After much speculation, Jonathan Anderson is officially heading to Dior. As announced today (April 17) by Bernard Arnault during the LVMH annual shareholders meeting, Anderson will be taking the reins as creative director of menswear, replacing Kim Jones who left the brand in January. Anderson is set to present his debut collection for the maison during Paris Fashion Week's men's edition this June, and confirmed the appointment on his personal instagram account, posting a close-up image of a Dior shirt label with a four leaf clover as the caption. It also appears the the brand may be returning to the Dior Homme title, judging by the brief press release.
The news follows Anderson’s recent departure from Loewe, where he was creative director for 11 years, transforming the Spanish luxury goods brand into one of the most exciting and innovative labels in the world. Through major moments such as Rihanna’s ruby red Super Bowl outfit and Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour looks, to campaigns starring Dame Maggie Smith, Aubrey Plaza, Josh O’Connor and Taylor Russell, his era at Loewe will go down in fashion history. His impact on the industry also makes it easy to see why Dior would come calling.
Prior to Loewe, the Northern Irish fashion designer graduated from the London College of Fashion in 2005, before becoming a visual merchandiser for Prada, working under Miuccia Prada’s right hand, the late Manuela Pavesi. He launched his own brand, JW Anderson – which began as menswear only – in 2008, but didn’t show on the London Fashion Week schedule until 2010, when he received sponsorship from the British Fashion Council. Similarly to the likes of Craig Green, Priya Ahluwalia, Wales Bonner and Robyn Lynch, Anderson got his start in the industry with the help of London Fashion Week Men’s, which sadly announced last week that it has cancelled its June edition in favour of a Paris showroom.
Following several successful collaborations with Topshop, Anderson was tapped by Donatella Versace to replace Christoper Kane at Versus, the Versace diffusion line. After showing his first Versus collection in June 2013, in September 2013, it was announced that he would be taking over at Loewe, while LVMH took a minority stake in his eponymous label.
His appointment at Dior doesn’t come as a massive shock following months of rumours amid the great fashion switch-up. Still, today’s confirmation is a big moment for the industry, not to mention for Anderson, with Dior being one of the most famous and influential luxury brands in the world.