Christian Dior: brand history

Every time I say a name Christian Dior, we mean style, sophistication and luxury of everything that this legendary brand with more than half a century of history produces - clothes, perfumes, cosmetics.

Even as a child, a gypsy woman predicted the fate of the future great couturier. She said that in the future he would be left without a livelihood, but women would bring him luck, and it was thanks to them that he would achieve success and become a wealthy man. Then 14-year-old Christian simply laughed in response to these words.

The skeptical teenager did not particularly believe in predictions, besides, his father was a wealthy entrepreneur, and Christian could not imagine what it would be like to be left completely without money. The boy's parents hoped that he would pursue a diplomatic career, ignoring his desire to become an artist. Christian had to go to the Paris School of Political Science.

But political science failed to discourage him from pursuing art. Dior and a friend open an art gallery and sell antiques. Christian moved in Parisian bohemia, and it seemed that there would be no end to his carefree existence. But everything changed overnight. In 1931, Christian lost his mother. The father was deceived by his partner and went bankrupt as a result. The art gallery also closed, Christian survived only with the help of his true friends.

Lack of money forced Christian Dior to return to his childhood hobby - drawing. He sketched several sketches of dresses and hats, which were bought by the Le Figaro newspaper. After receiving his first fee, it occurred to Dior that his childhood hobby could actually bring in money. He begins to collaborate with various magazines, creating clothing models for famous couturiers.

But true success awaited him after the end of the war. The textile magnate invited Dior to take over as artistic director of his fashion house to lift it out of the ruins it had fallen into during World War II. Christian agreed, but set a bold condition, which, however, was accepted - the fashion house received the name “House of Christian Dior”. From the very beginning, Dior knew the value of himself and his talent.

In the cold post-war winter of 1947, in Paris, where there was a shortage of basic coal and gasoline, and there were constant problems with clean water and electricity, the premiere show of Christian Dior's collection entitled " New Look". Wonderful exotic flowers bloomed on the catwalk, one after another, fashion models in chic dresses came out. The spectators sat motionless, delighted with this celebration of life in post-war gray Paris. Christian Dior again reminded them that they are beautiful, gentle, feminine.

The success of the show was incredible. Dior said that he painted women who looked like flowers. This was exactly what the fair half of humanity lacked at that time. Dior became an idol who brought back beauty and femininity. Thus the gypsy's prophecy came true - women contributed to the success of Christian Dior. The fashion designer remembered her words and became very superstitious, realizing that the prophecies were coming true. Now he did not take a single step without the advice of his personal fortuneteller, Madame Delahaye.

A few years later, Christian Dior's fashion house grew into a whole network of enterprises that employed more than 2,000 people. Dior only admitted handmade Therefore, in his workshops, each piece of clothing was created by the careful work of the Fashion House workers. Dior did not want to make his enterprise just another production, churning out works of art in mass quantities, because such an approach deprived the latter of the actual opportunity to be called works of art. The great couturier treated dresses as living beings.

Having earned fame as an extravagant couturier, Christian Dior opens a perfume manufacturing company. He was firmly convinced that perfume was a continuation of the dress, an indispensable attribute of the finished toilet. The very first perfumes from Dior - Miss Dior, Diorama, Diorissimo, J"adore - became timeless classics and are still popular today.

In the perfume composition of Diorissimo perfume, released in 1956, the main note belongs to the lily of the valley, the mascot of the House of Dior. These perfumes were the first to contain notes of this flower.

The next step was the opening of a branch of the House of Dior, producing cosmetics, which were also intended to become part of the complete image of a stylish woman.

Since 1955, Dior began producing lipstick, since 1961 it began producing nail polish, and since 1969, Christian Dior has been producing cosmetics in series. The Dior brand has always set itself the goal of finding a harmonious combination of colors for all products included in one series. And here Dior could not deviate from its artistic taste. By creating new colors, Dior never repeats itself. Each time a new color scheme is chosen, but within its limits all colors combine perfectly and support each other.

The couturier worked tirelessly, and this affected his health. When he was about to undergo a course of treatment in Italy, he consulted with a personal fortuneteller, but even after receiving a warning, for the first time he did not listen to her advice. On October 24, 1957, Christian Dior died of a heart attack while in Italy.

After Dior's death, Yves Saint Laurent, a young designer who had joined the firm four years earlier, became the leading designer of the house. In 1960, Yves Saint Laurent was called up for military service, which forced him to leave his post. He was replaced by Mark Boan, followed by Gianfranco Ferré in 1989. In October 1996, John Galliano took over as chief designer of the House of Christian Dior.

