Why Vetements Is Moving From Paris to Zurich

Many designers consider Paris “the” place for fashion, but Vetements disagrees.

The streetwear label is abandoning Paris and moving to Zurich. Chief executive officer Guram Gvasalia confirmed the news to Swiss newspaper Tages-Anzeiger.

“Paris kills creativity. The environment, with its ‘bling bling,’ is destructive,” Gvasalia said. He added that he and his brother, head designer Demna Gvasalia, had had enough of “the superficial glamour.”

Gvasalia also acknowledged the well-known, business-friendly tax policies in Switzerland. “The taxes are, of course, also a reason for the move. But not the most important,” he said. According to Business of Fashion, Gvasalia said the move would give them a “clean slate.”

Tages-Anzeiger reports that Demna Gvasalia has already moved to Zurich along with several of the label’s other designers and employees, with the rest to follow by September. (Demna, however, will be traveling back to Paris to fulfill his role as artistic director at Balenciaga.) Gvasalia said it had become difficult for the company to continue to grow in Paris due to a lack of affordable space and the country’s stricter immigration laws; Vetements employs designers from around the world, and Gvasalia said it can take up to nine months for someone to be allowed in to France.

While it’s not clear where Vetements will show its collections, this could be Zurich’s moment to shine in the international fashion scene.

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