MILAN – The guessing game as to who could succeed Dario Vitale at Versace may be over soon.
Well-placed sources in Milan said Pieter Mulier, creative director of Maison Azzedine Alaïa, is expected to be joining the Milan-based brand.
WWD first wrote that Mulier was a contender on Dec. 4, breaking the news that Vitale was exiting Versace.
However, sources say Alaïa parent Compagnie Financière Richemont is loath to see Mulier leave as he has been injecting new life into the brand since 2021 and that the group and the designer are still negotiating and finalizing his exit. Therefore, Mulier has not signed at Versace yet, but he is the designer identified by parent Prada Group all along as the creative talent to lead the newly acquired brand forward.
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Prada Group declined to comment Wednesday.
Saint Laurent’s creative director Anthony Vaccarello was also rumored to be in the running to take over as the designer at Versace, but that speculation fizzled out.
Sources say Lorenzo Bertelli, the newly appointed executive chairman of Versace, does not want to overturn the brand’s image, aiming to return to a style more aligned with that of Gianni and Donatella Versace, and less to that of Vitale. His debut collection in September received positive reviews from retailers for his colorful and audacious designs but left many observers baffled at the same time. A source said Bertelli has held talks with Donatella Versace and her daughter Allegra, sharing common ground — leading a family company into the future. Versace is not present on the Milan Men’s Fashion Week calendar and sources believe that the brand will not be holding a women’s fashion show in February.
Mulier is close to Raf Simons, co-creative director of the Prada brand, who may have influenced the choice of him for Versace. The Belgian designer is perhaps best known for his work as Simons’ right hand at Jil Sander, Christian Dior and Calvin Klein.
After studying design and architecture at the Institut Supérieur d’Architecture Saint-Luc de Bruxelles, Mulier started his fashion career working at the Raf Simons men’s label in Antwerp, and expanded his design sphere into womenswear and accessories alongside Simons when the latter took the creative helm of Jil Sander.
When Simons moved to New York to become chief creative officer of Calvin Klein, Mulier was named creative director and was responsible for executing Simons’ creative and design vision for men’s and women’s ready-to-wear, and the bridge and better apparel lines and accessories. Simons brought out Mulier for his runway bows. Mulier also managed all men’s and women’s design teams within the Calvin Klein brand, under Simons’ leadership.
Mulier joined Alaïa in February 2021, presenting his first collection for spring 2022. He has developed a directional and distinctive style for the brand, a strong and clear creative vision, and a focus on craft, quality and timelessnes. He has been creating buzz and momentum around Alaïa with his sculptural volumes and architectural constructions in ready-to-wear and strong accessories, such as the hit bag Le Teckel and the ballerina shoes, attracting a younger and broader audience without losing its loyal customers.
While not breaking down sales by brand, in reporting its first-half results, Richemont called out Alaïa as a “notable growth driver” among its fashion and leather goods houses, logging double-digit growth in the period. It is understood Alaïa has more than doubled in size since Mulier arrived. Founded in 1979 by Tunisian designer Azzedine Alaïa, the house was acquired by the Swiss group in 2007.
Gianni Versace and Azzedine Alaïa were contemporaries, rising to fame in the ‘80s and ‘90s, both empowering the female form, appreciating sensual and sculptural designs, enhanced by the beauty of the supermodels, including Naomi Campbell, who called the latter “Papa” and the former a mentor. Serendipitously, Campbell presented the International Designer of the Year Award to Mulier in November.
Vitale, who exited Versace on Dec. 12, was previously ready-to-wear design director at Miu Miu, which he left in January. Market sources said Vitale was aware that the Prada Group was in discussions to acquire Versace since the end of last year, even before he left Miu Miu, and that another designer — allegedly Mulier — was in the wings for Versace and that it was unlikely he would be kept on at the brand.
In April, the Prada Group revealed the acquisition of Versace from Capri Holdings for an enterprise value of 1.25 billion euros, shortly after Donatella Versace was named chief brand ambassador and left the creative director role after almost three decades at the helm of the brand. She was succeeded by Vitale.
