What's next for the creative direction of the Karl Lagerfeld brand?

The fashion world is in mourning. However, following his passing on 19th February, the questions about who will succeed Karl Lagerfeld in his various creative roles have been unavoidable. So far, Chanel has inducted the designer's right-hand woman Virginie Viard as its new creative director, while Fendi held its runway show in Milan on Thursday without giving any hints as to who might be brought in as the Kaiser's successor. Which leaves the Karl Lagerfeld label. With its more accessible positioning, this brand relied on the reputation of its eponymous designer but also benefited immensely from his talent. 

Earlier this week, the label's CEO Pier Paolo Righi spoke to the German press about Lagerfeld's death and the creative team of his brand. "Karl built a very strong creative team around him. In particular, our design director Hun Kim worked very closely with Karl over the last few years and earned his absolute trust due to his special creative talent," he explained to TextilWirtschaft. "Karl recently included his longtime companion and fashion expert, Carine Roitfeld, in our brand's creative process," he continued, speaking about a recently announced collaboration. 

The CEO went on to suggest that the collaboration between the brand's design director since 2015 and the former Vogue editor is set to continue, leading some to speculate that the duo would take over the label's creative direction.

When asked about this possibility at Milan Fashion Week on Thursday, Carine Roitfeld couldn't help but show her surprise. "I only do the The Edit. Nothing else," she explained, referring to the Fall 2019 collection that she has been working on with the brand. 

"Extrapolation," insisted the Karl Lagerfeld brand when contacted by FashionNetwork.com. The company further explained that the time is now for contemplation and that no steps have been taken with regards to the future creative direction of the brand.