Transcribed from The Timesmachine archive vieweer webpage. A version of this obituary appears in print on August 10, 1988 on page B00008 of the National edition with the headline:
Robert Ricci, Couturier, 83 Dies; House Created Leading Perfume
Robert Ricci, the head of Nina Ricci, one of the oldest haute couture houses in Paris for over 50 years, died Monday night a the Hopital Cite Universitaire, after a heart attack the day before. He was 83 years old. His fall and winter couture collection had opened just two weeks before his death. As did all his collections, it preserved the grandeur of the golden age of France fashion, from the 1930’s through the 1950’s, with time out for World War II. The collection, designed by Gerard Pipart, who has been with the house for 25 years, opened with traditional tailored daytime suits lavishly decorated with furs and ended with grand evening dresses with bouffant taffeta skirts and feathers. Trousers were the one concession to contemporary trends. Mr. Ricci was also a pioneer in the introduction of perfumes by a fashion house. ‘How Women Should Dress’ “He had an idea of how women should dress, and he rarely deviated from it,” said Geoffrey Beene, who manufactured his ready to wear for United States stores in the 1970’s. “They were ‘jolie madame’ or pretty lady clothes, the kind of fashion that peaked in Paris in the 1950’s. ” Meticulous in his dress as well as his manner, Mr. Ricci was something of a dandy. He favored gray suits with vests and conservative ties. Before going into the fashion business, Mr. Ricci had headed his own advertising agency. He joined his mother Maria, a dressmaker, whom he called Nina, in 1932, and helped establish the couture house that bore her name. The house prospered and grew from 40 employees at the beginning to 450 in 1939. His mother, a contemporary of Gabrielle Chanel, was born in Turin, Italy and died in 1979 at the age of 87. Until the end of her life, she would attend the collection openings each season, wearing lavish jewelry made by her husband, Louis, a jeweler. From the beginning, house was known for dressing mature and elegant Frenchwomen. In the 1950’s it made headlines with designs by Jules-Francoise Crahay, who went on to work for the house of Lanvin. He was succeeded by Mr. Pipart in 1963. Mr. Ricci was the Vice President for 12 years of the Chambre Syndicle de la Couture Parisienne, the association of high fashion designers, and was the president in 1963. He was always more personally involved with the perfume end of the business than with the clothes. He introduced his first scent in 1946, named ‘Coeur Josie’. Two years later he introduced ‘L’Air du Temps’ in a bottle designed by Marc Lalique. It has become a world class classic. His newest perfume called ‘Nina’, will be introduced in the United States by Nordstrom’s next week. The clear crystal bottle with an asymmetric heart motif was designed by Marie-Claude Lalique, Marc’s daughter. Twenty-five million bottles of the six Ricci fragrances are sold each year in 130 countries. Mr. Ricci established its First Boutique in 1979 for ready to wear on the Avenue Montaigne in Paris. Today there are Ricci shops in Geneva, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Buenos Aires and Los Angeles. The company also produces lingerie, accessories, sun glasses and men’s clothes. In addition to an apartment in Paris, Mr. Ricci had homes near Fontaineblue and Klosters, Switzerland. He is survived by his wife, Marie Claire, and two daughters and a son, Jean Louis Ricci, from his first marriage. His daughters are Marie Francoise Fuchs, whose husband Gilles is executive Vice President of the Ricci company and Arlette Mitchell. A funeral service will be held Thursday at 3 P.M. at the English Norte-Dame d’Auteuil in Paris.
