Paris-based contemporary fashion group SMCP has named Elina Kousourna CEO of its second-biggest brand, Maje, moving the executive from its Fursac menswear division. Kousourna will work with founder and creative director Judith Milgrom to further develop the label, known for its feminine, expressive take on French style and whose fringed “M” bag helped SMCP gain a foothold in the leather goods category. Kousourna will report to Isabelle Guichot, former Maje CEO, who was promoted to lead the SMCP group in 2021.
After a stint at Boston Consulting Group, Kousourna worked closely with SMCP’s former CEO Daniel Lalonde as the group’s head of strategy and development, helping to manage its sale to Chinese group Shandong Ruyi in 2016, its flotation on the Paris bourse in 2017 and its acquisition, in 2019, of Fursac, where Kousourna took the top job.
While coronavirus lockdowns made for a rocky start at Fursac, Kousourna, working with creative director and men’s vintage specialist Gauthier Borsarello, brought fresh momentum to the tailoring imprint. Together, they refreshed the label’s branding (it was previously known as De Fursac) and leaned on an archival aesthetic to reinforce the brand’s style credibility while still serving the slim silhouette favoured by clients.
SMCP’s Other Brands division, which includes Fursac and Claudie Pierlot, grew sales 18 percent to €156 million last year.
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