Paris
France
Address
7 Avenue George V
Paris, 75008
France
FMD-ID
BR67
Phone
+33 01 56 62 64 00 Fax +33 01 47 23 69 73

About

founded by

Yves Saint Lauren

about

Yves Saint Laurent was founded by designer Yves Saint Laurent and his partner, his Pierre Berg�, in 1962.

During the 1960s and 1970s, the firm popularized fashion trends such as the beatnik look, safari jackets for men and women, tight pants and tall, thigh-high boots, including the creation of arguably the most famous classic tuxedo suit for women in 1966, Le Smoking suit. He also started mainstreaming the idea of wearing silhouettes from the 1920s, '30s and '40s.

Yves Saint Laurent was the first Couture house to launch, in 1966, the modern concept of luxury women�s pr�t-�-porter, in a collection called �Rive Gauche�. It was followed in 1969 by a �Rive Gauche men�s ready-to-wear line. The Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche boutiques were soon opened throughout the world, allowing fashion-conscious working individuals to wear the Yves Saint Laurent designs.

He was also the first designer to use black models in his runway shows. Among St. Laurent's muses were Loulou de La Falaise, the daughter of a French marquis and an Anglo-Irish fashion model, Betty Catroux, the half-Brazilian daughter of an American diplomat and wife of a French decorator, Talitha Pol-Getty, who died of drug overdose in 1971, and Catherine Deneuve, the iconic French actress. Ambassador to the couturier during the late 1970s and early 80s was London socialite millionairess Diane Boulting-Casserley Vandelli, making the brand ever more popular amongst the European jet-set and upper classes.

In 1993, the Saint-Laurent fashion house was sold to the pharmaceuticals company Sanofi for approximately $600,000,000.

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The Look

One of Yves St. Laurent's greatest talents is colour - from his Mondrian-inspired dresses to his Ballet Russes collections in the 70's. Some say he is the supreme fashion colourist of this century, unrivalled by any other designer. His colour schemes even clash elegantly. He repeats what Chanel said, "Fashions change, Style remains." His dream is to give women the foundation of a classic wardrobe, which, by escaping trends, gives them more confidence in themselves. His Smoking (tuxedo) jacket was a shock when it was introduced in 1966. A woman was banned in the 60's from dining at the Plaza hotel in New York, because she was wearing a YSL pantsuit. His pants and jackets became a statement for a new generation of women, and he said "I want to shock people, force them to think." The secret to his style (or styles because there are many) is that he creates clothes that make a woman look great and feel the height of elegance.

Who Wears It

Everyone from long-standing fans like YSL muse Betty Catroux and Catherine Deneuve, to actresses like Renee Zellweger, Julianne Moore and Chloe Sevigny.

Perfumes

1964 Y (W)
1971 Yves St. Laurent pour Homme
1971 Rive Gauche
1977 Opium (W)
1981 Kouros for men
1983 Paris
1988 Jazz for men
1990 Live Jazz(W)
1990 Eau de Sport (M)
1993 Champagne (changed to Yvresse in 1996)
1993 Kouros Fraicheur
1993 Jazz Prestige (M)
1995 Rive Gauche Fraicheur (W)
1996 Yvress Legere (W)
1996 Opium for men
1997 In Love Again (W)
1998 Live Jazz (M)
1999 Vice Versa (W)
2000 Baby Doll (W)
2000 Body Kouros (men)
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