A big surprise is on the cards at the Paris Fashion Week Men next January. According to several sources close to Celine, the LVMH group’s luxury label, led by creative director Hedi Slimane, has decided not to stage a menswear show.

Slimane introduced his menswear looks in the first Celine show after his arrival, staged in September 2018, winning over quite a number of buyers.

After last January’s show, which was dedicated entirely to menswear, and another one in July for the Spring/Summer 2020, the label has decided to showcase its men's and women’s collections together at the next Paris Fashion Week Women, scheduled to start on February 24. 

In January, the label will hold a presentation of its pre-collections during Paris Fashion Week Men.

The creative director has previously appreciated combining womenswear and menswear on the catwalk, having already cast female models in his Spring/ Summer 2015 menswear show for Saint Laurent.
 
However, his menswear collection for Celine has produced disappointing results, sources say. The label has two dedicated menswear stores, in Paris, at 24 rue François Ier, and in Milan, at 22 via Santo Spirito.

Asked about the matter at the opening of Celine's leather goods atelier in Tuscany, the label's CEO Séverine Merle told FashionNetwork.com: "We don't comment on rumours. We are very ambitious about both menswear and womenswear."

Contacted again recently by FashionNetwork.com, a spokesperson simply said that they "did not have this information."

Cancelling the menswear show ought to enable the label, which was founded in 1945 by Céline Vipiana, to continue to extend its range in a lifestyle direction, as with its first haute parfumerie store, which opened at the beginning of November at 390 rue Saint-Honoré in Paris. 

While the label's turnover reportedly approached a billion euros in 2018, the group's aim is to double its sales by 2023. The development of its men's range, as well as the launch of a large fragrance line, will provide an extra financial boost.
 

FashionNetwork.com editorial team