Parfums Christian Dior appoints Francis Kurkdjian as perfume creation director
LVMH has announced that Parfums Christian Dior has appointed Francis Kurkdjian as perfume creation director.
Following the appointment, Kurkdjian will remain as artistic director of Maison Francis Kurkdjian, a company he co-founded in 2009 with Marc Chaya. Maison Francis Kurkdjian became part of the LVMH Group in 2017.
He was only 25 when he composed his first men’s fragrance Le Male by Jean-Paul Gaultier, which launched his career. He is also known for creating scents for a range of perfume houses, including Dior, for which he composed Eau Noire and Cologne Blanche for the Collection Privée Christian Dior. In 2008, he was named Best Perfumer by Cosmétique Magazine and was made a Knight of Arts and Letters in 2009.
Laurent Kleitman, president and chief executive of Parfums Christian Dior, said: “Francis Kurkdjian is a visionary perfumer and a passionate artist who brings his full creative energies, savoir-faire and exacting professionalism to Dior perfumes, crafting future Dior fragrances that will conquer the world. Francis will build his creations from an exceptional olfactory heritage which started in 1947, anchored in the use of exceptional flowers and bold creative initiatives.”
Kurkdjian has succeeded François Demachy who has been Dior perfumer-creator since 2006.
Kleitman added: “François Demachy will remain one of the most prominent talents among all those who have helped celebrate the unique Dior spirit and perpetuate the Dior dream. His scents are treasures that will remain timeless. It has been an extraordinary adventure and a great honor to work with him both in Paris and in Grasse.”
