Nicola Formichetti, the first-ever artistic director of high-end fashion retailer Diesel is parting ways with the label.
The Japanese-Italian designer Formichetti joined the brand in 2013 just after Daniela Riccardi left her CEO position at the label and with the end of his four-year contract in December, his collaboration will also come to a halt.
The news of departure came from the designer’s Instagram account where he bid goodbye by posting a picture with Renzo Rosso, President of Diesel’s parent company OTB. Formichetti’s exit coincides with the entry of a new CEO at OTB, Ubaldo Minelli, effective from January 2018.
Both the parties seemed optimistic while announcing the news. Formichetti elaborated on his future plans saying, “It’s not the end with Diesel, but I have my own brand Nicopanda. There will be more styling, going deeper with musicians and actors. My dream is to work on a movie.”
There is no news yet as to who might succeed Formichetti or if there even will be any successor. Rosso explained the reason for this, saying, “I believe we can work differently, and not in this same kind of direction. There are many things coming up, special projects. The market is very different now. We want to be modern and explore.”
Prior to this, Formichetti was working at Mugler where he served as the luxury brand’s Creative Director for three years. The designer also currently maintains his positions as Fashion Director at Vogue Hommes Japan and Creative Fashion Director at Uniqlo apart from helming his own label Nicopanda which he launched earlier this year in partnership with Amazon Fashion.
Diesel’s announcement comes days after Jonathan Saunders resigns from DVF after just 18 months with the fashion house and David Koma’s exit from Mugler in the same month.
