Yiqing Yin Named Leonard Creative Head

PARIS — Yiqing Yin has been confirmed as creative director of Leonard, WWD has learned. The French fashion house is due to announce her appointment today, confirming a report in WWD on Oct. 1.

The Chinese-born designer succeeds Raffaele Borriello, who left last fall after three seasons at the house. Leonard has seen a revolving door of designers since the departure in 2011 of Véronique Leroy after eight years at the helm. She was replaced by Maxime Simoens, who lasted just one season.

Yin, 28, has garnered plaudits for her intricately pleated couture creations and made headlines by dressing Audrey Tautou for the opening ceremony of the Cannes Film Festival in May. More recently, she designed a little black dress for high-street retailer Monoprix for a holiday season capsule collection.

She is slated to show her first collection for Leonard on March 3 during Paris Fashion Week, a spokeswoman for the house said.

Born in Beijing, Yin moved to France at the age of four and went on to study at the École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs. She won the Grand Prix de la Création de la Ville de Paris for fashion in 2010 and the following year, she scooped up the First Collections Prize at the Andam Fashion Awards.

Since showing her first collection during Paris Couture Week in July 2011, she has been made a guest member of the couture calendar by the Chambre Syndicale, French fashion’s governing body. Yin will continue to design collections under her own name, Leonard said.