The French fashion’s governing body, the Chambre Syndicale, announced on 18 December 2012 that Maison Martin Margiela and Alexis Mabille were granted the official haute couture appellation. Margiela had been a correspondent member and Mabille a guest member and of the couture calendar.
There are now 14 fashion houses with haute couture appellation in France, including established houses like Christian Dior and Chanel, as well as relatively new names like Giambattista Valli. The Chambre also lists five correspondent members, such as Giorgio Armani and Azzedine Alaïa, and 11 guest members, including this season’s newcomer, Hervé Leroux.