To date, Dior brand stores can be found in 43 countries, including Japan, China, Australia, Brazil and other countries.

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« It's always worth highlighting your best features. As a matter of fact, this is what fashion does - it enhances and emphasizes feminine beauty " - Christian Dior.

These words, spoken by the founder of one of the largest fashion houses in France, have always been decisive in the work of the great couturier, and all the followers of Dior, who replaced him as director of the house, adhered to the same line whenever possible. Therefore, the Dior brand today and always is, first of all, maddening, sensual and mysterious femininity.

The founder of the fashion house is Christian Dior.

Christian Dior was born in 1905 in the small town of Granville in France, and in 1911 the family moved to France. Christian has been interested in drawing and creating clothes since childhood. His parents wanted Christian to become a diplomat, however, Christian very quickly abandoned his studies in political science and, together with his friend, opened an art gallery where Matisse, Picasso and many other artists exhibited. However, in 1931, after the bankruptcy of Christian's father, the gallery had to be closed, and Christian himself earned money by selling his sketches of clothes and hats to various fashion magazines. The development of Dior's career was hindered by the war; he served in the army, and only in 1946 was he able to open his own fashion house thanks to his acquaintance with Marcel Boussac, who agreed to invest money in Dior's enterprise.

In 1947, Christian Dior released his first collection, which made all fashionistas in Paris talk about the talented couturier. Harper's Bazaar fashion editor Carmel Snow gushed about the collection: “This is absolutely A New Look! Thus, the silhouette of the dresses demonstrated by Dior on the catwalk forever secured the name New Look.

What was this new look? After the era of minimalism and even asceticism in fashion that reigned during wartime, Dior invited women to become gorgeous and feminine again: models strutted down the catwalk in dresses with full skirts and crinolines, narrow bodices emphasizing the wasp waist, long gloves, and faces mysteriously hidden behind veils.

The first collection of the fashion house attracted great attention and aroused a lot of enthusiastic reviews. However, not everything was smooth sailing. For a long time, Dior was not accepted in England and America; even in his homeland in France, he was criticized for being too luxurious and impractical. The English government called on women in England to abandon Dior products. But Christian Dior personally paid a visit to the queen, and she could not help but fall in love with the beautiful couturier dresses. And following the Queen and Princess Margaret, the trendsetter in England, other Englishwomen began to choose dresses from Dior. The situation developed in approximately the same way in America. Christian Dior won the hearts of women, and this is both the highest rating and a guarantee that things will be bought.

Photo from Vogue magazine, 1954

Dresses from the 1955-56 collection

After this, Dior's celebrity only grew. He managed to release his own line of shoes and perfumes, and streamlined the production of fashion house clothing in various regions of France through a licensing agreement.

The master's favorite colors were gray and pink. He believed that grey colour suitable for any fabric and any dress, he considered pink the color of joy, femininity and highlighted the many shades of pink that were present in his collections. Of the details, Christian really loved bows. They decorated dresses, often being an element of cut. Christian Dior created beautiful evening dresses. " I believe that ball gown- the same required element women's wardrobe like a suit. It lifts your spirits...»

Dress from the 1955-56 collection

Coat from the 1948-49 collection

This was the master's style. Unfortunately, the great couturier passed away very early at the age of 52.

His place in 1957 as director home Dior occupied by Yves Saint Laurent. And this marked a completely new period in the fashion house. Yves Saint Laurent created dresses with an a-line silhouette, long above the knee with narrow shoulders.

Yves Saint Laurent for Dior

This was a completely different look. Laurent managed to create six collections for the house. After which he left his post because he was called up for military service.

He was replaced by Mark Boan. The clothes she created were in keeping with the spirit of the house of Dior, however, they were simpler and more wearable. Dresses, while maintaining a feminine silhouette, became lighter, preference was given to soft tissues and designs. At this time, among the fans of the house there were many famous women, such as Marlene Dietrich, Grace Kelly and others.

In 1989, Mark Bohan resigns and is replaced by Gianfranco Ferre. He returned to the New Look silhouette and created beautiful collections with chic finishes and magnificent decor. At this time, the fashion house acquired new clients and again entered an era of prosperity.

Gianfranco Ferré for Dior, haute couture collection 1989-1990

In 1997, John Galliano took over as creative director.

Galliano has taken a huge new step in the development of the fashion house. He created a new image of the Dior woman: romantic, mysterious, sensual and incredibly feminine - this is exactly the kind of woman that appears in every Galliano collection. Under John Galliano, the collections significantly increased the number of evening dresses, and the shows themselves became more shocking and theatrical, he raised the level of the fashion show to an enchanting performance. Large jewelry, flower dresses, bright colors, magnificent decoration, embroidery, abundance of decor - all this is Galliano’s style, he brought all this with him to the Dior fashion house.

