Kering has confirmed that former Saint Laurent creative director Hedi Slimane is suing the company. 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, 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 offered in a statement. “[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 rumors 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.
Credits
Text Charlotte Gush
Photography via @hedislimanetwit