Founding The House of Dior was established on 16 December 1946 at 30
Avenue Montaigne in Paris. However, the current Dior company celebrates 1947 as the opening year. Christian Dior was financially backed by
Marcel Boussac, a wealthy businessman. Boussac had originally invited Dior to design for
Philippe et Gaston, but Dior refused, wishing to make a fresh start under his own name rather than reviving an old brand. The new couture house became part of "a vertically integrated textile business" already operated by Boussac. When the collection was presented, the
editor-in-chief also showed appreciation by saying; "It's quite a revolution, dear Christian!" Along with that, the New Look brought back the spirit of haute couture in France as it was considered glamorous and young-looking. "We were witness to a revolution in fashion and to a revolution in showing fashion as well." The silhouette was characterized by a small, nipped-in waist and a full skirt falling below mid-calf length, which emphasized the bust and hips, as epitomized by the "Bar" suit from the first collection. The Bar suit was a contribution from the head of Dior's tailoring atelier, a young
Pierre Cardin, who was employed by the house from 1947 to 1949. The collection overall showcased more stereotypically feminine designs in contrast to the popular fashions of wartime, with full skirts, tight waists, and soft shoulders. Dior retained some of the masculine aspects, as they continued to hold popularity through the early 1940s, but he also wanted to include more feminine style. The "New Look" became extremely popular, its full-skirted silhouette influencing other fashion designers well into the 1950s, and Dior gained a number of prominent clients from Hollywood, the United States, and the European aristocracy. As a result, Paris, which had fallen from its position as the capital of the fashion world after
World War II, regained its preeminence. The New Look was welcomed in western Europe as a refreshing antidote to the austerity of wartime and de-feminizing uniforms, and was embraced by stylish women such as
Princess Margaret in the UK. According to
Harold Koda, Dior credited
Charles James with inspiring The New Look. Dior's designs from the "New Look" did not only affect the designers in the 1950s, but also more recent designers in the 2000s, including Thom Browne, Miuccia Prada, and Vivienne Westwood. Dior's evening dresses from that time are still referred to by many designers, and they have been seen in different wedding themed catwalks with multiple layers of fabric building up below the small waist (Jojo, 2011). Examples include Vivienne Westwood's Ready-to-Wear Fall/Winter 2011 and Alexander McQueen's Ready to Wear Fall/Winter 2011 (Jojo, 2011). Not everyone was pleased with the New Look, however. Some considered the amount of material to be wasteful, especially after years of cloth rationing. Feminists in particular were outraged, feeling that these
corseted designs were restrictive and regressive, and that they took away a woman's independence. There were several protest groups against the designs including, the League of Broke Husbands, made up of 30,000 men who were against the costs associated with the amount of fabric needed for such designs. Fellow designer
Coco Chanel remarked, "Only a man who never was intimate with a woman could design something that uncomfortable." Galliano used the wasp waist and rounded shoulders, modernised and updated with references to
origami and other Japanese influences. Simons's work for Dior retained the luxurious fabrics and silhouette, but encouraged self-respect for the woman's body and liberation of expression.
Dior , 2019 Available references contradict themselves whether
Christian Dior Parfums was established in 1947 or 1948. The Dior company lists the founding of Christian Dior Parfums as 1947, with the launch of its first perfume,
Miss Dior. The agreement between Dior and Cox put Australian dressmaking on the global stage, yet ultimately the 60 Dior models proved to be too avant-garde for the conservative Australian taste. Douglas Cox was unable to continue the contract beyond the single 1949 season. In 1950, Jacques Rouët, the general manager of Dior Ltd, devised a licensing program to place the now-renowned name of "Christian Dior" visibly on a variety of
luxury goods.
