“We have some very exciting news,” says Delphine Arnault, chair and CEO of Christian Dior Couture, as she sits down with Vogue Business. “Jonathan Anderson is going to be the head of creation for Dior, across men’s and women’s, couture and accessories.”

On Thursday, the house announced that Maria Grazia Chiuri would be stepping down from her position as creative director of women’s haute couture, ready-to-wear and accessories. Kim Jones left the brand in January, and Anderson was confirmed as artistic director of the men’s collections in April. “Over the last 11 years that he has been at LVMH, we have had many discussions about what he wanted to do next. And there was always one brand he was very attracted to,” says Arnault. “We think this is the right moment to make this appointment. He is the most talented designer of his generation. He has great experience within the LVMH Group and in managing large teams through his work at Loewe, even though he is only 40. More importantly, he has a very clear vision for the brand.”

Now, with a single artistic director for both womenswear and men’s, the house returns to the organisation it had in the days of Christian Dior, Arnault notes. “I think this is going to be great for the maison. There will be consistency and coherence in the products, but also in terms of communication, I think our message will be much clearer,” she says. “Of course, it’s a big responsibility, there’s a lot of connections that need to be made. For any house, having new artistic direction can be a challenge. It takes a few seasons to see exactly what the vision is. But I think he’s totally energised by the idea.”