Milan-born Stefano Pilati saw his hometown grow into a fashion hotspot in the 1980s. He gave up his course to qualify as a land surveyor, joined Nino Cerruti as an intern, and emerged without a doubt in his mind that his future lay in the industry he saw thriving.

He thus decided to embrace Milan’s fashion scene and set out to learn everything there was to know about ready-to-wear apparel materials and production. A velvet manufacturer offered him his first job.
A few months later, he was designing that company’s entire collection, and presenting it to Europe’s leading ready-to-wear names.

Giorgio Armani hired Pilati as an assistant in its men’s ready-to-wear department in 1993, and Prada asked him to run its fabric research and development in 1995. In 1998, he was promoted to assistant designer at MiuMiu,working on men’s and women’s ready-to-wear clothing and reporting directly to Miuccia Prada.

In 2000 he joined Yves Saint Laurent to run its ready-to-wear clothing design. He begun overseeing the teams designing women’s collections, and took over men’s collections shortly thereafter. He was promoted to Head of Design for all Yves Saint Laurent product lines, including accessories, in June 2002.

Pilati was appointed Yves Saint Laurent Creative Director in 2004.


Awards

2006 : Marie-Claire Spain – Prix de la Moda, Best ‘ready-to-wear’ designer of the year.
2006 : Fashion Group International (FGI) – Best designer of the year.
2007 : Marie-Claire Spain – Prix de la Moda, Best ‘accessories’ designer of the year.
2008 : Japan Fashion Editor’s Club – International designer of the year.
2008 : Telva – Best international fashion designer of the year.

Founded in 1961, Yves Saint Laurent is one of the greatest fashion names of the late 20th century. Throughout the years, the groundbreaking designs of the Couture house created innovative pieces of clothing.

Yves Saint Laurent was the first Couture house to launch, in 1966, the modern concept of luxury
women’s prêt-à-porter, in a collection called ‘Rive Gauche’. It was followed in 1969 by a ‘Rive Gauche men’s ready-to-wear line. The Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche boutiques were soon opened throughout the world, allowing fashion-conscious working individuals to wear the Yves Saint Laurent designs. This represented the first step in making luxury labels accessible to a wider public. In 1999, the Gucci Group (the luxury division of the PPR Group) acquired Yves Saint Laurent. Since then the brand has been repositioned at the top end of the luxury goods markets.

Under the management of Valérie Hermann, appointed CEO in 2005, and Stefano Pilati, Creative Director since 2004, the brand has renewed the exceptional legacy of its founder while bringing a contemporary approach to its collections, which combine elegance, top-quality fabrics, refined and discreet but recognizable details.

Today Yves Saint Laurent’s collections include women’s and men’s ready-to-wear, shoes, handbags, small leather goods, jewellery, scarves, ties and eyewear. They are designed for both modern women who have a keen sense of freedom and follow their instincts with assurance, captivating others with their elegance, as well as men who prefer a nonconformist look and assert the different facets of their personality in a modern and sensitive way.

The Yves Saint Laurent network currently has 63 directly-operated stores, including flagship stores in Paris, New York, London, Milan, Hong Kong and Tokyo. The brand is also present in the most prestigious multi-brand boutiques and department stores in the world.

Valérie Hermann, 44 years old, a graduate of the French business school L’Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales(HEC), began her career at the Comité Colbert in 1985 where as Project Director she created the ‘Young Creative Designers Awards’ to recognize upcoming innovative talents.

From 1989 to 1996, she held various management positions including Investments Director of the Altus group and President of Fath Couture and Fragrances. In 1999, she joined the LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA Group, heading up the women’s ready-to-wear collection at Christian Dior Couture.

Having developed a close relationship with John Galliano, Valérie Hermann also acquired the position of President of the group’s John Galliano brand. Valérie Hermann’s long experience in the fashion industry and great expertise in ready-to-wear and merchandising fuelled her rise as Chief Executive Officer of Yves Saint Laurent in 2005, a company owned by Gucci Group and PPR.

Because she likes challenges, Valérie Hermann has not hesitated at the helm of Yves Saint Laurent, a maison with an unparalleled legacy that embodies French fashion and creativity. She has breathed
new life into the brand, which is now rebuilding and growing with success.

Valérie Hermann is married and the mother of three children.

Awards

2007 : elevated to the rank of Chevalier de la Le?gion d’Honneur
2008 : Trophy Femmes en Or de l’entreprise