Alexander McQueen's next creative director is Seán McGirr

Seán McGirr, an Irish designer, has been announced as the British brand's next creative director days after Sarah Burton presented her latest collection for the brand .

Three days after Sarah Burton presented her latest Alexander McQueen collection at Paris Fashion Week, the brand's parent company has appointed Seán McGirr, an Irish designer , to succeed him.

“Alexander McQueen is a house that fascinates us and we are convinced that Seán McGirr will be able to continue his adventure with new creative momentum”, François-Henri Pinault, CEO of Kering, said in a statement released Tuesday.

Mr. McGirr was until recently head of ready-to-wear at British brand JW Anderson. He has also worked at Dries Van Noten, Burberry and Uniqlo. He graduated from Central Saint Martins in London, where Ms. Burton completed her degree before beginning her 26-year career at Alexander McQueen as a trainee in 1996.

In a statement, Gianfilippo Testa, the chief executive of Alexander McQueen, cited Mr. McGirr's "experience, personality and creativity" as reasons for hiring him. The statement did not specify when Mr. McGirr would start.

By appointing Mr. McGirr as creative director at Alexander McQueen, Mr. Pinault continued a trend he helped launch at Alexander McQueen. fashion industry executives to favor relatively unknown designers rather than flashier names for senior positions at major houses. Earlier this year, Mr. Pinault hired Sabato de Sarno, former director of men's and women's ready-to-wear at Valentino, to take over at Gucci. In 2021, Mr. Pinault promoted Matthieu Blazy to head of Bottega Veneta, where he was design director.

On social networks, first reactions to the announcement Mr. McGirr's nominations were mixed. Some noted that it came just days after Ms. Burton took an emotional bow at her final show, which she dedicated to the brand's founder, Lee Alexander McQueen, who died by suicide at age 40 in 2010 .During the parade, notes were left. on each seat it was written that "Mr. McQueen's desire has always been to empower women."

1 Granary, an online publication launched by students at Central Saint Martins, wrote in an article on X, formerly known as Twitter, that with Mr. McGirr's appointment, the creative directors of Kering's six fashion brands are now white men. p>