Christophe Lemaire is stepping down after four years as Artistic Director of womenswear at Hermes, and will present his last collection for the French fashion house this October in Paris. The out-going designer revealed he was leaving the company to dedicate his time to growing his own label. He previously served as Lacoste creative director before succeeding Jean Paul Gaultier at Hermes in 2010.

"Working for Hermès has been a great pleasure: a profoundly enriching experience on both a human and professional level," Lemaire said. "I am proud of what we have built together. My own label is growing in an important way and I now really want and need to dedicate myself to it fully."

Hermes CEO Alexis Dumas expressed how the designer "enriched the expression of our house in women’s ready-to-wear. Under his artistic direction the metier has renewed its aesthetic and produced very satisfactory financial results."