UPDATE: Alas, the final curtain has come down on Marc By Marc Jacobs.

WWD confirmed the news today that the diffusion line, founded in 2001, will be absorbed by the mainline, after reports first surfaced late last week that the brand was looking to make such a move.

However, news of the closure comes just three seasons after Katie Hillier and Luella Bartley were hired as creative director and womenswear design director, respectively. Whilst Bartley's future position is, as of yet, still unknown, it has been widely speculated that there will be a role for Hillier within the newly-expanded Marc Jacobs brand.

On 20 March 2015, we wrote...
We hear it's game over for Marc By Marc Jacobs.

WWD reports that the diffusion line is to be discontinued, and its essence folded into the Marc Jacobs mainline. The result would be, it explains, 'not to lessen the product range, but to unify all products with a clarity of voice and aesthetic, and ultimately, to expand the product offerings'.

Marc By Marc Jacobs has been a staple of many a fashion diet since its inception in 2001 with its lower pricepoints and fun, youthful aesthetic - which has taken on a decidedly cooler, stompier feel since 'dream team' Luella Bartley and Katie Hillier were appointed to oversee it in May 2013.

It was shortly after that that Jacobs himself left Louis Vuitton in order to focus on his own line. Could this be the next step in his masterplan?

All signs point to yes - although, if it is true, what that means for Bartley and Hiller remains unclear.