Robert Ricci, Couturier, 83 Dies; House Created Leading Perfume
Robert Ricci, the head of Nina Ricci, one of the oldest haute couture houses in Paris for over 50 years, died Monday night a the Hopital Cite Universitaire, after a heart attack the day before. He was 83 years old. His fall and winter couture collection had opened just two weeks before his death. As did all his collections, it preserved the grandeur of the golden age of France fashion, from the 1930’s through the 1950’s, with time out for World War II. The collection, designed by Gerard Pipart, who has been with the house for 25 years, opened with traditional tailored daytime suits lavishly decorated with furs and ended with grand evening dresses with bouffant taffeta skirts and feathers. Trousers were the one concession to contemporary trends. Mr. Ricci was also a pioneer in the introduction of perfumes by a fashion house. ‘How Women Should Dress’ “He had an idea of how women should dress, and he rarely deviated from it,” said Geoffrey Beene, who manufactured his ready to wear for United States stores in the 1970’s. “They were ‘jolie madame’ or pretty lady clothes, the kind of fashion that peaked in Paris in the 1950’s. ” Meticulous in his dress as well as his manner, Mr. Ricci was something of a dandy. He favored gray suits with vests and conservative ties. Before going into the fashion business, Mr. Ricci had headed his own advertising agency. He joined his mother Maria, a dressmaker, whom he called Nina, in 1932, and helped establish the couture house that bore her name. The house prospered and grew from 40 employees at the beginning to 450 in 1939. His mother, a contemporary of Gabrielle Chanel, was born in Turin, Italy and died in 1979 at the age of 87. Until the end of her life, she would attend the collection openings each season, wearing lavish jewelry made by her husband, Louis, a jeweler. From the beginning, house was known for dressing mature and elegant Frenchwomen. In the 1950’s it made headlines with designs by Jules-Francoise Crahay, who went on to work for the house of Lanvin. He was succeeded by Mr. Pipart in 1963. Mr. Ricci was the Vice President for 12 years of the Chambre Syndicle de la Couture Parisienne, the association of high fashion designers, and was the president in 1963. He was always more personally involved with the perfume end of the business than with the clothes. He introduced his first scent in 1946, named ‘Coeur Josie’. Two years later he introduced ‘L’Air du Temps’ in a bottle designed by Marc Lalique. It has become a world class classic. His newest perfume called ‘Nina’, will be introduced in the United States by Nordstrom’s next week. The clear crystal bottle with an asymmetric heart motif was designed by Marie-Claude Lalique, Marc’s daughter. Twenty-five million bottles of the six Ricci fragrances are sold each year in 130 countries. Mr. Ricci established its First Boutique in 1979 for ready to wear on the Avenue Montaigne in Paris. Today there are Ricci shops in Geneva, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Buenos Aires and Los Angeles. The company also produces lingerie, accessories, sun glasses and men’s clothes. In addition to an apartment in Paris, Mr. Ricci had homes near Fontaineblue and Klosters, Switzerland. He is survived by his wife, Marie Claire, and two daughters and a son, Jean Louis Ricci, from his first marriage. His daughters are Marie Francoise Fuchs, whose husband Gilles is executive Vice President of the Ricci company and Arlette Mitchell. A funeral service will be held Thursday at 3 P.M. at the English Norte-Dame d’Auteuil in Paris.
Transcribed from The Timesmachine archive vieweer webpage. A version of this obituary appears in print on August 10, 1988 on page B00008 of the National edition with the headline:
Robert Ricci, Couturier, 83 Dies; House Created Leading Perfume
Robert Ricci, the head of Nina Ricci, one of the oldest haute couture houses in Paris for over 50 years, died Monday night a the Hopital Cite Universitaire, after a heart attack the day before. He was 83 years old. His fall and winter couture collection had opened just two weeks before his death. As did all his collections, it preserved the grandeur of the golden age of France fashion, from the 1930’s through the 1950’s, with time out for World War II. The collection, designed by Gerard Pipart, who has been with the house for 25 years, opened with traditional tailored daytime suits lavishly decorated with furs and ended with grand evening dresses with bouffant taffeta skirts and feathers. Trousers were the one concession to contemporary trends. Mr. Ricci was also a pioneer in the introduction of perfumes by a fashion house. ‘How Women Should Dress’ “He had an idea of how women should dress, and he rarely deviated from it,” said Geoffrey Beene, who manufactured his ready to wear for United States stores in the 1970’s. “They were ‘jolie madame’ or pretty lady clothes, the kind of fashion that peaked in Paris in the 1950’s. ” Meticulous in his dress as well as his manner, Mr. Ricci was something of a dandy. He favored gray suits with vests and conservative ties. Before going into the fashion business, Mr. Ricci had headed his own advertising agency. He joined his mother Maria, a dressmaker, whom he called Nina, in 1932, and helped establish the couture house that bore her name. The house prospered and grew from 40 employees at the beginning to 450 in 1939. His mother, a contemporary of Gabrielle Chanel, was born in Turin, Italy and died in 1979 at the age of 87. Until the end of her life, she would attend the collection openings each season, wearing lavish jewelry made by her husband, Louis, a jeweler. From the beginning, house was known for dressing mature and elegant Frenchwomen. In the 1950’s it made headlines with designs by Jules-Francoise Crahay, who went on to work for the house of Lanvin. He was succeeded by Mr. Pipart in 1963. Mr. Ricci was the Vice President for 12 years of the Chambre Syndicle de la Couture Parisienne, the association of high fashion designers, and was the president in 1963. He was always more personally involved with the perfume end of the business than with the clothes. He introduced his first scent in 1946, named ‘Coeur Josie’. Two years later he introduced ‘L’Air du Temps’ in a bottle designed by Marc Lalique. It has become a world class classic. His newest perfume called ‘Nina’, will be introduced in the United States by Nordstrom’s next week. The clear crystal bottle with an asymmetric heart motif was designed by Marie-Claude Lalique, Marc’s daughter. Twenty-five million bottles of the six Ricci fragrances are sold each year in 130 countries. Mr. Ricci established its First Boutique in 1979 for ready to wear on the Avenue Montaigne in Paris. Today there are Ricci shops in Geneva, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Buenos Aires and Los Angeles. The company also produces lingerie, accessories, sun glasses and men’s clothes. In addition to an apartment in Paris, Mr. Ricci had homes near Fontaineblue and Klosters, Switzerland. He is survived by his wife, Marie Claire, and two daughters and a son, Jean Louis Ricci, from his first marriage. His daughters are Marie Francoise Fuchs, whose husband Gilles is executive Vice President of the Ricci company and Arlette Mitchell. A funeral service will be held Thursday at 3 P.M. at the English Norte-Dame d’Auteuil in Paris.
