PARIS (Reuters), a French luxury brand Kering (PA) Matthieu Blazy was appointed as Bottega Veneta’s creative director. This announcement came Monday as Bottega Veneta tapped an insider in its rush to replace Daniel Lee, who abruptly resigned last week.

Blazy is a ready-to-wear designer of the premium Italian label. He has been with the brand since the beginning. Blazy gained experience working at Maison Margiela, Raf Simons and Calvin Klein and was subsequently senior designer at Celine.

“I am confident that Matthieu Blazy’s wealth of experience and broad cultural background will allow him to bring his creative impetus to the task of carrying on the legacy of Bottega Veneta,” said Kering Chief Executive and Chairman Francois-Henri Pinault.

The departure of Lee, announced last week https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/kering-name-new-designer-bottega-veneta-daniel-lee-departs-2021-11-10, took the industry by surprise.

This Central Saint Martins graduate of 35 years old was hired over three decades ago to revive interest in the brand among younger customers. He is also credited for raising its visibility and driving sales growth.

Kering’s history is one of hiring from its own ranks. Kering boosted the star Gucci brand’s popularity by naming Alessandro Michele from that brand, an unknown accessory designer, as its creative director in 2015.

This group is also able to compete with luxury French peers in terms of sales.

Blazy Blazy was born 1984. He graduated La Cambre design school in Brussels. Blazy’s first collection will be available in February 2022.