Dior without Christian Dior: 1957 through the 1970s The death of the head designer left the House of Dior in chaos, and general manager Jacques Rouët considered shutting down operation worldwide. This possibility was not received graciously by Dior licensees and the French fashion industry; the Maison Dior was too important to the financial stability of the industry to allow such an action. To bring the label back on its feet, Rouët promoted the 21-year-old
Yves Saint Laurent to Artistic Director the same year. This choice of a British designer, once again instead of a French one, is said to have "ruffled some French feathers". Arnault himself stated that he "would have preferred a Frenchman", but that "talent has no nationality". The show reflected the growing influence of
hip-hop on luxury fashion, drawing inspiration from artists like
Lauryn Hill—whose style and music were directly referenced through the soundtrack and runway styling. At the time, hip hop's fascination with luxury logos was increasingly shaping the fashion industry. In previous decades, many artists turned to custom designers like
Dapper Dan due to being shut out from major fashion houses. However, by the turn of the millennium, luxury brands such as Dior and Louis Vuitton began embracing logo-heavy aesthetics, giving rise to a phenomenon dubbed "logomania". The show featured models walking in denim, monogram prints, and locs, bridging streetwear aesthetics with Dior's couture identity, ushering in a new era of youth-driven, status-oriented style. In the same year, Dior's long watch partner Benedom joined the
LVMH group. In 2000, Galliano's leadership was extended to ready-to-wear, accessories, advertising and communications. The first campaign under his leadership was photographed by
Nick Knight and featured two women simulating intercourse. Like many other brands in the late 1990s, notably
Gucci, featured suggestive images in their ads to draw public attention, Dior ads had such an impact that such publicity became a trend in most fashion ads. Galliano ignited the escalation of erotic advertisements, which culminated with
Ungaro's
zoophilic ads, shot by
Mario Sorrenti, and another ad for Gucci that featured a model with
pubic hair shaped like the signature Gucci logo. As a matter of fact, it is considered that Galliano had revolutionized Dior more through his advertising campaigns than through his designs.
21st century On 17 July 2000,
Dior Homme lead designer Patrick Lavoix was replaced by
Hedi Slimane. Notable Dior releases that year were watches such as the distinctive "Malice", which features bracelets made of "CD" links, as well as the "Riva". John Galliano then began to release his own Dior watches in 2001, beginning with the "Chris 47 Aluminum" line, marking a new era in Dior watch design. Next, the "Malice" and "Riva" watches were redesigned with precious stones to create the "Malice Sparkling" and "Riva Sparkling" spin-off collections. Inspired by the Spring-Summer 2002 Ready-to-Wear collection, Dior released the "Dior 66" watch, breaking many feminine traditional expectations in design. In 2001, the Dior Homme boutique on 30 Avenue Montaigne reopened with a new "contemporary masculine concept" instilled by its designer Hedi Slimane. Slimane used this concept in the creation of his first Dior Homme collection. The "Chris 47 Steel" watch was released in 2003 as a cousin of the original "Chris 47 Aluminum". Bernard Arnault,
Hélène Mercier-Arnault, and
Sidney Toledano witnessed the opening of the Dior flagship boutique in the
Omotesandō district of Tokyo on 7 December 2003. The second Dior flagship store was opened in the upscale
Ginza shopping district of Tokyo in 2004. Before the start of the show, chief executive Sydney Toledano gave a sentimental speech on the values of Christian Dior and alluded to the family's ties to
The Holocaust. The show closed with the staff of the atelier coming out to accept applause in the absence of their artistic director. (The previous January 2011 presentation of Spring-Summer 2011 haute-couture was the last appearance of Galliano on the Dior runway.) The company went on ahead and appointed Bill Gaytten as head designer interim in absence of artistic director. Gaytten had worked under Galliano for Dior and for the John Galliano label. The first haute-couture collection (for the Fall-Winter 2011 season) under Gaytten's management was presented in July and was received with mainly negative reviews. Meanwhile, speculation remained for months as it was unknown who would be selected to replace Galliano. During its 13-month period of having no artistic director, Dior began undergoing subtle changes in its designs as the influence of the theatrical and flamboyant Galliano faded. The all-new resigned dior.com was launched in late 2011. On 23 January 2012, Gaytten presented his second haute-couture collection (for the Spring-Summer 2012 season) for Dior and it was much better received than his first collection. Belgian designer
