Ann Demeulemeester exits namesake fashion house

Designer Ann Demeulemeester announced that she is leaving her

eponymous fashion house, which she established in 1985. She is known as one of the Antwerp Six, a group of designers who all graduated from Antwerp's Royal Academy of Fine Arts and became established during the 1980s.

The designer, who is still based in Antwerp, released a copy of her personal handwritten letter this afternoon, revealing her decision to exit the fashion house. Demeulemeester wrote: 'I always followed my own path...a new time is coming both for my personal life and the brand Ann Demeulemeester.'

She added that the brand bearing her own name had grown its 'own identity and legacy that is able to continue growing' without her presence at the helm. Her reasons for leaving the namesake fashion house, or what her next move in the fashion industry will be were not disclosed in the letter.

However Demeulemeester did confirm that the women's and men's Fall/Winter 2014 collections will be shown together next year January in Paris. Her successor has yet to be named.