Celine

Celine (formerly spelled Céline) is a French luxury ready-to-wear and leather goods brand owned by the LVMHgroup since 1996. It was founded in 1945 by Céline Vipiana. Since February 2018, the brand is headed by its creative director Hedi Slimane. Since April 2017, its Chief Executive Officer is Séverine Merle.

History

Celine was founded in 1945 by Céline Vipiana (1915–1997) and her husband Richard Vipiana. It was one of the first luxury brands in the industry for the made-to-measure children's shoe business. Their first boutique was located at 52 rue Malte in Paris. The brand was recognized by its logo, the red elephant created by French cartoonist Raymont Peynet.

In 1960, the label changed its positioning by focusing its business on a ready-to-wear fashion brand for women with a sportswear approach, offering a range of leather goods such as bags, loafers, gloves, and clothes. 

In 1987, Bernard Arnault decided to buy into Celine's capital and in 1996, the brand was integrated into the LVMH group for 2.7 billion French francs ($540 million). LVMH propelled the brand to fame with the opening of a boutique at 36 avenue Montaigne in Paris. Peggy Huynh Kinh, appointed by Arnault, took over the house's artistic direction in 1988.

In 2005, the Italian designer, Roberto Menichetti, was named creative director.

Since November 2015, the headquarters are located at 16 rue Vivienne in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris at the Hôtel Colbert de Torcy, which has French Historic Monument classification. 

In January 2018, LVMH named Hedi Slimane as its Artistic, Creative, and Image Director, set to join the house on February 1. Slimane created his retail flagship concept stores in Paris, Tokyo, Shanghai, Los Angeles, Madrid, Milan, and London. He replaced the brand's traditional style with his personal signature "driven by youth culture, indie rock, and sulking adolescence."