Kris Van Assche shelves eponymous label

By

Dominique Muret

Published
May 28, 2015

Times are tough for independent designers. That’s the somewhat bitter observation made by Kris Van Assche, who has announced the shuttering of his eponymous ready-to-wear line. 

The Belgian designer, who has also served as the artistic director of Dior Homme since 2007, announced in a letter sent to WWD that he would not produce his next collection, which was meant to be presented on the Parisian catwalks in June. 

Contacted by FashionMag.com, the fashion house has confirmed the company’s shuttering.

"This wonderful adventure has reached a point where I feel the need to take a break and some distance to better think about how to develop my brand in the future," said the designer, who will now concentrate his efforts on Dior while, "awaiting the right project for [his] label."

A graduate of Antwerp’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Van Assche left his native Belgium to move to Paris in 1998. He launched his own label in 2005, after working in the studios Yves Saint Laurent and Dior Homme, quickly garnering critical success. 

Between 2008 and 2010, his brand offered products for both men and women, before it turned solely to the latter. It was distributed in 130 multibrand stores in over thirty countries, as well as in its Parisian monobrand store on 16 rue Saint Roch (1st arrondissement), a few steps from rue Saint-Honoré.

Several regular and well-chosen collaborations for the likes of Eastpak, Misericordia and Lee allowed the designer to increase his fame. But this was apparently not enough for the brand Kris Van Assche, which presented itself as "both fashionable and wearable", to survive in an increasingly competitive fashion market.