A second major French fashion house is now without its head designer after Balmain announced that its creative director Christophe Decarnin, who was behind its £1,000 ripped jeans, has left the label.
Christian Dior is also without a big name designer in the wake of the John Galliano racism scandal which dominated the catwalk season in February.
Decarnin's departure comes after a period of uncertainty for both label and designer. At Balmain's most recent catwalk show last month rumours began circulating about Decarnin's health when he failed to appear. The design team and stylist Melanie Ward were left to oversee the show, while representatives attributed his absence to tiredness.
In an official statement no reason was given for the designer's exit – the label merely said that it was announcing "the end of its collaboration".
Decarnin joined Balmain in 2005 as a designer and was named creative director for the women's ready-to-wear collection in November 2007. In his short tenure he revitalised the once tired label, now 66 years old, transforming it into a white hot brand with an aesthetic that could be described as haute rock'n' roll. The expensive ripped jeans sold out before they hit the shops. In 2009 Decarnin's signature leather jackets, with exaggerated pointed shoulders that looked as if they were concealing tennis balls, were much copied on the British high street. Kate Moss and Rihanna were both fans of the look.
Alain Hivelin, chief executive of Pierre Balmain, said Decarnin's work with the design team had "contributed to the success that the brand has enjoyed in recent years".
But the brand's fortunes were starting to change. Most recently critics had suggested that the glitzy-verging-on-trashy formula was looking tired and that its chainmail catsuits were a self-parody. Emmanuelle Alt, the stylist who had worked with Decarnin on building up the label's cachet, left at the end of last year. She was appointed editor of Vogue Paris in December and was obliged to scale back her freelance work.
No replacement for Decarnin has been announced but insiders believe the fashion house will appoint a successor internally.