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Yves Saint Laurent SAS (; ; ; ), also known as Saint Laurent and YSL, is a French high-end luxury
fashion house Fashion design is the art of applying design, aesthetics, clothing construction and natural beauty to clothing and its accessories. It is influenced by culture and different trends, and has varied over time and place. "A fashion designer create ...
founded in 1962 by Yves Saint Laurent and his partner, Pierre Bergé. The company specializes in ''
haute couture ''Haute couture'' (; ; French for 'high sewing', 'high dressmaking') is the creation of exclusive custom-fitted high-end fashion design that is constructed by hand from start-to-finish. Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, Paris became th ...
'', ready-to-wear, leather accessories, and footwear. Its cosmetics line, YSL Beauty, is owned by
L'Oréal L'Oréal S.A. () is a French personal care company headquartered in Clichy, Hauts-de-Seine with a registered office in Paris. It is the world's largest cosmetics company and has developed activities in the field concentrating on hair color, ...
.


History

The eponymous brand was established in 1962 by designer Yves Saint Laurent and his partner, Pierre Bergé. The brand's logos were designed in 1963 by A. M. Cassandre. During the 1960s and 1970s, YSL popularized the
beatnik Beatniks were members of a social movement in the 1950s that subscribed to an anti-materialistic lifestyle. History In 1948, Jack Kerouac introduced the phrase "Beat Generation", generalizing from his social circle to characterize the under ...
look, safari jackets, tight pants, and thigh-high boots. In 1966, YSL debuted '' Le Smoking'', a tuxedo suit for women. In an attempt to democratize fashion, YSL began producing ready-to-wear in 1966, with its launch of ''Rive Gauche,'' and is considered to be the first to popularize the concept. YSL's designs often featured designs influenced from traditional
Chinese clothing Chinese clothing includes both the traditional hanfu and modern variations of indigenous Chinese dress as recorded by the artifacts and some traditional arts of Chinese culture. Chinese clothing has been shaped through its dynastic traditions, as ...
, as well as themes from Pop Art, ''Ballet Russes'', and
Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...
. Saint Laurent is credited with initiating the broad, shoulder-padded style in 1978 that would go on to characterize 1980s fashion. Saint Laurent's muses included
Loulou de La Falaise Louise Vava Lucia Henriette Le Bailly de La Falaise (; 4 May 1947 – 5 November 2011), known as Loulou de la Falaise, was an English fashion muse and accessory and jewellery designer associated with Yves Saint Laurent. Author Judith Thurma ...
,
Betty Catroux Betty Catroux (born Betty Saint in 1945) is a Brazilian-born French former Chanel model, and fashion icon. She has been cited as a muse by both Yves Saint Laurent and Tom Ford. Early life She was born in Brazil in 1945, the only child of Carmen ...
, Talitha Pol-Getty, and
Catherine Deneuve Catherine Fabienne Dorléac (born 22 October 1943), known professionally as Catherine Deneuve (, , ), is a French actress as well as an occasional singer, model, and producer, considered one of the greatest European actresses. She gained recogni ...
. The brand expanded in the 1980s and early 1990s with men's and women's fragrances, and its cosmetic line in 1978. However, by 1992, the company's profits were in decline and its share price had fallen. In 1993, Saint Laurent was sold to pharmaceuticals company Sanofi. In 1997, Pierre Bergé appointed Hedi Slimane as collections and art director and relaunched ''Rive Gauche Homme''. Slimane departed two years later to head couture menswear at Dior Homme. In 1999, Kering purchased YSL and hired Tom Ford to design the ready-to-wear collection, while Yves Saint Laurent himself would design the haute couture collection. Designs by Tom Ford For YSL were chosen Dress of the Year by the Fashion Museum in 2001 and 2004. In 2002, after years of poor health, drug abuse, depression, alcoholism, and criticisms of YSL designs, Saint Laurent closed the couture division of YSL. "
Chanel Chanel ( , ) is a French high-end luxury fashion house founded in 1910 by Coco Chanel in Paris. Chanel specializes in women's ready-to-wear, luxury goods, and accessories and licenses its name and branding to Luxottica for eyewear. Chane ...
freed women, and I empowered them," Saint Laurent was quoted, reflecting on his career and impact on fashion, "I created the contemporary woman's wardrobe." In 2004, Tom Ford departed the company and Stefano Pilati, an Italian-born designer became creative director. Yves Saint Laurent died of brain cancer in 2008. The following few years proved to be tumultuous for the company, with YSL stores closing in the key U.S. markets of
