Isabel Marant Promotes Dutch Designer to Artistic Director
PARIS — Isabel Marant has promoted label veteran Kim Bekker to artistic director of its women’s and men’s collections.
It marks the first time that the French fashion label has officially named another designer in the top creative seat, though the company said its founder would remain in place.
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“The Dutch designer will work alongside Isabel Marant and will supervise women’s, men’s and accessories collections, and will accompany the growth of the house and its development projects,” the brand said in a statement.
The Marant label has seen rapid growth since French investment fund Montefiore Investment in 2016 acquired a 51 percent stake.
Chief executive officer Anouck Duranteau-Loeper said the aim was to create a stronger team around the founder, as the company’s turnover has almost doubled since 2015, with its store network ballooning from 10 to 70 during the period.
“There is no question of Isabel leaving the company. On the contrary, we are working to make sure she has the right teams in place in order to be able to remain at her house for a very long time,” Duranteau-Loeper told WWD.
A graduate of the Arnhem Academy of Art and Design, Bekker was creative director of Isabel Marant from 2008 to 2018, according to her LinkedIn Profile. She returned to the company in March 2021 to take on her current position, following a stint as design director for pre-collections and finished products at Saint Laurent.
In addition to its main women’s collection and a men’s line, launched in 2017, the brand produces a secondary collection, Isabel Marant étoile, and accessories, including its recently launched eyewear collection with Safilo Group.
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