Slimane statutory interest from April onwards in additioned to the 13 million dollars in compensation.

Court rules in favour Hedi Slimane against Kering

"We won," said Temime to Reuters. "I welcome this decision which is entirely completely natural, as the contractual arrangements where crystal clear."

Slimane previously announced his sudden exit from Saint Laurent in April, following a four year tenure. According to a report from Reuters, Kering went on to remove the non-compete clause from Slimane's contract at the end of his tenure, a decision that did not sit well with the designer himself.

On June 28, Kering confirmed that the former creative director had taken legal action against them, stating that Slimane demanded "payment compensation" which corresponded to the non-compete clause that the luxury group had lifted without the former creative directors consent.

Kering is set to appeal the court's decision, calling the ruling an interi, ruling concerning non-competition obligations, which is a normal form employed to restrict executives from working for competitors for a certin period of time.

Photo: Yves Saint Laurent, Facebook