Artémis, the Pinault family’s holding company, has named Marie Leblanc chief executive officer of Courrèges, effective Nov. 4.
The French executive, who recently stepped down as CEO of Victoria Beckham, succeeds Adrien Da Maia, who held the post since 2020. She is charged with working alongside creative director Nicolas Di Felice to spearhead the next phase of growth for the Space Age label, which is expanding its retail network after doubling revenues last year.
“Marie’s unique talent lies in her ability to fully immerse herself in design, by working in tandem with the artistic director, to ensure constant coherence between design and brand identity, while developing an operational strategy which supports and promotes this design,” François-Henri Pinault, chairman and CEO of Kering and Artémis, said in a statement.
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“This is precisely what Courrèges needs to continue its growth trajectory,” he added, while thanking Da Maia for leading the revival of the brand. The outgoing CEO now intends to pursue an entrepreneurial project, Artémis said.
“I am very honored to join Courrèges, whose modernity, elegance and audacity have marked the history of fashion,” Leblanc stated.
“Courrèges embodies a clear message, combining know-how and high standards with customer reality. I look forward to meeting the teams and working with them to deploy the brand’s great potential,” she added.
During her tenure at Victoria Beckham, Leblanc helped to transform the company into a profitable lifestyle brand. She oversaw a full brand repositioning, and the shift to showing seasonal collections during Paris Fashion Week.
Victoria Beckham, founder and creative director, earlier this month described Leblanc as “the most incredible partner and CEO, and I am so grateful to have had such a strong, intelligent and inspiring woman by my side.”
Leblanc joined Victoria Beckham in 2018, having previously headed women’s fashion and brand positioning for department store Printemps in Paris. She has also worked in design and collection development at Isabel Marant and Celine, respectively, and at Sonia Rykiel.
