despite most of them have been working for the label for over 3 decades and were hired by Ann Verhelst herself. The article also revealed that the company itself was relocated to Milan, definitively cutting the fashion house from its historical Flemish roots. In an exclusive interview granted to journalist Jesse Brouns, Ann Verhelst, Patrick Robyn and Claudio Antonioli confirmed the relocation of the Belgian brand to Italy, the later stating that "Milan [compared to Antwerp] is a fashion city. That made recruiting a new team of 25 people easier." Claudio Antonioli enrolled designer Nina Maria Nitsche as “ghost” creative director of the brand, another Maison Margiela alumni, after her short and unfortunate stances at both Vetements and Kering’s own Brioni. At the same time, Antonioli also named Francesco Francavilla, a former Dolce & Gabbana and Rene Caovilla executive as Global Marketing and Communications Director, as well as naming Tobia Beretta, who previously worked as Commercial Manager of Neil Barrett for 3 years to the position of CEO of Ann Demeulemeester. In order to remain faithful to the Demeulemeester DNA, Claudio Antonioli kept the 1944 born, Parisian PR legend, Michelle Montagne at the helm of the company's press relations. The brand's first fashion show under Antonioli era, which took place in October 2021 in Paris and relied mostly on denim and archives replicas, received mixed reviews from the international press. As for the second outing of Claudio Antonioli for the brand, in March 2022, Vogue described it, in a notably harsh review, as if «The models all looked like they were heading to a meeting with their bank managers to declare themselves bankrupt». For Sanremo Music Festival 2022, Ann Demeulemeester dressed Italian musician Mahmood, who joins the list of the brand's legends alongside Patti Smith and P.J. Harvey. Personal life Verhelst married photographer Patrick Robyn in 1985. The couple used to live in the outskirts of Antwerp in the famous Maison Guiette, the only house in Belgium designed by Le Corbusier. Ann Verhelst has since moved to Kesselhof manor, a 19th-century Italian rococo revival villa situated in the village of Kessel, that she bought from Baroness Diane Caroline Van Zuylen Van Nyevelt, whose family made its wealth in the Belgian Congo. Awards 1982 Golden Spindle Award, Belgium See also Antwerp Six List of fashion designers References External links 1959 births Living people Belgian fashion designers Belgian women fashion designers High