It’s official: Anthony Vaccarello is leaving Saint Laurent. The house confirmed on Friday that the designer is stepping down as creative director after ten years, a move insiders had expected for months. His latest Paris show, a sweep of gold looks honouring founder Yves Saint Laurent, now reads like a farewell.
Vaccarello succeeded Hedi Slimane in 2016. Rather than compete with Slimane’s rock-and-roll reinvention, he built a language of his own: sheer fabrics, sculptural shoulders, flashes of metal, razor-cut tuxedos and a palette rooted in black. Sensual and confident, the look was instantly recognizable on runways, red carpets and city streets, and it sold. Saint Laurent’s revenue passed €3 billion in 2022, putting it among luxury’s strongest performers.
“Through his creative vision and exacting standards, he has contributed to strengthening the enduring influence of one of France’s greatest couture Houses, as we embark on a new chapter in its history,” said Kering CEO Luca de Meo. Saint Laurent President and CEO Cédric Charbit added that Vaccarello “took Saint Laurent on a remarkable trajectory, elevating the House to the forefront of desirability and image, while accomplishing exceptional work both creatively and through his cultural impact.”
Born in Brussels in 1982 to Italian parents, Vaccarello studied sculpture and fashion at La Cambre and graduated in 2006, and that training shows in his tailoring. He won the Hyères Festival, worked at Fendi under Karl Lagerfeld, launched his own Paris label in 2009, won the ANDAM Prize in 2011 and became creative director of Versus Versace in 2015.
Saint Laurent says it will soon announce its new creative leadership. The question now is who inherits one of fashion’s most powerful creative roles, and whether they’ll keep Vaccarello’s dark, seductive codes or take the house somewhere new.
AVOLA will be watching.
Source: Kering / Saint Laurent press release, October 9, 2026.
Featured Image: Anthony Vaccarello at the Cannes Film Festival, May 2017. Photo: YanRB / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
