Alexander McQueen style

Lee Alexander McQueen was born in 1969 in the British town of Lewiston. From the age of three, the boy started drawing dresses for his sisters. Not having completed his last year at school, he took a job as a starter designer at the Anderson & Shepherd studio in London. A rebel by nature, he was fired for spraying an offensive chalk lettering on a dignitary’s jacket.

Trained at St Martin’s School of Art, Lee Alexander’s 1992 graduation work Jack the Ripper Stalks His Victims garnered him widespread popularity. The collection was bought by renowned editor and stylist Isabella Blow. The young designer found her patronage, helping to establish the brand.

A feature of the McQueen brand

Daring and flamboyant in every piece of clothing is underpinned by classic British tailoring skills and a true French influence thanks to his experience (1996 to 2001) at Givenchy. At the end of 2000, Alexander sold a 51% stake in Kering with the condition that he would retain his position as creative director and creative control over the development of the collections. At the same time McQueen opened flagship boutiques in Milan, Tokyo, New York and Los Angeles.

A range of accessories, fragrances and economy fashion were added to the range.

Kering’s strategy strengthened the brand’s position and ensured the widest possible audience reach, increasing Alexander McQueen’s competitiveness.

Unsuccessful moments

By 2010 Alexander McQueen had accumulated drug problems. Unable to cope with his depression, he took his own life before presenting his last collection.

Sarah Burton, the fashion house’s closest assistant, got the position of the creative director. She finished the unfinished collection in memory of her mentor and presented it that year during the Autumn/Winter Fashion Week in Paris.

Sarah opened a new round in the development of the firm, following the best traditions of McQueen, but giving the clothes a visual lightness and femininity.

A new story

A grand three-month fashion show in 2015 at the Metropolitan New York, featuring the work of Alexander McQueen, attracted over 650,000 visitors. The same exhibition, housed at the Victoria & Albert Museum, was equally popular with Londoners.

High praise for the fashion house’s work was underlined by the receipt of a wedding dress for Catherine Middleton, who is married to Prince William, Duke of Cambridge.

The evolution of the Alexander Mcqueen brand is not about to let its flamboyant creator’s name fall into oblivion. Along with other legendary trendsetters, Alexander McQueen remains not only in the annals of history, but continues to live on in each successive collection.