Could Raf be next for Dior?

WWD cited sources who said Dior is ‘closing in on a contract’ with the Jil Sander designer, though no deal has been concluded.

One of the wrinkles yet to be ironed out is a start date. Simons, previously mentioned as a potential replacement should Stefano Pilati leave YSL, recently signed a new contract of an unknown duration with Jil Sander. As the creative director at the fashion house since 2005, Simons has reenergised Jil Sander’s fortunes with a series of well-received collections.

Dior sacked Galliano in March after the designer’s anti-Semitic rants at a Paris cafe came to light. Since then, Bill Gaytten, Galliano’s former assistant, has led the design studio in what is largely viewed as caretaker capacity.

Label bosses originally implied that they would appoint a replacement for Galliano after the spring/summer 2012 shows in October, but wrangling a star designer has proven more difficult than they could have anticipated. Talks apparently reached advanced stages with Marc Jacobs before coming to an impasse over Jacobs’ high salary expectations for himself and business partner Robert Duffy.

Dior has indicated that it is in no rush to fill the role, preferring to find a designer who fits the house’s ethos to recruiting to deadline. Names previously attached to the top job at Dior include Haider Ackermann, Riccardo Tisci, Stefano Pilati, Hedi Slimane and Azzedine Alaïa.