After news broke in late 2017 of Harvey Weinstein’s alleged sexual misconduct, which dismantled his career and inspired the #MeToo and #TimesUp initiatives, many wondered how the scandal would affect his estranged wife Georgina Chapman and her fashion line Marchesa. Although Chapman and her co-founder Keren Craig skipped the traditional runway show to present their fall 2018 collection, at the time, Craig insisted it was business as usual. But on Tuesday, Craig announced she was leaving the brand, once a red carpet mainstay.
"While I have made the difficult decision to part ways with Marchesa, I have tremendous pride in the company, the team, and the many successes achieved," Craig says in a statement, Fashionista is reporting. "Marchesa will always be the realization of a dream. Over the last 16 years, it has been the most incredible and fulfilling professional journey. I am excited to now begin exploring additional creative opportunities and to push my potential as a designer in new directions."
In the wake of Weinstein’s downfall, the brand’s future seemed uncertain as more and more celebrities spoke out about being bullied into wearing Marchesa by the movie mogul. When the Weinstein story first broke, actress Jessica Chastain took to Twitter, writing, “I was warned from the beginning. The stories were everywhere. To deny that is to create an environment for it to happen again.” also reportedly tried to pressure Felicity Huffman, Renée Zellweger, and Kerry Washington to wear Marchesa to Hollywood events.
In the midst of the allegations, Marchesa and its co-founders retreated into silence. The brand slowly began to reemerge in what Racked called a comeback "carefully orchestrated by Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour." Wintour was a once close friend of the Weinsteins, who also commissioned a feature about Chapman in the June 2018 issue of the magazine. Constance Wu wore Marchesa during a pivotal scene in the movie Crazy Rich Asians and Scarlett Johansson wore the label to the 2018 Met Gala — an event in which every little detail is selected by Wintour herself.
Whether or not Marchesa will actually be able to stage a comeback, we eagerly await Craig’s next steps.
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Source: Refinery29 – Channing Hargrove