By Associated Press
PUBLISHED: 15:51 GMT, 21 June 2013 | UPDATED: 17:14 GMT, 21 June 2013
French designer Jean-Louis Scherrer, a couturier to Jackie Kennedy and Sophia Loren at the height of his career, has died. He was 78.
The French Couture Federation said the designer died early Thursday in Paris. Guillaume Feugeas, his right-hand man of more than a decade, said he had suffered a 10-month illness.
Scherrer began his career alongside the late Yves Saint Laurent as a design assistant at Dior, and stayed on when Christian Dior died in 1957 and Saint Laurent was promoted to creative director.
Designer of a bygone era: French designer Jean-Louis Scherrer, a couturier to Jackie Kennedy (pictured here in Paris) and Sophia Loren at the height of his career, has died at age 78After training under Christian Dior, Scherrer launched his own label in 1962, holding his first show in a cellar. The house went on to become a symbol of uptown elegance in the Eighties.
Shortly after he started his own label, the designer became known for providing a more conservative alternative to Saint Laurent's bold creations.
He once revealed that his time at Dior was greatly influential, and credited the brand for making fashion into a business by changing the lengths and shapes of their designs every season.
Award winning: The French Couture Federation said the designer (pictured in 1980) died early Thursday in Paris after a 10-month illness
Well trained: Scherrer (pictured with models in Paris in 1983 after his spring-summer haute couture collection) began his career alongside the late Yves Saint Laurent as a design assistant at Dior
Mourned by fashion friends: Hubert de Givenchy said of the late designer, 'He brought his talent and his name to Paris fashion. In person, he was discreet, well brought up and a very kind friend' (pictured backstage in 1981)After opening a store in Paris, Scherrer quickly gained traction in the U.S., where his designs were picked up by Bergdorf Goodman.
He went on to dress many female celebrities of the era, including Sophia Loren, Raquel Welch, and Jackie Kennedy.
But his label went through hard times financially and the house was sold. Scherrer, who had stayed on as artistic director, was dismissed in 1992. The fashion house closed in 2008.
Saint Laurent's business partner, Pierre Berge, took to Twitter to pay tribute to the designer.
Lauded legend: French Culture Minister Aur?lie Filippetti said in a statement, 'Scherrer, a universal artist who had dreamed of becoming a dancer, flew the flag for French haute couture and ready-to-wear worldwide'
Branching out: Scherrer launched his own label in 1962. The house went on to become a symbol of uptown elegance in the Eighties (pictured with his daughter Laetitia modelling in 1992)
Supermodel shows: After opening a store in Paris, Scherrer quickly gained traction in the U.S., where his designs (pictured on Claudia Schiffer, left, and Carla Bruni, right, in 1992) were picked up by Bergdorf Goodman He wrote: 'I liked him. He came from the world of haute couture. The authentic one, the one of yesteryear. A bygone world. He had talent."
Hubert de Givenchy added, telling WWD: 'He brought his talent and his name to Paris fashion. In person, he was discreet, well brought up and a very kind friend.'
And French Culture Minister Aur?lie Filippetti said in a statement: 'His famous leopard-print cocktail dresses and polka-dot skirts were emblems of a new feminine silhouette.
'Jean-Louis Scherrer, a universal artist who had dreamed of becoming a dancer, flew the flag for French haute couture and ready-to-wear worldwide.
Dressing the A-list: The designer (pictured in his workshop in 1987) went on to dress many female celebrities of the era, including Sophia Loren, Raquel Welch, and Jackie Kennedy
Last fashion show: The label went through hard times financially and the house was sold. Scherrer, who had stayed on as artistic director, was dismissed in 1992 (pictured); the fashion house closed in 2008Scherrer was last seen in public at Raf Simons’ first couture collection for Dior in July 2012, before he was admitted to hospital.
Scherrer's funeral is set for June 26 with a cremation at Paris' Pere Lachaise cemetery.
He is survived by his former wife, Laurence, and his daughters Laetitia, a model and animal rights activist, and Leonor, a designer and muse to Givenchy artistic director Riccardo Tisci.
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