Raf Simons was announced, on 11 April 2012, as the new artistic director of Christian Dior. Simons was known for his minimalist designs, and this contrasted against the dramatic previous designs of Dior under Galliano. Furthermore, Simons was seen to have emerged as a "dark horse" amid the names of other designers who were considered high contenders. Reportedly, Bernard Arnault and fellow executives at Dior and LVMH were keen to move Dior from the Galliano years. and it was a mark of the company's devotion to its presence in the Chinese market. The show was the last presentation by Gaytten for Dior, and he remained as head designer for the John Galliano label. department store
Smith & Caughey's in
Auckland, New Zealand On 3 May, the
Dior: Secret Garden — Versailles promotional film was launched. It was highly buzzed about throughout various industry and social media sources as it was a display of Dior through its transition. Simons presented his first-ever collection for the company — the Fall-Winter 2012 haute-couture collection — on 2 July. A major highlight of the fall-winter 2012 haute-couture shows, the collection was called by the company as "the new couture" and made reference to the start of a new Dior through the work of Simons "wiping the [haute couture] slate clean and starting again from scratch." The designer's collection "made more references to Mr. Dior than to the house of Dior" While previous runway presentations under Galliano were held at the
Musée Rodin, Simons' show was held at a private residence, near the
Arc de Triomphe, with the address only disclosed to select top-clients, celebrities, journalists, and other personnel exclusively invited in a discreet affair. High-profile figures in attendance included designers
Azzedine Alaïa,
Alber Elbaz (Lanvin designer), In March 2015 it was announced that Barbadian singer
Rihanna was chosen as the official spokeswoman for Dior; this makes her the first black woman to take the spokeswoman position at Dior. In 2015,
Israeli model
Sofia Mechetner was chosen to be the new face of Dior. In 2016,
Maria Grazia Chiuri was named the women's artistic director for Dior. In April 2016 a new Dior flagship boutique opened in San Francisco, with a party hosted by
Jaime King. In 2017, Dior renovated and expanded its Madrid store. The brand celebrated the opening of the new boutique in a masked ball attended by a number of Spanish celebrities like Alejandro Gómez Palomo. In March 2018,
Kim Jones was named the men's artistic director for the house. Under his management Dior has made several high profile streetwear collaborations. Jones first show for Dior featured American artist and designer
Brian Donnelly, a.k.a. KAWS. Thereafter followed collaborations with
Raymond Pettibon, 1017 ALYX 9SM,
Yoon Ahn,
Hajime Sorayama,
Daniel Arsham,
Sacai and most recently Shawn Stussy, creator of the legendary streetwear brand
Stüssy. In October 2019, Dior apologized to
China for using a map of China that excluded
Taiwan. In October 2021, Dior appointed
Francis Kurkdjian as its new
creative director of perfume. On 11 March 2022, 30 Avenue Montaigne has once again opened its doors to the public. The property was closed for two years for a major renovation led by architect
Peter Marino. On August 6, 2025, Dior opened Dior Spa New York, its first permanent spa in the United States, located on the top floor of the newly renovated House of Dior flagship at Madison Avenue and 57th Street in Manhattan. The interior was designed by architect
Peter Marino, and the space is scented with a custom fragrance by Dior perfumer Francis Kurkdjian. In June 2024, one of its subsidiaries, Manufactures Dior SRL, was put in judicial administration in Italy after being accused of having sub-contracted work to Chinese equity firms that would mistreat employees. In 2025, Jonathan Anderson was appointed as Dior’s new Creative Director of women's, men's and haute couture collections of the house, succeeding Kim Jones & Maria Grazia Chiuri. == Notable fashion shows ==