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...
and
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
(including the company's
Madison Avenue Madison Avenue is a north-south avenue in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, United States, that carries northbound one-way traffic. It runs from Madison Square (at 23rd Street) to meet the southbound Harlem River Drive at 142nd Str ...
location, its first-ever store in the United States). In January 2010, its
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...
boutique on Oak Street also closed. In 2012, Kering announced Hedi Slimane replaced
Stefano Pilati Stefano Pilati (born December 10, 1965 in Milan) is an Italian fashion designer. In 2017 he founded Random Identities, a ready-to-wear brand. From 2004 until 2012, Pilati was the head designer of Yves Saint Laurent. In late 2012 he left YSL t ...
as creative director for YSL. Slimane previously worked with Dior Homme until 2007. In 2015, Slimane announced he would revive Yves Saint Laurent's couture line. In 2016, Slimane left Saint Laurent and
Anthony Vaccarello Anthony Vaccarello (born 18 January 1982) is an Italian fashion designer and current creative director at Saint Laurent. Prior to this position, he was creative director at Versus Versace. He also designed his own eponymous line. In April 2016, ...
was appointed creative director, a position he still holds as of August 2022. Despite Slimane previously working with the house, there was controversy following his appointment, particularly after the announcement the ready-to-wear line would be rebranded “Saint Laurent” (dropping “Yves” from its name). ”Yves Saint Laurent” and the YSL vertical monogram logo would remain for accessories and its L’Oréal-owned cosmetics line. Slimane drew inspiration for the name change from the ready-to-wear line ''Rive Gauche''’s name when it first launched, “''Saint Laurent Rive Gauche''”. Parisian boutique Colette began selling shirts with the line "Ain't Laurent without Yves." Saint Laurent requested the store stop selling the shirts (which it did on its online store). In October 2013, Colette received a letter from YSL accusing it of selling counterfeit products that seriously damaged the brand. Following the accusation, Saint Laurent canceled Colette's order for its Spring 2014 Collection, despite Colette stocking the brand since 1998. After his appointment, Slimane moved the design studio to
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
, Slimane's home; the couture atelier would remain in France. The company revived its ''
haute couture ''Haute couture'' (; ; French for 'high sewing', 'high dressmaking') is the creation of exclusive custom-fitted high-end fashion design that is constructed by hand from start-to-finish. Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, Paris became th ...
'' collection in 2015 under Slimane. In April 2016,
Anthony Vaccarello Anthony Vaccarello (born 18 January 1982) is an Italian fashion designer and current creative director at Saint Laurent. Prior to this position, he was creative director at Versus Versace. He also designed his own eponymous line. In April 2016, ...
was appointed creative director. In 2017, Vaccarello chose Charlotte Gainsbourg, daughter of
Serge Gainsbourg Serge Gainsbourg (; born Lucien Ginsburg; 2 April 1928 – 2 March 1991) was a French musician, singer-songwriter, actor, author and filmmaker. Regarded as one of the most important figures in French pop, he was renowned for often provoc ...
and Jane Birkin, as face of the A/W 2017 campaign. In 2019, Saint Laurent launched its lifestyle-brand ''Rive Droite'', in which exclusive merchandise, collector's items, and curated experiences are made available at Paris and Los Angeles. In 2021, ''Rive Droite'' debuted ''Te ride'', a collection in collaboration with Super73, consisting of an electric bike, skateboards, and surfboards, and ''Live Sessions,'' a platform for emerging musicians to perform for a digital audience.


References


External links

* {{Authority control Clothing brands of France Clothing companies of France Clothing retailers of France Fashion accessory brands Luxury brands High fashion brands Cosmetics brands Cosmetics companies of France Eyewear brands of France Jewellery retailers of France Perfume houses Shoe companies of France Companies based in Paris Clothing companies established in 1962 Design companies established in 1962 Retail companies established in 1962 French companies established in 1962 Comité Colbert members Gucci brands Cigarette brands 1980s fashion 1990s fashion 2000s fashion 2010s fashion 2020s fashion