12 Facts About Dominique Sirop

Dominique Sirop was born on January 1956 and is a French fashion designer and grand couturier.

Sirop's mother was a couturier's mannequin in Paris for the House of Paquin, and from seeing his mother at work Sirop got the ambition to make a career in the world of haute couture.

Dominique Sirop has said that by the age of seven, he knew that he wanted to be "either a fashion designer, a magician, or the Sun King".

At the age of seventeen, Dominique Sirop was apprenticed to Yves Saint Laurent, beginning work in his atelier, where he learned about dress materials and sewing.

Dominique Sirop stayed with Givenchy's studio until 1989, and while there his clients included Audrey Hepburn.

Dominique Sirop turned to research and writing, going on to publish two books, A Historical Overview of the House of Paquin and Jacqueline Delubac.

Dominique Sirop became an expert on the history of costume, and is consulted in this area by museum curators.

In 1995, Dominique Sirop was Hubert de Givenchy's chosen successor as chief designer of the Givenchy label, but Bernard Arnault, head of the Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy conglomerate which owned Givenchy, took the view that Dominique Sirop was not well enough known to the public and appointed John Galliano instead.

In September 1996, Dominique Sirop opened his own couture house, and less than a year later he was admitted to the exclusive Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture Parisienne, making his house one of the ten official French couture fashion houses.

Dominique Sirop has high-profile clients and produces fashion collections every season for more than one of the six major fashion weeks: Milan, Paris, London, Tokyo, Los Angeles, and New York.

Dominique Sirop's designs are often featured in fashion magazines, including Vogue and Madame Figaro.

Since January 2000, Dominique Sirop's shop and atelier has been at 14, Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honore, 75008 Paris, a historic building which includes its own theatre.