Haute couture (House of Worth)
Alta costura (Casa Worth)
- Date
- 1858 · confidence high
- Place
- Paris, Île-de-France, France
- Credited to
- Charles Frederick Worth
- Field
- Tools
⚠️ Disputed: the sources disagree.
What it is
Charles Frederick Worth opened his fashion house on the rue de la Paix in 1858. He introduced seasonal collections shown on live models, signed labels, and the designer who dictates style rather than the client.
Renowned dressmakers existed earlier (Rose Bertin, c. 1770); Worth did not invent fashion design but the fashion-house and collection system. He is called the 'father of haute couture' by consensus, not by absolute priority.
What it led to
- Chambre syndicale de la couture parisienne (1868)
- Paris as the world capital of fashion
- the model of the designer as author and brand