Finally, Another Woman Designer Gets a Big Brand

New York Times

2 days ago

In the latest move in the unprecedented realignment of the fashion world, Meryll Rogge was appointed creative director of Marni on Tuesday. She will be responsible for women's wear, men's wear, accessories, store design and communications, replacing Francesco Risso, who left the Italian brand last month after almost 10 years.
Ms. Rogge is the 17th new designer named to a big brand since mid-2024, but only the fourth woman.
It's a striking imbalance in an industry that is still largely powered by women's wear and accessories, and one that was quick to pay lip service to diversity in recent years but has seemed to retreat from many of its pledges in terms of gender and race.
Ms. Rogge will become the sole female designer in the stable of OTB, the holding company that also owns Maison Margiela, Jil Sander, Diesel and Viktor & Rolf and that reported sales of 1.7 billion euros in 2024, down 4 percent from 2023.
Similarly, Louise Trotter, who will make her debut at Bottega Veneta in September, is the only female designer at Kering, the luxury group that owns Gucci, Balenciaga and Saint Laurent, among other brands. The other two women who became creative directors of major fashion houses this year are Sarah Burton at Givenchy and Veronica Leoni at Calvin Klein.
In a news release, Stefano Rosso, the Marni chief executive, called Ms. Rogge 'an exceptional creative talent and an inspiring woman.'
A Belgian designer who started her career at Marc Jacobs before becoming head of women's design at Dries Van Noten and founding a namesake brand in 2020, Ms. Rogge, 40, shares a certain quirky practicality with Marni's founder, Consuelo Castiglioni.
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