Founded in 1950, with a global brand and iconic logo, Pierre Cardin has been a revolutionary designer for more than half a century. Before founding his own fashion house, the Italian born-French designer showed interest in fashion from a young age and gained varied, valuable experience. From working under Christian Dior to working on the 1946 film La Belle et La Bête (Beauty and the Beast), Cardin worked his way up before venturing out on his own, going on to create his couture lines and later opening his first shop in France.
Known for his avant-garde, unique designs, Pierre Cardin stands out in the fashion world as an innovator and someone who doesn’t follow the rules. Someone who is not afraid of new shapes and silhouettes Pierre Cardin was quoted as saying, “For me, the fabric is nearly secondary. I believe first in shape, architecture, the geometry of a dress”. The designer who briefly studied architecture and engineering and often took influence from this and reflected his interest in architecture in his grand designs.
Although the designer found fame creating haute couture designs for fashion houses and limited, private clientele, Cardin was the first to create a designer, ready to wear collection accessible to the general public in department stores. Although this was rumoured to be the reason for his temporary 1969 expulsion from the Chambre Syndicate – the prestigious governing body for the French fashion industry. An innovative move for the fashion industry at that time, it was considered controversial due to high-end clothing being made readily available for general consumers. This brand ethos resulted in the global distribution for Pierre Cardin.
The original Pierre Cardin logo is still largely recognised today and was once considered one of the most powerful in the world. The designer and business man has been extremely successful in getting his brand into new countries and was a pioneer of brand licensing which many have gone on to follow. Brand licensing enabled the use of the logo and brand’s likeness to be used for various product lines in and outside of the fashion world such as; luggage, water, car interiors, handbags, accessories and high street clothing. Although considered somewhat controversial, the brand is undeniably extremely successful and remains a household name.
Modrec International is the official licensee of Pierre Cardin for luggage, travel goods, holdalls and small leather goods including wallets, portfolios and more. Having retained the license for more than 40 years, we are incredibly proud of this partnership. The current Pierre Cardin range available at Modrec International features a wide range of soft-sided EVA and hard-sided ABS suitcases, lightweight body luggage including bum bags and backpacks as well as weekend and long haul holdalls, small leather goods and accessories.