​hedi slimane is suing yves saint laurent owner kering

The former Saint Laurent creative director is fighting to have his non-compete agreement reinstated.

by Charlotte Gush
23 June 2016, 12:30pm

Kering have confirmed that former Saint Laurent creative director Hedi Slimane is suing them. The litigation concerns the non-compete clause in Slimane's contract; a provision that usually means a person cannot sign up to work for a competitor during a certain period (often 12 months), in return for financial compensation over that period. Whereas usually the departing person would be trying to get out of the clause in order to start working again, Slimane is actually trying to get Kering to reinstate it, after they removed it.

"This disagreement does not alter the Group's recognition for Hedi Slimane's contribution," Kering say in a statement provided to press, "[Slimane], together with the Yves Saint Laurent team, has reformed the Maison, during his 4-year tenure as Creative and Image Director of Saint Laurent."

With rumours swirling that Hedi is being positioned to take over from Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel when the octogenarian designer decides to call it quits, perhaps the non-compete clause was actually helpful for Slimane in the interim.


Text Charlotte Gush
Photography via @hedislimanetwit

Hedi Slimane
Saint Laurent
Yves Saint Laurent