Richemont has announced the launch of A Bunch of Designers, a new collective initiative that will support six emerging creatives drawn from the group’s internal talent pipeline and external nominations. The program, announced on July 2, is named after a phrase reportedly used by the late Alber Elbaz to describe his creative philosophy — a spirit of collaboration, irreverence, and shared purpose that the group hopes to channel into a new generation of luxury talent.
The initiative is structured as a two-year residency. Each designer receives funding, access to Richemont’s ateliers and manufacturing network, and mentorship from the group’s existing creative directors. The goal is not to launch new brands within the Richemont portfolio, but to develop individual designers who may go on to lead houses within the group or elsewhere in the industry. It is a talent-development play dressed in the language of patronage.
The six designers were selected from a pool of over two hundred candidates across Europe and Asia. Their identities have not been disclosed, but Richemont has indicated that the group spans ready-to-wear, accessories, and jewelry — reflecting the breadth of the group’s own portfolio, which includes Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Alaïa, and Chloé. The diversity of disciplines is intentional: a jewelry designer working alongside a tailor can produce cross-disciplinary thinking that a more specialized program would miss.
For the broader luxury industry, the initiative represents a different approach to the talent crisis that has preoccupied executive suites for the past several seasons. Where LVMH has built its reputation on acquiring established brands and installing proven creative directors, and Kering has bet on celebrity appointments and high-risk debuts, Richemont is taking a longer view — investing in talent before it is ready to lead, and accepting that some of the six may never work for the group at all.
