Sarah Burton is the creative director at Givenchy. At Givenchy, Burton finds herself yet again following the footsteps of her late mentor: McQueen was creative director of the house from 1996 to 2001 in a controversial tenure that shook up the brand with dramatic, eclectic collections that had little to do with conventional good taste.
Following his tragic death in 2010, Alexander McQueen's longtime colleague Sarah Burton was charged with continuing the great designer’s legacy. Having worked with McQueen for 14 years, Burton subtly shifted the house’s aesthetic while maintaining its iconoclastic codes. This has seen Burton produce collections inspired by apiculture and an episcopal combination of popes, saints and angels.
Burton grew up in Manchester but moved to London to study at Central St Martins. On the recommendation of her tutor, Burton completed a placement year at Alexander McQueen in 1996. She returned following her graduation and was named head of womenswear design after just two years, in 2000.
Burton supervised the creative direction and development of all collections of the brand, which included women’s and men’s ready-to-wear and accessories as well as the higher-end contemporary line McQ, which is also made up of women’s, men’s and accessories collections. In April 2011, she received global recognition as the designer of the wedding dress for HRH the Duchess of Cambridge, Catherine Middleton to HRH Prince William. In 2023, Burton stepped down from her role at Alexander McQueen.
In September 2024, Burton was appointed creative director at Givenchy. Burton will be the brand’s fourth designer in less than ten years as it struggles to define a path between pared-back Parisienne glamour and contemporary urban glitz.
Burton was also awarded an Order of the British Empire for her services to the British fashion industry.
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The people shaping the global fashion industry, curated by the editors of The Business of Fashion, based on nominations and on-the-ground intelligence from around the world.
