The Italian fashion house Bottega Veneta said goodbye to English fashion designer Daniel Lee after he served for over three years as its creative director.
In a statement last week, Kering, the company that owns Bottega Veneta and several other luxury brands said the 35-year-old British designer would be leaving by common agreement. They added: “He brought new energy to the house and greatly contributed to the new momentum that Bottega Veneta is enjoying today.”
The news took the industry and followers of the brand by surprise, especially since the success and level of attention that the House collected through the years under Lee’s direction was outstanding. His contribution to the brand includes huge successes like “The Clutch”, “The Jodie Bag” and “The Padded Cassette Bag”, and the latest collection he presented in Detroit just a few weeks ago was highly acclaimed.
He also explored new ways to engage with its collaborators and audience, with unusual strategies like erasing the brand’s Instagram account and then releasing “Issued”, a visually-focused digital journal or staging traveling fashion shows in locations including London and Berlin.
“I would like to thank Daniel for his dedication to the House over the past three years,” said Leo Rongone, CEO of the brand. “He provided Bottega Veneta with a fresh perspective and a new sense of modernity, while remaining respectful of the brand’s fifty-year heritage. The remarkable growth of the brand over the last three years bears testimony to the success of his creative work.”
Lee thanked the company for its support over the years: “My time at Bottega Veneta has been an incredible experience. I am grateful to have worked with an exceptional and talented team and I am forever thankful to everyone who was part of creating our vision.”
The announcement of the new creative organization for the house didn’t take long to arrive. The future of the brand is now in the hands of Matthieu Blazy, and it’s not his first time in the Italian luxury goods house, he joined Bottega Veneta in 2020 as Director of Design RTW. Blazy is reportedly already working on the next collection to be presented at Milan Fashion Week on February 2022.
Graduated from La Cambre in Brussels, he first attracted the attention of fashion reporters and connoisseurs during his time at Maison Martin Margiela. It was there, after the F/W 2014-2015 show of the Artisanal collection where even though MMM always gave credit to collective work strictly, the talent of Blazy found its way out of anonymity. After that, he joined Phoebe Philo’s Céline as a Senior Designer, and then worked at Calvin Klein under chief creative Raf Simons.
Announcing the appointment, Bottega Veneta CEO Leo Rongone said, “Matthieu Blazy is an extraordinarily talented individual, whom I am proud and excited to entrust with the creative helm of our luxury House. Bottega Veneta has always been equated with signature craftsmanship and distinctive creativity. Matthieu’s appointment will further enhance the modern relevance of our brand and accelerate our growth, while preserving the values that are at the core of Bottega Veneta.”
