Veronica Leoni Is Leaving Calvin Klein After Reintroducing Its Collection Line

After overseeing the reintroduction of Calvin Klein Collection, the American brand’s higher-end runway offering, Veronica Leoni is officially exiting as creative director. The news was confirmed in a statement this morning, with the company saying that new creative leadership will be announced “in due course.”

“I want to thank Veronica for her creative vision, commitment, and partnership over the past two years,” David Savman, Calvin Klein’s global brand president, said in a statement. “Reintroducing Collection was a significant milestone for Calvin Klein, and Veronica’s exceptional talent and fresh perspective on Calvin’s iconic design codes helped build meaningful momentum for Collection. Collection remains an important part of our brand; we are excited by the progress to date and look forward to its continued evolution.”

While relatively unknown when announced as creative director in May 2024, Leoni had already worked at Jil Sander, Moncler, The Row, and Phoebe Philo’s Celine. The Italian designer founded her own brand, Quira, in 2021 and was nominated for the LVMH Prize two years later. (Quira was put on pause after Leoni joined Calvin Klein.)

Leoni had a big task upon her appointment. Not only was she leading a juggernaut of a brand (and one of the few women in the industry to do so) with discernible house codes, she was also reintroducing Calvin Klein’s runway presence, dormant since Raf Simons’s departure in 2018. Over the course of four shows, the designer zeroed in on a pared-back sensuality, reworking familiar codes of denim, underwear, and sharp suiting.