Céline: Séverine Merle appointed CEO

By

Marion Deslandes

Translated by
Nicola Mira

Published
Feb 27, 2017

Change at the top for French fashion label Céline, part of the LVMH group, with the appointment of Séverine Merle as CEO. Merle has left her post as Executive Vice-President at Berluti, which she held since 2014, to replace Marco Gobbetti, who left in January to take charge of Burberry, after eight years at the helm of the fashion label founded by Céline Vipiana in 1945.

 
Séverine Merle will start in her new role on 1st April. She is a graduate of the ESSEC business school and started her career at French department store Le Bon Marché, before joining the LVMH group as Louis Vuitton's Merchandising Director, a post she held until 2011. She then became Louis Vuitton's General Manager France for three years, before joining Berluti.

Under the aegis of Creative Director Phoebe Philo, Céline has been frequently singled out by the LVMH group as one of its fastest-growing labels, though specific figures have not been disclosed.