Dior promotes Olivier Bialobos as Deputy Managing director

WWD learned that Dior promoted Olivier Bialobos, its long-standing communications executive, to the position of deputy managing director for global communication and image. This demonstrates the importance of unique storytelling and creative events in the luxury industry.

It’s a new role reporting to Delphine Arnault, who in February moved over from Louis Vuitton to be the chief executive officer and chairman of Christian Dior Couture.

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“I am delighted to be able to rely on Olivier’s great talent, expertise and commitment to accompany the house of Dior and its development in the coming years,” Arnault said in an internal announcement shared exclusively with WWD.

A 17-year veteran of the French fashion firm, Bialobos most recently served as One Dior chief communication and image officer, with oversight of the French house’s fashion and beauty activities.

Prior to that, his title was Chief Communication and Image Officer at Christian Dior Couture.

“For many years, Olivier has made an essential contribution to the image of Dior, notably through exceptional fashion shows, exhibitions and global events,” added Charles Delapalme, managing director of Christian Dior Couture.

Delapalme went on to call Bialobos “one of the strong pillars of the house.”

Bialobos will still have control over all categories of fashion, jewelry and beauty to ensure consistency across all brands. For beauty matters, he reports to Véronique Courtois, who recently took the helm of Parfums Christian Dior.

Bialobos joined Dior in 2006 to head up the brand’s global communications effort, and nimbly shaped and shepherded the house image amid a succession of creative directors and CEOs. Early in his tenure he established Dior Héritage, the archive that allowed the brand to mount multiple exhibitions worldwide, and helped create its permanent Galerie Dior, a museum attached to the revamped 30 Avenue Montaigne flagship.

Sources claim that the museum attracted over 400,000 visitors during its first year of operation.

Meanwhile, the “Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams” showcase has logged successful runs in Paris, New York, London, Dallas, Shanghai and Chengdu, China, and is now on display at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo.

Bialobos also lent his creative touch to innumerable Dior events, from its gingerbread-themed takeover of Harrods late last year to the pre-fall men’s show last December against a backdrop of the pyramids of Giza near Cairo.

He also launched Dior Magazine in-house, which has just published its 41st Issue. It also features a feature and photo shoot featuring Elizabeth Debicki as its jewelry ambassador.

Over the past five years, Bialobos quietly headed up the Dior Maison business unit, dreaming up table displays to outshine state or royal dinners, and unfurling high-profile collaborations with the likes of Philippe Starck, who last year put his inimitable spin on the maison’s signature medallion chair. He will also continue this role.

Bialobos is a popular, dapper figure in the French fashion scene. He started his career at Escada in communications. Later, he became director of KCD in Paris.

After leaving Dior, he became director of press and international relations at YSL.

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