// Karl Lagerfeld dead at 85
// French media reports say he died in Paris after period of illness
// Iconic designer was the creative director of Chanel, Fendi and his own eponymous label
The creative mastermind behind some of the world’s most recognisable luxury fashion retailers, Karl Lagerfeld, has died.
According to French magazine Closer, Lagerfeld died on Tuesday morning in Paris at the age of 85 following a bout of illness.
Another French magazine, Paris Match, shared a similar report.
The acclaimed German fashion designer is best known for being artistic director of French luxury brand Chanel, where he had been since 1983.
He was simultaneously the designer for Fendi and his own label, Karl Lagerfeld, and has previously collaborated with H&M.
Lagerfeld’s death comes after he missed the Chanel haute couture show in Paris in January for the first time.
LVMH chief executive Bernard Arnault, whose firm owns Fendi and a host of other luxury retailers, said: “With the passing of Karl Lagerfeld we have lost a creative genius who helped to make Paris the fashion capital of the world and Fendi one of the most innovative Italian houses.
“We owe him a great deal: his taste and talent were the most exceptional I have ever known.
“Artistic director of Jean Patou in 1959, creator of Fendi since 1965, member of the LVMH Prize jury since its creation in 2013, he honored the LVMH group with an extraordinarily
stimulating creative and entrepreneurial friendship.
“I will always remember his immense imagination, his ability to conceive new trends for every season, his inexhaustible energy, the virtuosity of his drawings, his carefully
guarded independence, his encyclopedic culture, and his unique wit and eloquence.
“The death of this dear friend deeply saddens me, my wife and my children. We loved and admired him deeply. Fashion and culture has lost a great inspiration.”
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
