Dirk Bikkembergs
Dirk Bikkembergs ( born January 2, 1959 in Cologne) is a Belgian fashion designer and founder of the fashion brand Bikkembergs.
Bikkembergs since the late 1990s, known to be, incorporated elements from the world of football and sport in its fashion, which since the late 1980s under his name in the market. Since 2011, the former Belgian company of Dirk Bikkembergs owned by his former shoe - licensee, Zeis Excelsa, from Italy.
Career
Dirk Bikkembergs was born the son of a Belgian father and a German mother in Cologne. After high school he began studying at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts ( Koninklijke Academie voor Schone Kunsten van Antwerpen ) Antwerp in Belgium, where he graduated in 1982. He and five other Belgian fashion design graduates - Ann Demeulemeester, Dries Van Noten, Dirk van Saene, Walter Van Beirendonck and Marina Yee - became known as the Antwerp Six, built a group of avant-garde fashion designers who Antwerpen at a prestigious location of Fashion Design.
After Bikkembergs had worked for some Belgian fashion company, and began his career with a shoe collection in collaboration with a Belgian shoe manufacturer, which he presented in 1986 at the British Designer Show in London with the Antwerp Six. The style of the shoes was his trademark. In 1985 Bikkembergs had won the Newcomer Award Cantte d'Or (Golden Spinning Wheel ) of the Belgian fashion industry association ITCB, as found in most other members of the Antwerp Six received. With the Italian textile manufacturer Gibo SpA Bikkembergs was a partner in the field of fashion, launched 1987, a knitwear collection for men and 1988 showed his first full collection for men under the name Dirk Bikkembergs at the fashion shows in Paris. In 1991 he founded for the production of its clothing lines in the Fossombrone ( Pesaro and Urbino) in Italy based company 22 srl, from since a textile factory is maintained. In 1993, the Dirk Bikkembergs women's collection added to the portfolio. First, the Bikkembergs Ladies models were integrated into the men's fashion shows, then they were shown separately in the women's fashion shows in Paris. In 1996, the athletic second-line Bikkembergs was introduced.
By no later than the end of the 1990s, Bikkembergs turned from the elegant Parisian avant-garde fashion from and a sportier, more casual fashion. In 1998 he presented his high-priced Dirk Bikkembergs Sport Couture ago as the main line in Milan; from then on his sporty - chic collections for men at Milan Fashion Weeks were paraded on the catwalk. In 2000 came the second-line Bikkembergs a shoe collection ( in licensing collaboration with the Italian shoe manufacturer Zeis Excelsa ) with predominantly Sneakers added, and their own denim line, Bikkembergs Jeans, was presented.
Bikkembergs 2001 received permission to organize a fashion show in a football stadium ( Giuseppe Meazza Stadium ). The Bikkembergs brand stood for sports fashion, which was tailored specifically to the sport of football, such as shoes, jerseys, tracksuits and other sportswear. 2003 ( for the 2004 season ) was previously shown for the last time in Paris the women's collection, then Bikkembergs presented them in the women's fashion shows in Milan and finally only selected women's models in his men's fashion shows in Milan Menswear Fashion Week. From 2003 (for the 2004 season ) offered Bikkembergs own sports brand as a successor collection for the set Bikkembergs Jeans line at, Bikkembergs Sport. In the years from 2003 to 2005 he was the official designer for the clothing of the players of Inter Milan. In order to use athletes beyond their athletic obligations on his own fashion shows, he acquired the 2005 playing in a stadium next to its factory buildings Amateur Football Club FC Fossombrone, the name was changed to F. C. Bikkembergs Fossombrone changed. The fully -equipped he designed clothing players test the clothes for him and put it on his fashion shows before. Since the late 2000s Bikkembergs was represented only with the men's collection Dirk Bikkembergs Sport Couture at the Milan shows, in which, however, also single ladies models were shown.
In 2007, sales of Bikkembergs approximately EUR 120 million. Alone with the then started Underwear Line 7 million euros were earned. 2009, a flagship store in Milan was opened.
Mid-2011 took over the longtime Italian footwear licensee of Bikkembergs, Zeis Excelsa from Montegranaro, the financially troubled Belgian company to 100 %. Founded by Bikkembergs Dutch society Heroes International BV, which owns the fashion brand Bikkembergs was, was dissolved. In July 2011, the company Bikkembergs was confronted with allegations of tax evasion amounting to 111 million euro, which had been transferred from 22 srl to the Luxembourg commercial company of Bikkembergs, International Fashion Factors that coordinates the worldwide sales of the brand from Italy to Luxembourg.
As support for Dirk Bikkembergs which creative director of the brand remained Zeis Excelsa hired designer Hamish Morrow 2012 for the men's fashion and Paola Toscano for women's fashion, which was expanded again to a complete collection from winter 2012 to. In the first men's collection under the South African Morrow, the 2012/2013 was found at the end of the Fashion Show Autumn / Winter on the catwalk, more classic, elegant outfits found themselves in a departure from the very sporty sport couture line under the name Dirk Bikkembergs Man.
2012 existed among 32 operated by partners Bikkembergs boutiques, for example, in Milan, Verona, Nice, Cannes and Barcelona, as well as shop-in - shop, of which the majority was only opened in 2011. Zeis Excelsa is planning to open Bikkembergs businesses as well as the entry into the perfume business. For the divisions underwear ( licensee: Albisetti SpA), glasses ( Allison SpA) and children's clothing ( Mariella Burani SpA) it licenses to other manufacturers. The annual turnover of the company in 2011 amounted to 139 million euros.
Collections
The focus of the brand Bikkembergs was in the 2000s in men's fashion, although it still Bikkembergs women's fashion was. The collections were divided into three Labels:
- Dirk Bikkembergs Sport Couture: high-priced designer collection in sporty style for men
- Bikkembergs: fashionable sportswear line and main line for men and women, with the subcategories: Bikkembergs Footwear ( shoes), Bikkembergs Eyewear (glasses, since 2005), Bikkembergs Underwear ( underwear, since 2007), Bikkembergs Accessories ( Accessories) and Bikkembergs Kids ( children's fashion, since 2008)
- Bikkembergs Sport: sporty leisure wear for men and women
With the takeover of the company by Zeis Excelsa the subdivision from 2012 has been changed:
- Dirk Bikkembergs Man: high-priced designer collection of clothing, shoes and accessories for men
- Dirk Bikkembergs Woman: high-priced designer collection of clothing, shoes and accessories for women (from Autumn / Winter 2012/ 2013)
- Bikkembergs: sporty leisure wear, footwear, eyewear and accessories for women, men and children