Diane von Furstenberg Says She's 'Taking Back Control' of Her Brand: 'You Will See a Lot of Exciting Things' (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Diane von Furstenberg.Photo:Michael Buckner/WWD via Getty

Michael Buckner/WWD via Getty

Diane von Furstenbergis taking back her brand.

At the celebration of the “Diane von Furstenberg: Woman Before Fashion” exhibition opening, the fashion designer, 77, reflected on her legacy — and teased some new beginnings for her eponymous brand.

“I’m taking back the control of the business right now, so you will see a lot of exciting things starting next year,” von Furstenberg told PEOPLE at the exhibit’s U.S. debut on Tuesday, Oct. 15 at Los Angeles' Skirball Cultural Center.“It took me all the COVID years,” she continued. “I was making an inventory of what it is and what the vocabulary is, and then I rehired the best people I had. And we’re starting in February.”

Diane von Furstenberg at the opening of the ‘Diane vin Furstenberg: Woman Before Fashion’ exhibit in Los Angeles.Stefanie Keenan/Getty

Stefanie Keenan/Getty

In August, the designer reclaimed control of her DFV brand after four years under Chinese licensee Glamel. It was also announced that von Furstenberg would bring on fashion executive Graziano di Boni to aid in the transition.

“I am very excited to support Graziano’s leadership redesigning the company as he surrounds himself with talent that understands the zeitgeist of today and respects and appreciates the richness of the assets of the past,” she said in a statement at the time, perForbes.

“It was very emotional to have it in Brussels,” she told PEOPLE. “[When] they decided to have a permanent curator, and they hired this young man next to me [Lor], he decided that for his first exhibition, he was going to do me. He worked at Chanel and at Dior and he decided to do his first exhibition on me. So I said, ‘Why? Why me?'”

Von Furstenberg continued, “And then he said, ‘Because I think that what you stand for is very relevant.’ And it made me feel good, made me feel relevant, and that’s how it happened.”

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Diane von Furstenberg at the Tribeca Film Festival premiere of ‘Diane von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge.'.Adela Loconte/Shutterstock

Adela Loconte/Shutterstock

This year, the designer celebrated 50 years of her signature wrap dress and premiered a new documentary,Diane von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge. Speaking with PEOPLE in June, von Furstenberg shared that she never expected the garment to have such a lasting impact.

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“I didn’t know when I made that little dress that it was going to be a social phenomenon and that people would be buying it 50 years later,” the author and philanthropist says of the influential design.

“I made the wrap dress, but really the wrap dress made me," she continued. “It just happened. I owe her as much as she owes me.”

source: people.com