More changes are afoot at J.Crew. Following Jenna Lyons' departure from the company after 26 years, Somsack Sikhounmuong, who's served as the brand's head womenswear designer since joining the team from Madewell in 2015, was promoted to chief design officer. He made his first showing during New York Fashion Week last September, when he introduced those rugby shirts back into our hearts (and wardrobes). Turns out, those are the last designs we'll be seeing from Sikhounmuong.
On Thursday, Business of Fashion announced his resignation from J.Crew, where he once oversaw its women's, men’s, and Crewcuts lines. "While we are sad to see him leave, we respect his decision and wish him all the best," a representative for the retailer said. "His current responsibilities, which include the oversight of all product design, will be transitioned to other members of our very seasoned and talented design team currently in place."
His departure is the latest in what seems to be a revolving door at J.Crew. After Lyons left, chief executive Mickey Drexler exited the company (but kept his role as chairman). Because the brand isn’t showing during New York Fashion Week, we won’t have any cool new styling tips to look forward to, but there are a whole slew of life-changing pants to hold us over while we wait for the new head of design to be put in place.