MILAN, Italy (AFP)-Pieter Mulier will be the new chief creative officer at Versace, the luxury label’s owner Prada said Thursday, bringing the Belgian designer under the same roof as longtime collaborator Raf Simons.

Mulier, 46, who spent five years at Alaia, replaces Dario Vitale, who worked just nine months at Versace succeeding Donatella Versace before stepping down in a surprise move in December.

Mulier, who begins his new role on July 1, will reunite with fellow Belgian Simons, who has been co-designing at Prada with Miuccia Prada since 2020.

Prada acquired the Versace brand last year from Capri Holdings for 1.25 billion euros ($1.47 billion), hoping to breathe new life into a brand that had struggled under its US owner.

Mulier has spent a large part of his fashion career at Simons’ side, including at Jil Sander and Christian Dior, and later was creative director at Calvin Klein.

“We believe that he can truly unlock Versace’s full potential and that he will be able to engage in a fruitful dialogue with the brand’s strong legacy,” Lorenzo Bertelli, the head of Versace, said in a statement.

Mulier joined Alaia in 2021 when he became the label’s first creative director since the death of its founder, Azzedine Alaia, whose body-moulding creations, often constructed of tight strips of knitted fabric, enjoyed their zenith in the 1990s.

At Alaia, the native of Ostend tapped his background in architecture for sculptural creations that played with volume and proportion, earning him an International Designer of the Year award at the prestigious CFDA Awards last year.

A Mary Jane ballerina flat with studs, and a low and long “Le Teckel” (Dachshund) handbag, proved must-haves for many, helping to put the brand and its designer back at the centre of the fashion world.

Mulier will present his final collection for Alaia in March at Paris Fashion Week.