You may not ¡°J¡¯adore Dior,¡± but it¡¯s hard not to be fascinated by the goings on within the French fashion house, which is now one of the fashion industry¡¯s two remaining haute couture maisons.
John Galliano, who had helmed the brand for 15 years, put the company through a particularly rough patch when he made a racist statement that subsequently got him axed in 2011. His successor was fired after a single inauspicious collection. Then in 2012, Belgian fashion designer Raf Simons was appointed as Dior¡¯s new creative director ¡ª a choice that sent significant tremors rippling through the world of high fashion.
Simons had enjoyed a brilliant stint as creative director at Jill Sander, but didn¡¯t seem like the type to take on Dior¡¯s grandeur and history. In Frederick Tcheng¡¯s documentary ¡°Dior and I,¡± you¡¯ll hear it again and again from the staff at Dior: ¡°Raf Simons was not the obvious choice,¡± ¡°He¡¯s a minimalist¡± and ¡°His coming was a surprise.¡±
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