Hedi Slimane is on his third big gig in fashion after Yves Saint Laurent, Dior Homme, Saint Laurent and now Celine. While he set Saint Laurent immediately on fire with his first show, his tenure at Celine has been a slow burn as the industry as well as consumers were first mourning the disappearance of Phoebe Philo who had a cult following for her Céline. Not only did Slimane take out the accent over the first e but he also changed the playbook completely by making it about Parisian chic.

Celine Homme S/S 2023

Hedi Slimane is on his third big gig in fashion after Yves Saint Laurent, Dior Homme, Saint Laurent and now Celine. While he set Saint Laurent immediately on fire with his first show, his tenure at Celine has been a slow burn as the industry as well as consumers were first mourning the disappearance of Phoebe Philo who had a cult following for her Céline. Not only did Slimane take out the accent over the first e but he also changed the playbook completely by making it about Parisian chic.

Gone are the Los Angeles thrift store vibes of his Saint Laurent tenure and in are the closet classics of a chic Parisienne like tweed blazers, skinny jeans and short leather jackets. His last men’s show at the Palais de Tokyo during Paris men’s was testament to his might as a designer. He literally brought the house down as nearly a thousand kids loitered outside to get a glimpse of his show guests. And he pulled off the feat to bring in Lisa of Blackpink whose fame and star power eclipses Madonna, Lady Gaga or Britney Spears by far. Even Bernard Arnault got up from his front row seat to catch a glimpse of the roaring crowd, clearly proud to be the owner of such a hot label. And Slimane proved that he is still up to setting the fashion agenda as well.

It has to be said that he is a better men’s than women’s designer. Ever since his men’s fall/winter 2022 collection filmed during the pandemic at the Chateau de Chambord entitled a Teen Knight Poem, where the last look needed no less than 23 embroiderers and 1,300 hours of work and in which the silhouettes and details were so rich and wild that it cemented his return as a fashion designer and not just a brand architect. Slimane might be the first credible successor to Karl Lagerfeld in the sense of a designer who shoots the ad campaigns, decides on store design and product categories, show themes, global merchandising, which stars to dress and make directional collections.

Lately, Slimane has embraced a looser silhouette and most importantly the skirt and dress for men, which he validated as opening look of the show. Slimane’s Celine is now also an Haute Couture house with Parisian ateliers and Slimane lavishly embroiders, embellishes and photo prints on his garments which often has the desired vintage look but is brand new and executed with the highest level of quality. Maybe the look of now? Weathered and used but made by the best hands. Slimane also likes to celebrate an anniversary. For his second Dior Homme show, he chose the then newly opened Palais de Tokyo and the recent men’s marked 20th anniversary of the Palais and Slimane’s singular influence on men’s wear.

This article first appeared in Achtung Mode Nr. 44