U.K. luxury goods company Burberry Group PLC said March 1 that it had appointed Riccardo Tisci, the former design chief at Givenchy, as its new chief creative officer.
At Burberry, Tisci will be reunited with Marco Gobbetti, the former CEO of Givenchy who joined the London-based fashion house in July 2017.
"I am honored and delighted to be joining Burberry as its new chief creative officer and reuniting with Marco Gobbetti," Tisci said in a statement.
Tisci, who spent 12 years at Givenchy, which is owned by French luxury goods titan LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, will take up his new role March 12. He succeeds Christopher Bailey, Burberry's chief creative officer since 2009, who also served as CEO from 2014 until July 2017.
Burberry, best known for its plaid patterns and trench coats, announced in October 2017 that Bailey would leave the company at the end of 2018. It said Bailey would remain as president and chief creative officer until March 31, when he is due to step down from the board. He will provide support to Gobbetti and his team on the transition until Dec. 31.
Tisci, a graduate of Central Saint Martins in London, departed Givenchy in February amid media speculation that he was about to join Versace. Burberry said he will direct all of its collections, with his first for the brand to be presented in September.
"Riccardo is one of the most talented designers of our time," Gobbetti said in a statement. "His designs have an elegance that is contemporary, and his skill in blending streetwear with high fashion is highly relevant to today's luxury consumer. Riccardo's creative vision will reinforce the ambitions we have for Burberry and position the brand firmly in luxury."
In November 2017, the company outlined a strategy to reshape its offer, increasing and invigorating its fashion content and creating compelling luxury leather goods and accessories in what Gobbetti at the time described as a bid "to establish our position firmly in luxury."
In mid-morning trading in London, Burberry's shares were up 57.45 pence, or 3.8%, at 1,590.95 pence.
