Where are you Hedi Slimane of Dior Homme?

“People were curious. Anxious. Breathless. Everyone wanted to see if Kris Van Assche, the former Dior Homme assistant, would be able to surpass his master, Hedi Slimane. And then there was disappointment.”

The first collection presented by Van Assche for SS08 was for a lot of DH fans a disaster. The direction was vastly different from what people came to expect from a brand (and a designer) that redefined menswear. The critics were not pleased either.

Especially now that the full Dior Homme collection is featured in shopping sites such as Luisa Via Roma, it is very easy to see the differences between the master and the apprentice. And feel the void of Hedi.

The jeans for example, (a strong selling point to eager label addicts) have changed. For worse. The fit seems to be loose, baggy. The t-shirts carry logos that make little sense ("the cold one?") and the outerwear seem bland, void of details and look rather boxy.

Ofcourse, Van Assche must have his second chance in order for him to prove if he is worth of the title or not.

But in the meantime, a new light of hope has been shed. According to WWD, Slimane might end up right back at where he left. And that is the almight group of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton?

Rumour has it that he has renewed talks with LVMH chairman Bernard Arnault about the launch of a Hedi Slimane fashion house, bearing his unique fashion vision.

So, cry not, Dior Homme fans. There is still some sparkle in men's fashion world that may soon give birth to a new, brave brand.