Robert Piguet

Paul Jean Robert Piguet (born May 6, 1898 in Yverdon-les-Bains , † February 21, 1953 in Lausanne ) was a Swiss fashion designer and perfumer .

Piguet was the youngest son of a respected Swiss banking family. When he was 19, he moved to Paris to make a name for himself in the world of fashion. After a first, economically unsuccessful attempt to establish himself with his own shop on Avenue Montaigne, he first worked for Paul Poiret (1922–1924) and then for a long time for the Redfern fashion house (1924–1932).

In 1933 he finally opened his second salon in Paris' Rue du Cirque, which he moved permanently to the Rond-Point des Champs-Élysées in 1938. During these years he became one of the most sought-after Parisian couturiers, who also shaped the next generation of fashion designers. Christian Dior , Hubert de Givenchy and Pierre Balmain worked for him, among others , before they set up their own establishments.

Piguet was friends with numerous writers and artists of his time and in many cases designed costumes for their productions and stage appearances, including for Jean Cocteau , Colette , Sacha Guitry and Édith Piaf .

In 1944 he launched his first perfume called "Bandit", created by Germaine Cellier . "Visa" followed in 1945, "Fracas" in 1948, also by Cellier, and "Bagari" in 1950. A fifth perfume was only launched posthumously in 1963, the men's perfume “Cravache”.

In 1951 Piguet closed his salon for health reasons.

literature

• Ruth Klein: Lexicon of fashion: three millennia of European costume studies. Klein, Baden-Baden 1950, pp. 130ff.
• Mary Brooks Picken: Dressmakers of France: The who, how, and why of the French couture. Harper, New York 1956, p. 55