Pierre Berge: The man who made YSL a household name

Pierre Berge at the Saint Laurent offices

When Hedi Slimane dropped the Yves from Yves Saint Laurent after he joined the house as creative director in 2012, a meme-like T-shirt with the phrase “Ain’t no Laurent Without Yves” became popular. To put the importance of Pierre Bergé in bite-sized Insta-friendly phrasing, you could change that to “Ain’t no Yves Saint Laurent Without Pierre Bergé”.

Bergé founded Yves Saint Laurent with the designer in 1961, when the two men were in a relationship. It was Bergé who encouraged Saint Laurent – a designer at Christian Dior when the two met in 1958 – to set up his own house. He later said: “I instantly recognised his genius.” While Brian Epstein was busy honing the Beatles into the supergroup of the decade, Bergé worked to do the equivalent with Saint Laurent. The designer became a superstar of the fashion world.

Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Berge

While the Saint Laurent house began as couture, in line with the Paris fashion of the era, Bergé was instrumental in democratising the industry for the younger 60s consumer. In 1966, they launched Rive Gauche, a line of ready-to-wear and cheaper designs that could be bought off the hanger in the store of the same name. While that sounds standard now, the idea was revolutionary in an era where the luxury consumer was used to receiving their clothes after lengthy fittings at a designer’s atelier. Rive Gauche proved profitable – boutiques opened in New York and London later in the decade.

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