Roland Mouret

Roland Mouret (born 27 August 1961)[1] is a French fashion designer.

Early life and training

Mouret was born in Lourdes, France, where he grew up in a devoutly Catholic family. His father was a butcher, and his mother worked as a waitress and a tour guide for visiting pilgrims in Lourdes. This is thought to have influenced his desire to be a priest in his younger years. He has one sister, Geneviève, who is a perfumier and yoga teacher.[2][3][4][5]

His fashion training consisted of three months in a Parisian fashion college in 1979.[6]

Career

Early beginnings

In the 1980s, Mouret worked as creative director with Gai Pied Hebdo, was an ACT UP activist, and a model for brands such as Jean-Paul Gaultier, Yohji Yamamoto, and Claude Montana.[2] When he left school to begin designing, he lacked skill in garment construction yet had "a native awareness of sensuality" that allowed him to create "irresistible" clothing.[6]

Mouret showed his first line of 15 dresses in London in 1997, at the age of 36.[7] Sharai and André Meyers bought his line in 1998.[6]

After seven years and a move to New York, Mouret introduced his boatnecked, pencil-skirted[8] Galaxy dress in his Spring 2006 collection.[6] Called the "dress of the season" by many,[9][10][11][12][13] its ubiquity was such that Vogue magazine would later write that "for weeks you [couldn't] open a newspaper or magazine without seeing another young Hollywood A-lister wearing" it.[6] Less than two months after the dress's runway debut, Mouret split with his backers over a compensation dispute,

RM, 2006–2010

After Mouret left his eponymous label, he took a two-year hiatus.[6] He found a new backer in Simon Fuller and launched a comeback under the name RM by the designer Roland Mouret.[6] (His previous backers had retained the rights to the Roland Mouret brand.[6]) Under the new partnership, Mouret owns 50% of the business and is allowed creative freedom.[18]

Before the bona fide launch of his new line, Mouret undertook small design engagements to pique public interest.[6] He partnered with Bergdorf Goodman for a one-time-only consignment in which he personally signed each of the 36 dresses.[6] He escorted Jacquetta Wheeler

Roland Mouret, 2010–present

Mouret bought back the rights to his own name on 9 September 2010, with plans to open his first standalone store, on Carlos Place opposite The Connaught in London by 2011.[19] The new premises includes two floors of retails space for Mouret's womenswear, menswear, atelier, design workshops and sales showroom.[20] It is an historic couture setting, having formerly been the showroom of two Incorporated Society of London Fashion Designers members – Michael of Carlos Place and Peter Russell.[21][22]

From 2010 to 2011, the Roland Mouret brand had a men’s wear line, named MR.[23]

In 2011, French shoe label Robert Clergerie

birth date	August 27, 1961
birth place	Lourdes, France
occupation	Fashion designer

Roland Mouret

Early life and training

Career

Early beginnings

Roland Mouret

RM, 2006–2010

Roland Mouret, 2010–present

Personal life

References