NAME GAME: Delphine Delafon has lost control of her namesake company.
The designer on Thursday sent out an e-mail announcing that her company is in takeover proceedings in a commercial court.
“I am no longer the designer nor the director of the company despite it still carrying my name and will continue to exist,” she said, adding that she was pursuing new adventures.
In a separate e-mail, Delafon told WWD that she had been planning to put things on hold and pursue a freelance career after her partner left and negotiations with a potential investor failed to bear fruit. The company had hit financial troubles and was being liquidated when a former intern bought it through the Paris Commercial Court without telling her, she said, without disclosing the former intern’s name.
“[It’s a] really a crazy story. And now she has my name,” exclaimed the designer whose fate echoes that of designers including Chantal Thomass and Jil Sander.
Known for her mixed-media bucket-bag pouches on twisted chains, the Parisian bag designer’s business started organically seven years ago when she began making bags for herself and started receiving orders from friends. She added a clothing capsule in 2016.
Delafon generated 90 percent of sales through custom-made orders
Follow WWD on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.
Read More…