Robert Ricci, Couturier, 83 Dies; House Created Leading Perfume
Robert Ricci, the head of Nina Ricci, one of the oldest haute couture houses in Paris for over 50 years, died Monday night a the Hopital Cite Universitaire, after a heart attack the day before. He was 83 years old. His fall and winter couture collection had opened just two weeks before his death. As did all his collections, it preserved the grandeur of the golden age of France fashion, from the 1930’s through the 1950’s, with time out for World War II. The collection, designed by Gerard Pipart, who has been with the house for 25 years, opened with traditional tailored daytime suits lavishly decorated with furs and ended with grand evening dresses with bouffant taffeta skirts and feathers. Trousers were the one concession to contemporary trends. Mr. Ricci was also a pioneer in the introduction of perfumes by a fashion house. ‘How Women Should Dress’ “He had an idea of how women should dress, and he rarely deviated from it,” said Geoffrey Beene, who manufactured his ready to wear for United States stores in the 1970’s. “They were ‘jolie madame’ or pretty lady clothes, the kind of fashion that peaked in Paris in the 1950’s. ” Meticulous in his dress as well as his manner, Mr. Ricci was something of a dandy. He favored gray suits with vests and conservative ties. Before going into the fashion business, Mr. Ricci had headed his own advertising agency. He joined his mother Maria, a dressmaker, whom he called Nina, in 1932, and helped establish the couture house that bore her name. The house prospered and grew from 40 employees at the beginning to 450 in 1939. His mother, a contemporary of Gabrielle Chanel, was born in Turin, Italy and died in 1979 at the age of 87. Until the end of her life, she would attend the collection openings each season, wearing lavish jewelry made by her husband, Louis, a jeweler. From the beginning, house was known for dressing mature and elegant Frenchwomen. In the 1950’s it made headlines with designs by Jules-Francoise Crahay, who went on to work for the house of Lanvin. He was succeeded by Mr. Pipart in 1963. Mr. Ricci was the Vice President for 12 years of the Chambre Syndicle de la Couture Parisienne, the association of high fashion designers, and was the president in 1963. He was always more personally involved with the perfume end of the business than with the clothes. He introduced his first scent in 1946, named ‘Coeur Josie’. Two years later he introduced ‘L’Air du Temps’ in a bottle designed by Marc Lalique. It has become a world class classic. His newest perfume called ‘Nina’, will be introduced in the United States by Nordstrom’s next week. The clear crystal bottle with an asymmetric heart motif was designed by Marie-Claude Lalique, Marc’s daughter. Twenty-five million bottles of the six Ricci fragrances are sold each year in 130 countries. Mr. Ricci established its First Boutique in 1979 for ready to wear on the Avenue Montaigne in Paris. Today there are Ricci shops in Geneva, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Buenos Aires and Los Angeles. The company also produces lingerie, accessories, sun glasses and men’s clothes. In addition to an apartment in Paris, Mr. Ricci had homes near Fontaineblue and Klosters, Switzerland. He is survived by his wife, Marie Claire, and two daughters and a son, Jean Louis Ricci, from his first marriage. His daughters are Marie Francoise Fuchs, whose husband Gilles is executive Vice President of the Ricci company and Arlette Mitchell. A funeral service will be held Thursday at 3 P.M. at the English Norte-Dame d’Auteuil in Paris.
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