The clues were few that British designer Kim Jones was about to leave Christian Dior Mens, especially after delivering one of the most ‘stupendous’ shows of his career in his Fall 2025 presentation in Paris last on Friday last week.

Praise for Jones has been lavish from his peers, with widespread consensus that Kim Jones’ seven-years tenure at Dior Mens “accelerated the convergence of men’s fashion, art, and celebrity to warp speed.” [Samuel Hine GQ]

Several hours later, Anna Wintour pinned the Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur medal on Jones’s lapel in front of a room packed with celebrities and luxury-industry power-players, including several members of the LVMH-ruling Arnault family.

Kim Jones and Virgil Abloh

In writing this post, AOC was not aware of the very close relationship of Kim Jones and Virgil Abloh. We share a major taste of the duo together.

Beloved Louis Vuitton artistic director Virgil Abloh praised Jones for being his mentor.

“The designer that I always wanted in the modern industry is Kim Jones, he is the epitome of high fashion and streetwear,” Abloh was quoted by Dazed in 2017, referring to the way Jones has authentically worked across both worlds. Virgil also discussed a time he spent being mentored by Jones, saying, “I slept on his couch in a front room in Maida Vale and forced him to teach me stuff, I spent a summer sitting there with him. Before the terms streetwear or luxury existed, he was bringing forth street culture ideas through the high fashion system.”

Kim Jones, VP of Charleston Trust

Last fall, Kim Jones was appointed vice president of the Bloomsbury group hub Charleston, where he’s been attached since 2018 to the Charleston Trust. The permanent synergy emerged after arranging a photoshoot with Kate Moss there to mark his first womenswear collection for Fendi. Most recently, Jones turned to Charleston as the inspiration for his Dior Men’s summer 2023 collection.

As his first official assignment, Jones worked with Sotheby’s to organize Radical Modernity: From Bloomsbury to Charleston.