Jil Sander Creative Directors announce exit, leaving a Daniel Lee-shaped hole

Jil Sander has today announced that its Creative Directors Lucie and Luke Meier have stepped down from their roles, announcing that their collection, which showed at Milan Fashion Week yesterday, would "be the last of their collaboration". In recent months, rumours have swirled that Burberry's Daniel Lee would be taking the top spot at the minimalist fashion house.

Renzo Rosso, Chairman of OTB Group and owner of Jil Sander, thanked Lucie and Luke for their "vision, passion for excellence and dedication to the brand".

The designers, who have been at the house since April 2017, expressed their heartfelt gratitude to the OTB and the Jil Sander teams who have "consistently dedicated their energy, passion, and talent to this project" as well as gave a special mention and thanks to Rosso.

Jil Sander is a luxury brand "dedicated to modern design and innovation". Launched in 1968 by Jil Sander, the fashion house presented its first women’s collection in Hamburg in 1973.

In January, rumours began circulating that the Chief Creative Officer at Burberry, Daniel Lee, was positioned to exit the struggling British house and head to Jil Sander, the German luxury brand known for influencing the minimalist style that defined the fashion of the 1990s.

Back in September 2022, Burberry appointed Daniel Lee as Chief Creative Officer, replacing Riccardo Tisci in the role. From 2018 to 2021, Lee served as Creative Director at Bottega Veneta. Prior to this, he was Director of ready-to-wear design at Celine under Pheobe Philo and has also worked at Maison Margiela, Balenciaga and Donna Karan.

Daniel Lee

During his time at Bottega Veneta, Lee turned it into the powerhouse it is today for Kering. However, the designer has had a harder time balancing Burberry's heritage and his penchant for minimalist codes. With this in mind, it seems that the British designer is a strong fit for minimalist Jil Sander.