Hedi Slimane

>> Hedi Slimane's new job as creative director of Yves Saint Laurent was just announced two weeks ago, and he's wasting no time in assembling his new staff.

>Vogue UK reports that Slimane has hired Laurence Kleinknecht as YSL's worldwide press director. Kleinknecht has managed her public relations company for the last 16 years and served as head of PR for Dior Homme when Slimane was its head designer. She also represented him when he left Dior Homme to focus on photography.

Kleinknecht's website says she currently represents DJ Chloe Thevenin and handbag designer Delphine Delafon.

>> It's official. Yves Saint Laurent has named Hedi Slimane its new creative director, effective immediately. In a statement released earlier today, the company said that Slimane will "assume total creative responsibility" at the house, but will also continue to pursue his career in photography. "Hedi Slimane's exceptional talent and understanding of the spirit of Yves Saint Laurent heralds a promising new chapter in the story of the maison," CEO Paul Deneve said. Slimane's first outing for the label will be the Resort collection, presented in June.

The sentiment was echoed by PPR Chairman and CEO François-Henri Pinault. "As one of the most important French fashion houses, Yves Saint Laurent today possesses formidable potential, which I am confident will be successfully harnessed and revealed through the vision of Hedi Slimane."

Slimane replaces Stefano Pilati, whose contract with the house ended Monday after a successful — if sometimes rocky — eight years.

>> A couple of weeks after rumors popped up suggesting that Marc Jacobs was at the top of the pack to take over as Dior's new designer, reports corroborate that the rumors just might be true.

According to WWD, Bernard Arnault is in talks with Jacobs about moving from Louis Vuitton to Dior, and meetings have reportedly been scheduled in Paris this week between Dior officials and legal representatives for Jacobs. Jacobs, who signed on as Vuitton's artistic director in 1997, has been in the midst of renewing his employment contract at Vuitton, but those discussions are said to have been put on hold, pending the outcome of Jacobs's discussions with Dior.

One source cautioned WWD that deal with Jacobs is not done, but both the designer and Dior management are so far "excited" about the prospect. If the deal goes through, Jacobs will get his first opportunity as a couturier, and his business partner Robert Duffy would come with him. Dior declined to comment on the reports, and Jacobs could not be reached for comment.

As for who would replace Jacobs at Vuitton, it sounds like Phoebe Philo could be first in line. LVMH has already reportedly held preliminary discussions with Philo, who is said to be "intrigued" by the project. If the shuffling plays out, it's reportedly likely she would design Vuitton in addition to Celine.

WWD reports that a number of potential candidates have been approached to succeed John Galliano, who exited Dior in March, including Alber Elbaz, Nicolas Ghesquière, Sarah Burton, Haider Ackermann and Hedi Slimane. Elbaz and Ghesquiere, who both have equity stakes in and strong commitments to the houses they design for, have withdrawn themselves from the running, and Burton is said to have rebuffed overtures. Talks with Ackermann and Slimane, meanwhile, did not end in an agreement. As for Riccardo Tisci, he is still considered a dark-horse candidate, and has been championed by Delphine Arnault, Dior deputy managing director and Bernard Arnault's daughter.

>> Is change on the horizon for the house of Pierre Cardin? There are certainly rumors floating around that would perpetrate as much. Earlier this month, shortly after Hedi Slimane confirmed that he plans to return to fashion design, commenters on The Imagist suggested that he may be headed to Pierre Cardin. And then this morning, The Imagist himself tweeted, "You will witness the return of Pierre Cardin to ultra-blue chip relevancy," suggesting that something is indeed a-brewing.

Just last week, Cardin said that in light of his age, he wants to hand his empire over to new owners soon: “A decision is fairly imminent. I want to do it this year. I am almost 89, you know. I might be alert for another two, three years, but after that, I’ll be a little bit senile.”

His minimum asking price remains one billion euros ($1.4 billion), despite criticism that the price is too steep for a business based mainly on licenses. “I field offers every single day,” Cardin noted. “Let’s do the math briefly. There are some 100 clothing products for men, women and children. There are roughly 100 countries. On average, I’m asking for one million euros [$1.4 million] per product and per country. That’s 10 billion euros. Wouldn’t you give one million euros to own the license for Pierre Cardin suits, for example? It’s nothing.”

Cardin added that he is currently leaning towards a plan by British-based investors to list the company on the stock exchange and keep him on as CEO. But, as WWD notes: "The famously mercurial designer could still change his mind."

>> Hedi Slimane, who last acted as creative director of Dior Homme before leaving the brand in 2007 (and has since focusing on his photography) has confirmed that he does indeed plan to make a comeback at some point: "Yes, of course I am [intending to return to fashion design], but I’m really down to earth with fashion, and I have a business and brand-oriented mind. I know what it takes to make a brand strong in the long term in a global economy. Besides design and communication, I need to make sure I have the right tools to make a new design project successful in the long run."

