French label Hervé L. Leroux to be relaunched at Paris Fashion Week

French couture label Hervé L. Leroux, dormant for three years, is making a come-back under the creative stewardship of Jocelyne Caudroy. She is the sister of designer Hervé Peugnet, better known as Hervé Léger, who died in 2017. Caudroy worked alongside Léger for over three decades, and “wanted the designer’s heritage to be kept alive, writing a new chapter in the history of [Hervé L. Leroux],” as the label's senior management told Fashionnetwork.com.

“It was the obvious thing for me to do, keeping Hervé’s work and enthusiasm alive. My work today is the natural continuation of all these years we spent working together as a duo. We are of course re-issuing some of his signature dresses, as well as creating new models, those [Hervé] didn’t have time to make,” said Caudroy, the label’s co-founder and new creative director, in a press release.

Léger was renowned for his draped mermaid gowns, worn by the likes of Karen Mulder, Naomi Campbell and many Hollywood stars. He launched the Hervé L. Leroux label in 2000, after losing the rights to the name of his first label, Hervé Léger, founded in 1985. Among the film stars dressed by Léger were Carole Bouquet, Isabelle Huppert, Iman Bowie, Penelope Cruz, Salma Hayek and Monica Bellucci.

The label has a new organisational structure, headed by Jacques-Emmanuel Falempin, one of Leger's former advisers. For the past 20 years, Falempin has been a management consultant for various fashion and luxury labels that include, among others, the Maxime Simoëns label, which he was in charge of between 2011 and 2013.

The company did not wish to provide further details on the investors involved in the project, or their stakes. “More than simply investors, for us they are genuine partners, people who have been close to the label for over 25 years,” said Falempin.

“We gave ourselves a few months’ time in order to gather together an exceptionally capable team of professionals working under our new creative director. We also decided to continue to collaborate with the suppliers [Léger] worked with over the years because of the materials selection, colour coordination and product quality they offered. Each item in the collection is made in France, and each perpetuates [Léger's] techniques, notably his way of tailoring seamless dresses,” said Falempin to FashionNetwork.com.

Hervé L. Leroux will be officially relaunched at the forthcoming Paris Fashion Week with an event scheduled on February 26, while the label’s first new collection, for the Fall/Winter 2020-21, will be presented at the showroom in Place Vauban in Paris, from February 28 to March 5.

In terms of product range, the label is planning to feature two ‘Atelier’ ready-to-wear collections each year with “ultra-feminine” silhouettes, consisting of about 20 items between dresses, skirts, trousers and tops, priced from €1,500 to €7,000. It will also introduce a ‘Voyage’ travel line with a small selection of items priced around €850 for “chic, casual” getaways. Hervé L. Leroux is also set to collaborate for the first time with French leather goods label Pellegrino for a line of handbags.

In time, Hervé L. Leroux will also create bespoke couture for a private clientèle worldwide. The label is aiming for a selective international distribution.

French label Hervé L. Leroux to be relaunched at Paris Fashion Week

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