Christian Dior — the magical name that for forty-seven years now has been synonymous the world over with the enchantment of French fashion, elegance and style is a luxury goods company controlled and chaired by businessman Bernard Arnault who also heads LVMH Moët Hennessy • Louis Vuitton – the world's largest luxury group.. Regardless of the intrinsically fleeting nature of this creative sphere and the endless cycle of seasonal collections, the House of Christian Dior has somehow withstood the cruelty of time: season after season, Dior has, almost paradoxically, built its own timelessness, eschewing the ephemeral and placing itself squarely in the realm of tradition.
Founded in 1946 by the eponymous designer Christian Dior, today the company designs and retails ready-to-wear, leather goods, fashion accessories, footwear, jewelry, timepieces, fragrance, make-up, and skincare products while also maintaining its tradition as a creator of recognized haute-couture (under the Christian Dior Couture division). While the Christian Dior label remains largely for women's offerings, the company also operates the Dior Homme division for men and the baby Dior label for childrenswear.
Products are sold throughout its portfolio of retail stores worldwide, as well as through its online store via dior.com.
Competitors to the House of Dior include, among many, the fashion houses of Chanel, Burberry, Yves Saint Laurent, Gucci, Prada.
History
The House of Dior was established on 16 December 1946, in "a private house" at 30 Avenue Montaigne Paris B. However, the current Dior corporation celebrates "1947" as the opening year. Dior was financially backed by wealthy businessman Marcel Boussac.
On 12 February 1947, Dior launched his first fashion collection for Spring-Summer 1947. The show of "90 models of his first collection on six mannequins." was presented in the salons of the company's headquarters at 30 Avenue Montaigne. Originally, the two lines