Haute Couture Clothing Directory

The term haute couture is a designation protected by law and "only those companies mentioned on the list drawn up each year by a commission domiciled at the Ministry for Industry are entitled to avail themselves thereof," to quote the Syndical Chamber for Haute Couture. The main criteria, set forth in 1945 and updated in 1992, are as follows: to employ a minimum of fifteen people at the workshops, to present to the press in Paris each season (spring/summer and autumn/winter) a collection of at least thirty-five runs consisting of models for daytime wear and evening wear.

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