Fashion house denies rumors about alleged ousting of head designer

(AFP PHOTO/Patrick Kovarik)

Parisian fashion house Yves Saint Laurent has defended its creative head Stefano Pilati after several bloggers had suspected him to be on his way out.

YSL's official Twitter account tweeted: "From YSL HQ in Paris... Pilati busy working on the next collection. All the rumors unfounded - he is here to stay."

Shopping site Racked and several other publications including Elle and Hintmag had suggested Pilati could be ousted from the fashion house after a publicist tweeted that a certain designer would show his last collection for an established French house this season - a fashion house that just lost its CEO, which YSL did with Valerie Hermann last week.

Yves Saint Laurent's reaction also puts rumors of a potential succession by Hedi Slimane to rest, as well as a possible move of Pilati to Armani.

Meanwhile, another designer has joined the game of musical chairs: John Galliano was just suspended from fashion house Dior after making anti-semitic remarks about guests at La Perle, a hip bar in the Parisian Marais district. No word yet on how and if his collections for Dior as well as his namesake label - scheduled for March 4 and March 6, respectively - will be finished in time for Paris fashion week. The future of Kate Moss's wedding dress, which he is reportedly designing (rather than herself, as previously rumored), is also still written in the stars.

Yves Saint Laurent's show during Paris fashion week - likely to be streamed live via the brand's website and Facebook profile - is scheduled for 7:30pm CET on March 7.