Hubert de Givenchy

A. Background of the designer.

Hubert de Givenchy was born on February 20, 1927 in Beauvais, France. When he was young his father died, leaving him to be raised by his mother and grandfather. His wealthy family never approved of Givenchy’s love for fashion and instead wanted him to attend college and pursue a career in law. Eventually he attended college achieving his career in law but realized his love for fabrics and fashion was stronger (In influential fashion, 2002).

Givenchy’s love for fashion grew when at the age of ten he attended the Pavillon d’ Elegance Paris Exposition. Once looking through Vogue magazine, he was inspired by Balenciaga men’s wear. He wanted to be a couturier and attended Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, to start a formal education in fashion. His designing inspirations came from Elsa Schiaparelli and Madam Gres’s work. His experience also came from working at the House of Piguet in Paris; this salon was known for its dramatic yet simple style and after, at the House of Lelong that was known for their high quality clothing. Those positions gave him knowledge on how to work with couture customers and gave him an opportunity to build strong relationships with them (Press, 2002).

At age 25 he opened his first collection and it was a big success, inspired by his mentor Balenciaga. The collection was based on evening wear as well as economical white cotton shirts that were both inexpensive and fresh-looking. After that collection, his name was recognizable and his biggest success was the “Bettina” blouse; named after the famous Paris’ top model. This blouse was his signature piece in his cotton collection. Givenchy’s philosophy was: “Keep it simple. Eliminate everything that interferes with the line.” ...

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...on to $20 million has been labeled for advertising worldwide. (Born, 2010)

Most of Givenchy’s collections produced and designed in Italy and produced in France by apparel manufacturer Bidermann. His designs of junior sportswear that was made by American manufactures with American fabrics.

E. Givenchy’s influence in Fashion

Givenchy greatly influenced the fashion world. He is known for his classic dresses, elegance, glamour, and flowing lines. His designs in the 50s and 60s are the base of classic. Some of his vintage dresses can frequently be seen on the red carpets. He helped Audrey Hepburn to shape her unique style and made it flawless. Her little black dress from movie Breakfast at Tiffany’s made a history and opened a new chapter in the fashion world. House of Givenchy is on a new chapter with Italian Riccardo Tisci continuous Givenchy’s elegant style.