Cacharel

Jean Henri Bousquet is known as the man behind the house of Cacharel. Born in the city of Nimes in France in 1932, Jean Henri Bousquet began his designing career in 1947, at the age of 15, as an apprentice tailor. In 1951 he studied at the Ecole Technique, in the same city.

In 1956, Bousquet travelled to Paris and found work as a cutter/stylist for Jean Jourdan. Two years later, he opened a small atelier where he started to make shirts for men. He gave the name of his new fashion house Cacharel after a species of wild duck. Shortly following that, he decided to stop designing clothes for men and started a company designing clothes for women.

In the early 60's he introduced a very highly successful women's blouse based on a man's shirt and made up in a fabric similar to nightwear. A year following that, he produced a blouse constructed without bust darts. The result of that attempt was a best-selling fitted shirt. In 1965, he signed an agreement with Liberty of London to use their floral designs in his own contemporary colour patterns.

Cacharel then started to become well known for their semi-casual, matching separates which captured popular interest by bringing relaxed styles into broader use. Jean Henri Bousquet's culotte skirts and gabardine mini skirts with three pleats at each side, were very popular, worn with short, tight, brightly coloured Shetland sweaters over more delicately printed shirts and blouses with embroidered collars. This style of dressing was then widely copied.

During the 70's, Cacharel introduced its ready-to-wear designs with bolder and more colourful patterns, many of which were inspired by the prints and weaves of Africa and the far East. Cacharel's aim was to represent a very wild and free image which rejected the formality of clothing which was favoured by the older generations.

Emanuelle Khahn then designed for Cacharel from 1962 to 1967. At the end of the 60's, Cacharel gave Sarah Moon her first advertising campaign, after which she went on to become a leading fashion photographer. Moon was successful in creating a more romantic marketing image for Cacharel.

In 1978, Jean Bousquet launched his first perfume which he named 'Anais Anais'.

During the 1980's several designers worked at Cacharel. The Japanese designer Atsuro Tayama was there for a while in the 1980's.

Jean Henri Bousquet still works in Paris, but an American showroom was also opened in 2001 by his son Guillaume Bousquet who has taken charge of the American developments and sectors. Guillaume Bousquet studied at the Florida International University in the USA. Jean also has a daughter Jessica who also works within the company.

In the year 2000, the successful husband-wife British designer team of Clements Rebeiro decided to take over the design for Cacharel and presented some very well received collections, featuring printed dresses with some mock Japanese Obi around the waists.

Celia Birtwell, the wife of the famous 60's designer Ossie Clark, creates the wonderful prints for all the dresses shown for Cacharel, since Autumn 2002.

 

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