Slimane notes that his designs would always be for a luxury customer; when asked whether he would collaborate with a mass retailer, he replied: "No, never. I could do my own jeans line, for instance, because I have legitimacy in launching the skinny jeans in fashion, and jeans for me feel like a real noble item in fashion, a social territory almost. On the other hand, I don’t like the collusion between high fashion design and high street. You have to know where you stand. I belong to luxury fashion. That’s what I’ve always felt and embraced. I like the best quality, the best fabrics and the most creative field in fashion. I will stay consistent. I belong to this world."

>> LVMH is taking its time with the announcement of Dior's new designer, and it sounds like the decision still has yet to be made. At a recent shareholders' meeting, Bernard Arnault said the plan was to interview a number of candidates before making the call when "conviction" arrives.

But who's reportedly on the short list of candidates Bernard Arnault's advisors have submitted? Tom Ford, Hedi Slimane, Olivier Theyskens, Nicholas Ghesquiere, Alber Elbaz, Haider Ackermann, Prabal Gurung, and Sarah Burton. However, a source in Paris told WWD that LVMH is placing less importance on marquee names and focusing rather on “someone who understands Dior and fits the needs of the company.”

While Arnault, chairman of the board at Dior, is sure to get the final say on the appointee, Dior CEO Sidney Toledano, who has helmed the company since 1998, and Delphine Arnault (Bernard's daughter), deputing managing director at Dior and widely viewed as the eventual LVMH heir apparent, are also expected to weigh in. Apparently Dior execs are also receiving unsolicited designer suggestions from top editors and even shareholders.

Delphine, for her part, is seen as a champion of Riccardo Tisci; the Givenchy designer has reportedly been lobbying for the position as well, sketching out his vision for the brand. Bernard Arnault, meanwhile, is reportedly transfixed by royalty, and if Sarah Burton does dress Kate Middleton for her wedding at the end of the month (despite Burton's and the McQueen company's denials), she may pull ahead in the race. Arnault would be keen to launch the new Dior alongside the newly-married couple; Princess Diana, after all, helped catapult the brand's image in 1995 when she wore a Lady Dior bag and then in 1996 when she wore a midnight blue, bias-cut Dior gown by John Galliano to the Costume Institute Gala.

In the meantime, design duties are falling on Dior's in-house design studios, headed by Bill Gaytten, who has worked beside Galliano since the '80s. They're already creating the Cruise 2012 collection and have started in on the upcoming Fall 2011 couture collection, in preparation for its debut in July.

>> Carine Roitfeld was spotted a couple of days ago in New York, and it will likely be happening more often in the next few months. Barneys New York has asked Roitfeld to act as a guest editor, muse, and stylist for a multifaceted Fall 2011 initiative.

Roitfeld will style and edit Barneys' Fall 2011 catalogue, campaign (to be shot by Mario Sorrenti), and mailers, as well as put her touch on the retailer's Madison Avenue windows, to be unveiled in September. “It’s very exciting,” Roitfeld said. “It’s a new kind of project for me. It’s good to have a new life, because now I can do projects that I never dreamed of before. For me, Barneys has always been the biggest name in luxury department stores, so to be able to participate in this project with them, and be visible during the next fashion week in New York, is my dream come true. To a French girl, it’s a big, big dream.”

The collaboration came up after a conversation with Barneys CEO Mark Lee after Roitfeld announced she was leaving Vogue Paris. Barneys creative director Dennis Freedman explained that the campaign will reflect “the woman that [Roitfeld] is and her personal style, which we feel is the perfect reflection of our customer. She is the ideal muse as well as editor. She has a unique and extraordinary personal style. She appeals to all ages. She is independent and strong, and yet she is completely feminine. She is a woman of the world, which we like to think our customer is, as well.” It remains unclear whether Roitfeld herself will appear in the ad campaign.

Sorrenti is also expected to shoot a short film in New York and Paris for Barneys, with Roitfeld as the focus. “I am hoping to capture something very personal, a portrait of her in a way,” Sorrenti said. “When Carine and I are together, it’s fun, and she is really cool and really herself, and it’s that intimacy that I want to capture. She has a great sense of humor, and she is very provocative and very free in the way that she doesn’t plan about who she is and what she is going to say. She is very natural, which is great.”

This is Roitfeld's first publicly announced project since leaving Vogue Paris, and it sounds like she plans to stay a free agent for the time being. She says of recent rumors: “Each day it’s changing. One day I am going to Dior with Riccardo Tisci, the next day I am going to Saint Laurent with Hedi Slimane. I don’t think it’s very nice for the designer at Saint Laurent, and it’s just rumors. What I know is that I now have my freedom and I will keep my freedom forever. I am very excited to have this freedom and to have projects like the one at Barneys.”

As for what her future might actually hold, she says: “I am sure that one day I will, even if it’s not my own magazine, do special stories for magazines and maybe something on the Internet. I have projects and opportunities coming on. The only sure thing I know is that I will keep my freedom. I can be a muse for a designer, I can do work for some magazines, and do advertising, and maybe something like Barneys, but still keep my freedom.”