Carven Welcomes Kai Nesselrath as a Fresh Creative Voice for Its Next Chapter

Carven has found its next designer, and he’s arriving with the polish of one of the most disciplined studios in Paris still on him.

Last week, the house confirmed that Kai Nesselrath will step in as design director, succeeding Mark Thomas, who departed in April. His first collection lands in October, part of the Spring/Summer 2027 calendar, and it’s already one of the season’s most-watched debuts.

Nesselrath spent close to a decade at Saint Laurent, climbing from a junior womenswear designer on the runway team in 2016 to head of the womenswear studio under Anthony Vaccarello by 2024. Before that, a brief but formative stint at Chanel, in the final years of Karl Lagerfeld’s reign. 

Born in Rome to German parents, he trained across three storied institutions: the Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma, Polimoda, and Central Saint Martins. Few designers move from Lagerfeld’s maximalism at Chanel to Vaccarello’s pared-back precision at Saint Laurent and come out the other side with a clear point of view. Nesselrath did both.

“A new generation’s perspective on the world feels especially important today,” said Carven CEO Shawna Tao, announcing the appointment. “The essence of Carven is a fresh and courageous creator’s spirit, and we believe Kai is uniquely suited to interpret and express it.”

Nesselrath, for his part, struck a softer note than his CV might suggest. “I love clothes, spaces, and conversations that encourage breathing,” he said, calling it “an honor to keep Madame Carven’s values alive.”

Those values date back to 1945, when Marie-Louise Carven-Grog, born Carmen de Tommaso, opened her house with a simple, radical idea for the time: chic clothing for women of smaller stature, with an ease and lightness that set her apart from the grandes maisons around her. It’s a legacy the brand has spent the better part of two decades trying to find its way back to.

The creative chair has changed hands often along that road. Guillaume Henry led the studio from 2009 to 2014 before moving on to Nina Ricci. Alexis Martial and Adrien Caillaudaud took over womenswear after him, followed by Serge Ruffieux, whose three-season run ended when the house went bankrupt in 2018 and was acquired by ICCF, the Shanghai- and Paris-based group that also owns the sustainable label Icicle. 

Carven sat out the runway entirely for five years, until Louise Trotter brought it back in September 2023 with a collection built on freedom, joy, and confident femininity. Fifteen months later, she was on her way to Bottega Veneta, called up to replace Matthieu Blazy. Mark Thomas carried the torch from there until this spring.

Now it’s Nesselrath’s turn. ICCF currently has a sizeable footprint in mainland China, and the Paris name still carries real weight in that market, which makes the studio’s next move matter well beyond the Avenue Montaigne.

Come October, Paris will get its first look at what a Saint Laurent education looks like when it’s let loose on Madame Carven’s world of ease.