Hedi Slimane wanted a chance to design for women

Ex-Dior Homme designer Hedi Slimane says he left Christian Dior, because he wanted a chance to design for women, he told Le Monde's Sunday edition.

"After seven years at Dior I wanted to move on and I wanted to dress women, which wasn't possible at Dior," he explained in an interview with the French daily.

Slimane said that before leaving Dior in January 2006 he had been in discussions over whether it would put up the finances for him to open a couture house in his own name, but the talks stalled. "I was never ready to sell my name," he told Le Monde.

In the interview, he also hit out at the way in which the international fashion calendar is organized.

"The seasonal collections don't relate to anything anymore because everything is on the Web in a second. Because it is impossible to adapt the logistics, the fashion business is running to keep up with fashion. Once upon a time all that made sense, but not any more."