PARIS, Sept 22, 2007 (AFP) - Hedi Slimane, the designer who revolutionised menswear at Christian Dior, left the house because he wanted a chance to design for women, he told Le Monde's Sunday, September 23rd edition.

Hedi Slimane

"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.

Britain's John Galliano this summer celebrated a decade in charge of women's ready-to-wear and couture at the prestigious fashion house.

Slimane inspired Chanel's top designer Karl Lagerfeld to shed 42 kilos (92 pounds) on a draconian diet so that he could squeeze into the slim silhouette, high-collared, narrow suits Slimane sent out on the catwalk. His take on fashion has also caught on with women.

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 organised, whereby collections are unveiled a year in advance.

"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."