Christophe Lemaire Joins Uniqlo as Artistic Director

Christophe Lemaire has been enlisted by Uniqlo to be artistic director of its new research and development centre in Paris.

The former Hermes designer will be be working on Uniqlo's new affordable line 'Uniqlo U', which will be revealed in July during Paris Couture Week. 'The biggest issue was to design things that are essential enough to be timeless, and understood by everyone. Elevated basics, I call them,' Lemaire told Business of Fashion of the collection. 'Our ambition is to fill the gap between what's fashion and what's 'normal'. I know the word 'normcore' is overused, but there's something about normality I find very interesting - how do you make it super normal but refined and cool and desirable?'

Lemaire who is best known for designing for Lacoste and his his eponymous label which he debuted in 2007 will have a team of 15 who will work on menswear, womenswear, knits, shoes, and leather accessories. The Uniqlo U line will hit stores around autumn/winter 2016.

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