Dries Van Noten
Dries Van Noten graduated from the Fashion Design Course at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Belgium. In 1986, he debuted his first menswear collection, which was soon stocked by Barneys New York and Whistles in London. The following year, in 1987, his partner Patrick Vangheluwe joined the company.
In 1989, the first flagship store opened in Antwerp at “Het Modepaleis,” a historic former menswear store. Two years later, in 1991, Dries Van Noten debuted at Paris Fashion Week with his Spring/Summer 1992 menswear collection. In 1993, he presented his first womenswear show in Paris for the Spring/Summer 1994 season. Since then, the brand has staged two womenswear and two menswear shows every year.
The company continued to expand internationally. In 1997, a flagship store opened in Hong Kong in collaboration with Joyce. In 2004, Dries Van Noten celebrated his 50th show with a dinner for 500 guests seated at a single long table, which was later transformed into the catwalk.
In 2007, the House opened its Paris flagship dedicated to the women’s collections at 7 Quai Malaquais. The following year, in 2008, Dries Van Noten received the “International Designer of the Year Award” from the CFDA and was also granted the title of “Royal Designer for Industry” by the Royal Society of Arts in London.
In 2009, the brand opened a flagship store in Tokyo with Tomorrowland, as well as a standalone men’s store near the women’s boutique at 9 Quai Malaquais in Paris. During the same year, Dries Van Noten received numerous honours, including induction into the “Galerie des Éminents” by the Flemish Chamber of Commerce, the Gold Medal from the Flemish Royal Academy of Belgium, and the “Award for Artistry of Fashion” presented by the Couture Council of the Museum at FIT in New York.
In 2014, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris unveiled “Inspirations,” an exhibition exploring the creative influences behind Dries Van Noten’s collections, accompanied by a book of the same name. It was the first exhibition dedicated to a Belgian designer in the museum’s history, and it later travelled to the MoMu in Antwerp.
In 2015, France honoured Dries Van Noten with the title of Officier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. Two years later, in 2017, the documentary Dries, directed by filmmaker Reiner Holzemer, premiered, offering an insight into the designer’s life and work. That same year, the King of Belgium appointed Dries Van Noten a Baron in recognition of his contribution to the cultural life of his country. To celebrate his 100th show, the book Dries Van Noten 1–100 was also published.
In 2018, Puig became the majority shareholder of the company. The following year, in 2019, Dries Van Noten collaborated with couturier Christian Lacroix on his Spring/Summer womenswear collection.
The brand continued its global expansion in the following years. In 2020, a store opened in Shanghai, followed by another in Chengdu in 2022. The first flagship store in the United States also opened in Los Angeles on La Cienega Boulevard, an 800 m² space that includes a dedicated gallery called The Little House.
In 2022, Dries Van Noten launched a beauty line featuring twelve gender-fluid fragrances, thirty lipsticks in refillable packaging, and a range of accessories. The lipstick was named “Best Design” of the year by Tatler UK, while Selfridges selected the refillable fragrance and lipstick among the year’s standout products. WWD also named the Dries Van Noten eaux de parfums “Product of the Year” in the fragrance category.
In 2023, the Galerie Quai Malaquais opened in Paris, a space devoted exclusively to fragrance, beauty, and accessories. That same year, Dries Van Noten received the “Designer of the Year for both his women’s and men’s collections” award from WWD. The brand also won Elle Belgium’s Beauty Award “Must-have,” and the fragrance Soie Malaquais was awarded “Best Design & Packaging” by the Fragrance Foundation UK.
In June 2024, Dries Van Noten presented his final collection for the House and stepped down as Creative Director, although he remains involved with the brand. In December of the same year, Julian Klausner was appointed Creative Director and now leads both the women’s and men’s collections.
