Maria Grazia Chiuri is an Italian designer, previously co-creative director at Valentino alongside Pierpaolo Piccioli.

During her tenure at the house Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli were responsible for the successful redefinition of the Valentino brand codes and the reinvigoration of the business, which reached revenues of $1 billion in 2015.

In June 2016, it was announced that Chiuri had stepped down from her role as co-creative director of Valentino, amidst widespread industry speculation that she would replace Raf Simons, who left Dior unexpectedly in October 2015, as creative director of Dior. On July 8th it was confirmed that Chiuri would be the new creative director at Dior, the first woman to hold the position in the French fashion house’s 70-year history. She will be responsible for women’s couture, ready-to-wear and accessories, the Paris-based company said in a statement Friday. Her first collection will be presented in Paris on Sept. 30.