Bouchra Jarrar quits troubled Lanvin
A CANDID interview in which British Vogue’s former fashion director said she was fired from the title has been mysteriously removed from the internet. Ever since the announcement that long-standing editor Alexandra Shulman was to be replaced by stylist Edward Enninful, it became clear that a new era was dawning at the glossy title. Especially as two other departures swiftly followed: managing editor of 24 years Frances Bentley left on the same day, and fashion director Lucinda Chambers announced that she was to step down four months later. But now, in an extremely open interview with Vestoj, Chambers has said that she was fired – a decision which she said took bosses just "three minutes" to carry out. In an article publish ed on the "critical thinking" fashion website, Chambers, 57, said she had been fired six weeks ago by Enninful. DESIGNER Bouchra Jarrar has quit Lanvin, the troubled Paris label confirmed recently, only 10 months after she showed her first collection there, reports AFP Relaxnews.
The 46-year-old closed her own label last March so she could dedicate herself to reviving France's oldest fashion house.
But it soon became clear that all was not well within the house, which has been in turmoil since the shock sacking of its previous designer Alber Elbaz in 2015.
In a short statement late Thursday, Lanvin said they had "mutually decided to put an end to their collaboration".
The popular Elbaz had brought Lanvin, founded in 1889, back from the edge of oblivion before he fell foul of its formidable owner, Taiwanese media magnate Shaw-Lan Wang.
The label sank 18.3 million euros (US$20.8 million) into the red last year, its first loss for a decade.
Jarrar's two collections for the label were warmly received for their "sober elegance" by critics, and just recently she was made an officer of France's prestigious Order of Arts and Letters for her services to fashion.
But with morale low in the brand's workshop amid an exodus of talent after Elbaz's departure, and rumours of further friction over budget cuts, her exit was not unexpected. In March, Jarrar hinted that she was not getting the support that she needed to turn the label around.
"I want to bring my expertise, creativity, technical know-how and pragmatism" to the brand, she told the South China Morning Post.
For that "I need the whole house's support. Alone it's impossible," she added.
In the statement confirming her departure, Jarrar said she wished to "particularly acknowledge the work of the teams with whom I collaborated to express French creativity and know-how."
French-born Jarrar, whose parents come from Morocco, started designing early, having learned to sew from her father.