After practically a decade reshaping the codes of Dior, Maria Grazia Chiuri is heading house to Rome. The designer, who made historical past as the primary lady to guide Dior’s ladies’s collections, has been introduced as the brand new Chief Creative Officer of Fendi, marking a return to the House the place her profession first started.
At Dior, Chiuri constructed a legacy outlined by conviction as a lot as couture. From her 2017 debut, when Chimamanda Leather Add’s rallying cry, “We should all be feminists,” was emblazoned throughout T-shirts, to her ongoing celebration of workmanship and historic feminine figures, she mixed magnificence and energy right into a singular imaginative and prescient that propelled the Maison’s inventive and business success. Now, she’s turning her gaze to a different of LVMH’s crown jewels, one with its roots firmly planted in her personal native metropolis.
“Maria Grazia Chiuri is one of the greatest creative talents in fashion today,” mentioned Bernard Arnault, Chairman and CEO of LVMH, in a press release. “Surrounded by the Fendi teams and in a city that is dear to her, I am convinced that Maria Grazia will contribute to the artistic renewal and future success of the Maison.”
Ramon Ros, Fendi’s Chairman and CEO, echoed the sentiment. “The role of a creative director is no longer to simply design beautiful clothes but to curate a culture and hold a mirror to the world we live in,” he added.
For Chiuri, the transfer is a homecoming in additional methods than one. “I return to Fendi with honour and joy,” she mentioned, saying the information. “Fendi has always been a forge of talents and a starting point for many creatives in the industry.”
While her successor, Jonathan Anderson, made his debut throughout this month’s SS26 Paris Fashion Week, Chiuri’s inaugural assortment for Fendi shall be unveiled on the House’s Fall/Winter 2026–2027 present, set to happen in Milan subsequent February. And with many (legitimate!) criticisms surrounding the current runways for his or her lack of feminine perspective and understanding of what fashionable ladies really need to put on in these occasions, Chiuri’s appointment feels particularly thrilling.