Collection autumn-winter 2004-2005

Collection autumn-winter 2005-2006

Collection autumn-winter 2009-2010

Collection autumn-winter 2010-2011

But no matter how magnificent the collections created by John Galliano were, the couturier himself was fired from the fashion house with a scandal in 2011. It turned out to be not so easy to find a replacement for him, although there were many applicants for this role. Bill Gaytten temporarily filled the post of art director; he created ready-to-wear and haute couture collections for the house for the fall-winter 2011-2012 and spring-summer 2012 seasons. These collections presented classic silhouettes of the house of Dior, the colors became more restrained, things more wearable. The haute couture collection used silk and layers of sheer fabrics. The hems of the dresses were decorated with elegant embroidery. Color palette: black, white, red.

In April 2012, Raf Simons, who had previously worked for the Jill Sander brand, was officially appointed to the post of art director. He will be in charge of haute couture collections, ready-to-wear and an accessories line. While fashionistas can only guess which course they will choose new director at home and whether the clothes at home will remain the way Dior himself saw them and the way we love them: feminine, bewitching, beautiful.

Today, the Dior fashion house produces ready-to-wear clothing lines for women, men and children, haute couture, a line of accessories and perfumes. The fashion house is represented in almost all countries of the world, and ranks 4th in the world in terms of perfume sales.

And at the beginning of 2012, the Dior book was published Haute Couture, which presents outfits from haute couture collections produced by the fashion house from 1947 to 2012 (i.e., the complete history of the house of Dior). The photographs for the book were taken by renowned photographer Patrick Demarchelier.

And finally, I want to give one more quote from Christian Dior, the secret of elegance from the great couturier: “Elegance is a symbiosis of individuality, naturalness, attentiveness to yourself and your clothes and simplicity”

As soon as any fashionista hears the name “Christian Dior”, she can immediately understand that we are talking about the most sophisticated, expensive and high-quality products that you can imagine. Yes, that’s exactly what it is: Christian Dior and his brainchild, the Dior fashion house, are precisely synonymous with luxury and nobility.

To be fair, it is worth noting that the roots of this brand do not go back to hoary antiquity, because the first collection of the Dior fashion house was released only in 1947. However, since that time, the development of the fashion brand has been progressing by leaps and bounds, almost without stopping for a second.

Christian Dior - the father of new fashion

No one in the family of the future fashion industry guru could have imagined that Christian would become the founder of a new trend in the fashion world. A different fate was in store for him - entering the school of political sciences did not at all contribute to the development of artistic inclinations. The world of high fashion would have lost a lot if the young Dior had nevertheless become a diplomat, as his family wanted.

However, everything did not go as planned by the future fashion designer’s relatives. In 1930, the Dior family suffered two misfortunes at once - first, Christian’s mother died, and then his father lost his entire fortune and fell ill with tuberculosis. As a result, it was on the shoulders of young Dior that the responsibility for supporting the family fell.

This is where a passion for art came to the rescue, the first signs of which were noticeable already in the boy’s childhood. Christian began selling his own sketches and drawings. And then, in 1938, a fateful turn in Dior’s life took place: his work attracted the attention of the famous designer of those years, Robert Piguet. Three years later, Christian Dior began working for the Lucien Lelong Fashion House, a year later he opened his own perfume laboratory, and in 1946 a Fashion House was born, named after its founder.

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1947 is considered a landmark year in history. Christian brand Dior. It was at this time that Christian's first line of clothing was shown, turning the world of post-war fashion upside down. Dior's collection, called New Look, produced the effect of a bombshell. The attention of everyone - from leading fashion designers to ordinary women– was riveted to the Dior show.

Although the collection and the New Look direction itself were received with delight by society, there was also room for criticism. Thus, Chanel, Balenciaga and some other gurus of the fashion world believed that the “new look” popularizes excessive pomp. Crinolines, narrow bodices, a huge amount of material for sewing dresses and suits, hats that were more reminiscent of works of art - all this seemed out of place in countries that were just getting back on their feet after the bloodshed and horrors of war. However, it turned out that Christian Dior was absolutely right: it was precisely such outfits, emphasizing the femininity, grace and fragility of lovely ladies, that became an incentive that helped women remember their natural essence.

