Fashion's 8 Most Secretive Designers

A part of the Antwerp Six—the boundary-breaking Belgian fashion collective—Martin Margiela was notoriously low-profile at the helm of his namesake house despite his pivotal influence on fashion. As Margiela took off in the late 1980s, the designer refused interviews or to be photographed, and declined to mingle with the fashion press.

Instead of explaining his complex designs, Margiela let the runway do the talking. Set behind deconstructed sets and in barren warehouses, the Belgian sent clothes down the runway without a press release or explanation to follow. Despite his avant-garde approach, Margiela single handedly changed the course of fashion through innovative fabrication and experimental silhouettes.

The longtime creative director of Comme Des Garçons has managed to maintain an unrivaled sense of secrecy throughout her decade-spanning career. Gaining notoriety in the mid 1990s, Rei Kawakubo captivated audiences through an avant-garde exploration of the female form. 

Though the designer does do the occasional interview, they are few and far between and often kept very brief. Kawakubo's responses to inquiries are mysterious, too. Remember when she answered a question by drawing a circle in black pen? Or when the designer responded to "What makes you laugh?” with the answer, “You.”

The buzzy New York designer has created quite the name for himself despite opting not to show his face. Known for his minimal and utilitarian womenswear, Peter Do has taken a unique-approach to not only his image, but also the way in which he presents his designs. Often pictured with his talented team, the Céline alumni relies on his ability to create a community to support the development of his eponymous label. 

Do has flouted the traditional runway, opting to release a lookbook for all of his collections until this point. Though Do is forever breaking boundaries, the designer announced that he will present his collection in the traditional runway format during the New York Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2022 season. Whether he appears in front of the audience remains to be seen.

Phoebe Philo—former creative director of Céline—has managed to maintain a relatively low-key presence despite her high-profile status. From 2008 to 2018, Philo reshaped the French label through breezy womenswear that reinterpreted classic silhouettes for the modern woman. 

Since her departure, Philo has maintained a low-key status despite rumours of her starting her own label. Known for her powerful designs, the British creative doesn't necessarily enjoy the spotlight. She once said "The chicest thing is when you don't exist in Google. God, I would love to be that person!"

With high profile stints at Jil Sander, Dior, Calvin Klein, and now, Prada, Raf Simons has cemented himself as a proprietor of taste within the fashion industry. Simons' minimal approach to menswear has allowed him to not only develop his own identity as a designer, but also to reinterpret the DNA of several iconic brands. Despite his influence on the industry, Simons maintains a realtively elusive character. The designer is notoriously hard to get in touch with and keeps a very close-knit team that follows him on his various creative endeavors.

Italian fashion powerhouse Miuccia Prada has been a quiet force at Prada and Miu Miu since the 1980s. Prada's unique approach to femininity make the designer a standout in a sea of luxury brands helmed by male creative directors. Though Prada has been a major proprietor of new silhouettes, shapes, and accessories, she keeps an extremely guarded and low-profile status.

The sister-duo behind The Row, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen have kept a discreet aura throughout their tenure as creative directors. Despite the sisters' overhwleming success in worlds of fashion and film, they have opted to let their minimalist-infused ready-to-wear to take center stage. 

In a recent rare interview, Ashley stated "We really didn’t want to be in front of it. We didn’t necessarily even want to let people know it was us, in a way. I mean, it was one of those things where it was really about the product, to the point where we’re like, ‘Who could we get to kind of front this so we don’t have to?’ I think, to this day, you’ll see we really put the product first."

The mysterious mind behind Celine, Hedi Slimane is one of fashion's most elusive designers. Known for pared-down designs and a subdued color palette, Slimane's transformation of Celine has not come without controversy. Remember when he removed the accented "é" from Céline?Despite his highly talked-about tenure at the French maison, (prior Slimane was creative director of Dior Homme and Saint Laurent) the French designer continues to be an enigma.