Olivier Theyskens makes comeback with eponymous collection
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Fashion
This fall marks the long-awaited return of Olivier Theyskens to the fashion calendar with the relaunch of this eponymous collection.
In an interview with Business of Fashion, the Belgian designer revealed that he has been keeping a low profile while developing the collection for the past two years. He has been working with a small team in Paris, while production mainly takes place in Italy. Theyskens has also brought Maximiliano Nicolelli on board as his CEO. Nicolleli previously worked for luxury fashion companies like LVMH, Esteban Cortázar and La Perla.
Theyskens is financing the collection himself and both he and Nicolelli are reluctant to bring in outside investors, at least for the time being. “It’s obviously interesting to partner with like-minded people that appreciate and value the artistry, but it’s not how we’re developing right now,” Nicolleli told BoF, adding, “Time will tell.”
Slow growth strategy
Although the price points of the collection have yet to be revealed, Theyskens did say that it is situated at the high end of ready-to-wear. The collection will start off with a spring and fall collection, which will show on the traditional fashion calendar. The duo does not feel the need to follow other brands into a more frantic timetable, preferring to let the product be ‘at the centre of the scene’.
In keeping with their cautious approach, retail will be developed slowly, with a small amount of exclusive partners and points of sale. “We will create and develop strong relationships with multi-brand stores, but we don’t have the ambition of making an explosion in the market right now,” Nicolelli said. He added that e-commerce and directly-owned stores are not part of the short-term strategy, although there might be at some point in the future. As Theyskens so succinctly puts it: “I want to have sustainable growth. Craftsmanship and quality is important. Not to be too big too early.”
It has been well over ten years since Theyskens closed down his eponymous line, which he first launched in 1997, upon graduating from La Cambre, to critical and rapid succes. However, he had difficulty keeping up with the demands of investors and retailers, and in 2002 joined French fashion house Rochas as creative director of its ready-to-wear business.
When Rochas closed in 2006, Theyskens defied rumours of a re-launch of his eponymous brand by joining Nina Ricci as its creative director. He remained with the house until 2011, when he was hired by American fashion brand Theory, but by his own admission, the designer missed working for himself. “It’s good for me to think back to what I personally want to do. When I was working for other brands, I was pushing a lot of stuff to the side that I would have done for [my own line].”
Theyskens will now be able to take what he has learned from the past and do things his way: slowly, surely, with quality and craftsmanship at the forefront.
Image Olivier Theyskens/Facebook