After the appearance of the New Look, the career of Dior and his Fashion House took off rapidly. In the early fifties, the fashion designer presented new clothing lines: Longue, Vertical, Oval, Oblique. This was followed by the production of shoes, jewelry and underwear, and Christian Dior branches appeared in London, Caracas, Mexico City, as well as in Chile, Australia, and Cuba.

In 1957, the Fashion House suffered a loss - its founder died.

Christian Dior after 1957

Even during Dior's lifetime, he was assisted by none other than the young Yves Saint Laurent - at that time an unknown graduate of the Chambre Syndicale school. Dior noticed the talent young man and brought him closer to himself, and after the death of the founder of the brand, it was Saint Laurent who became the head of the House. In 1960, he left for military service, and his place was taken by Mark Boan, who led the brand until 1989.

It was he who chose for Christian Dior new script development, proposing to abandon the luxury that the founder of the company envisioned, but wide circles quickly began to lose interest in the updated fashion brand. This was the reason that Boan was removed from his position, handing it over to Gianfranco Ferra, who managed to return the Christian Dior brand to its former recognition.

In 1996, John Galliano, a young provocateur who brought a fair amount of avant-garde and theatricality to the sophisticated femininity of Christian Dior products, was appointed to the post of chief fashion designer of the fashion brand. And Galliano would have been at the helm of the brand for a long time and successfully, if not for his anti-Semitic statements, which became the reason that the promising Briton was removed from his position.

Since the end of 2011, the creative director of the Christian Dior fashion brand has been the Belgian designer Raf Simons, who is distinguished by his original minimalist approach to haute couture.

Christian Dior: fashion for all times

So, the history of the Christian Dior brand is rich in iconic High fashion events, the path that Christian Dior embarked on, and which eminent gurus of the fashion industry continue to successfully follow.

Christian Dior is a legendary fashion house founded in 1946 by French couturier Christian Dior. The very first collection fashionable clothes, which Dior introduced in February 1947, was a huge success and became the basis of a new style called the “New Look”. After this, the company expanded significantly; in the mid-1950s, the company already employed over 900 people.

In 1957, Christian Dior dies, but his business continues to live on - new talented fashion designers come to the company and create collections that continue to attract admiring glances from all over the world. Followers still carefully preserve the traditions of the master, his view of fashion, craving for everything new and passion for experimenting. There are currently more than 160 Dior brand stores in the world.

Trade marks

• Christian Dior
• Dior Homme
• Baby Dior

Where is it produced?

Christian Dior products are made in France, Italy, and Japan.

Range

Fashionable men's, women's, children's clothing, shoes, bags and other accessories, cosmetics and perfumes, jewelry.

Helpful information

There are many reviews about the products of this legendary brand, and the most controversial ones. Cosmetics and perfumes always inspire delight – of course, when it comes to the original. Bags and other accessories are also very popular. As for clothing, many people find the design of this brand somewhat pretentious, and the abundance of logos on products can irritate many. Special mention should be made of the children's collections - very cute, stylish and, of course, high quality. In addition, ladies with curvy figures are recommended to pay attention to dresses from Dior, which, thanks to their excellent cut and combination decorative elements fit perfectly on the figure, hiding its flaws and enhancing its advantages.

The shoes, by all accounts, are very beautiful and of high quality. At the same time, most buyers often prefer classic models rather than trendy ones.

User reviews

About design and brand in general

“Dior. I don’t like things and clothes, or rather, I often like them visually, but I wouldn’t buy them for myself...”

“I really like Dior’s shoes - shoes, moccasins and sneakers. Clothes - no."

“To be honest, I think this company is not for my age... I’m not old enough.”

“In general, Dior’s collections are amazing”

“I’m not a fan of her... but I like... such a feminine company...”

“Dior dresses are gorgeous!!! I'm really delighted)))"

“..I don’t know what else could be more exclusive and luxurious...”

"Hm. Of course, there are no comrades for taste and color. But Dior’s denim items are trash.”

Current sizes

All products of this brand are manufactured in accordance with standard international dimensional grid, so marking it does not require any conversions.

Cloth. Mostly corresponds to the declared size. True, it is difficult to guess with models for the little ones - they may differ in size characteristics, especially since it is not height, as a rule, that is indicated on them, but age. Therefore, depending on the individual build of the child, a product whose tag says “18 months” may only be suitable for a one-year-old baby, but not older.

Dresses most often fit true to size, but sometimes they still run small, so when purchasing, pay attention to the exact parameters of the product.

Men's clothing - no information about discrepancies found.

Shoes. It almost always fits true to size, only occasionally it may differ by half a size in one direction or another - however, it depends on the model.

Sizing charts

1 inch – about 2.5 cm.

Women's clothing