Pieter Mulier Resigns As Creative Director of Alaïa, for an Assumed Move to Versace

WWD has confirmed with Maison Alaïa that its Belgian creative director and designer Pieter Mulier has resigned his post at Alaīa in Paris. Alaïa said Mulier would conclude his tenure as creative director after Alaïa’s summer-fall 2026 show during Paris Fashion Week in March.

While his next position remains unconfirmed, it’s widely expected that the designer will join Versace, now owned by Prada group. WWD posits a potential announcement from Prada Group next week.

“Over the past five years, Pieter and the exceptional team he led have shaped Alaïa’s creative renewal, honoring its heritage and strengthening the maison’s relevance, confidence, and global recognition,” Myriam Serrano, chief executive officer of Alaïa.

Parent company Compagnie Financière Richemont expressed gratitude to Mulier, adding an important compliment to this breaking news. Their statement praised the designer for his contributions to a corporate culture “that values creative exploration, transcending any one individual, and lives through the hands, eyes, and sensibilities of the maison’s teams.”

The designer has enjoyed robust success in his five-year collaboration with Richemont. Through his inventive designs, Mulier was a superb translator of Alaïa’s “legacy of empowering, feminine and sculptural fashions.” In a moment when designer sun gods are again center stage, women will worry about the next designer of Alaïa not undercutting Mulier’s clear understanding of Alaïa’s vision, Protecting this vision of a female-centric design legacy is critical.

Flipping the other side of the coin, Mulier’s arrival at Versace is inspiring. The designer has stated in prior interviews that Versace himself was very linked to Azzedine “back in the day.” It’s believed that Mulier has long desired this well-deserved appointment at Versace.