Guy Laroche Biography

Guy Laroche () was a French fashion designer (16 July 1921 in La Rochelle, France - 17 February 1989 in Paris) and founder of the eponymous company.

Laroche began his career in millinery and, from 1949, Laroche worked for Jean Desss, eventually becoming his assistant. In 1955, he visited the U.S. to investigate new ready-to-wear manufacturing methods. 1956 or 1957, he founded a high-fashion atelier at 37 avenue Franklin Roosevelt, Paris.

In his first collection that was favorably received, he reintroduced vibrant colors such as pink, orange, coral, topaz, and turquoise. His clothes also featured plunging neck and back lines. Traditional elegant color combinations remained a staple in his designs as well.

Known as being humble and gracious"?as opposed to the haughty nature of most Parisian designers"?he designed haute-couture, but practical clothing for women. For the American market, he was one of the first to create separates. An example, a jacket to a three-piece woolen suit of black and several shades of blue is shown in the adjacent image. Along with the excellent workmanship throughout the garment, the exact matching of the pattern on the front, back, sleeves, and pockets marks the high quality, haute-couture, of the distinctive garment, although it was designed for practical use. The rest of the suit is solid black, a skirt of the same material and a silk blouse.

In 1961, he moved to larger quarters, a townhouse at 29 avenue Montaigne, Paris; opened a boutique there; and introduced his first ready-to-wear collection.

In 1966, Laroche introduced Fidji, his first women"?s fragrance; designed men's ready-to-wear; and opened the Guy Laroche Monsieur boutique. He created other fragrances, such as:

• 1972 Drakkar
• 1977 J'ai Os
• 1982 Drakkar Noir
• 1986 Clandestine
• 1993 Horizon
• 1999 Drakkar Dynamik

Laroche died in Paris on 17 February 1989, at the age of 67.

In November 2007, Franco-Swedish designer Marcel Marongiu took over as Artistic Director of Guy Laroche. Marcel Marongiu completed his third successful runway show with the AU/WI 2009 Collection.