Posts in the Philippe Guibourgé category

The House of Dior launched a successful boutique line 1947, and although its offerings were much more accessible than couture, they were by no means inexpensive. In order to reach a wider audience, in 1967 the company opened a new, lower-priced boutique called Miss Dior. The store’s opening was hinted at in Women’s Wear Daily two years earlier, when Thelma Sweetinburgh reported, “There are plans ahead for the House of Dior to dress ‘Les Jeunes Filles’ in a special ground floor boutique.”


Miss Dior dress-2
Philippe Guibourgé designed the Miss Dior clothing, which initially comprised sixty-eight styles of dresses, coats, and suits, in addition to a full range of separates and accessories. These designs were well-priced, resolutely practical, and casual: not a single formal evening dress was to be found. The House of Dior had purchased a factory in which the garments were made, ensuring that they were of better quality than many other ready-to-wear offerings being manufactured in France.

The pride that Dior took in its new venture is best evidenced by a shirtdress dating to 1967, also featured in Elle, made from red and blue silk emblazoned with the words “Miss Dior” in an allover pattern. This early example of branding speaks to the importance of a consumer’s ability to “buy in” to a luxury brand at relatively little cost – a concept that would become more fully developed during the next decade and beyond.

Miss Dior dress
(Philippe Guibourgé)
1968
Gift of Mrs. Walter Eytan
80.261.6
Paris Refashioned, 1957-1968 runs through April 15, 2017 at The Museum at FIT in NYC.