Creative director Kris Van Assche is leaving Berluti, The Business of Fashion reported. The decision was made as part of a push to “let Berluti lead its own rhythm and give freedom to its presentation schedule,” Berluti CEO Antoine Arnault said in a statement quoted by the BoF.

Van Assche joined the LVMH-owned luxury label in 2018, about a month after LVMH brought on Virgil Abloh for Louis Vuitton and Kim Jones at Dior. There, Van Assche oversaw ready-to-wear and the house’s signature leather goods alike, replacing creative director Haider Ackermann, who left after presenting only three collections. Before landing the gig at Berluti, Van Assche spent over a decade at Dior Homme as artistic director.

His run at Berluti was denoted by an appreciation for the label’s signature leathercraft, with leather suits, footwear and accessories often hand-painted or stitched in homage to Berluti’s patina-laden shoes. Artist partnerships, akin to Jones’ collaborative streak at Dior, invited plenty of splashy colors and street-leaning outerwear as part of LVMH’s bid to lure a younger audience to Berluti. However, Van Assche’s emphasis on contemporary tailoring also attracted plenty of musicians and celebrities, who made Berluti a red carpet staple.

Berluti wasn’t cited by name in LVMH’s most recent quarterly report, which otherwise heaped praise on the boosted incomes of stable brands Louis Vuitton and Dior. Because LVMH didn’t include specifics, it’s impossible to say how well Berluti was doing under Van Assche’s purview.

CEO Arnault lauded Van Assche’s tenure in his statement regarding the director’s departure. “He has brought his own vision to Berluti, particularly by integrating new codes into its signatures,” said Arnault. HYPEBEAST has reached out for Arnault’s full comment.

Van Assche’s final collection for Berluti was the recent Fall/Winter 2021 presentation, which included a collaboration with artist Lev Khesin.