The Japanese founder of the fashion brand, Kenzo, has lost his life to the coronavirus, according to a firm spokesman, quoted by French media.
Kenzo Takada died at the American Hospital in Paris at the age of 81, his statement said.
Known for his colorful graphic and floral prints, he was the first Japanese designer to gain fame on the Paris fashion scene.
Takada moved to France in the 1960s and spent the rest of his career there.
With his "nearly 8,000 models", the Japanese designer "did not stop celebrating fashion and the art of living," his spokesman said.
Born in 1939 near Osaka, Kenzo Takada arrived in France in 1965 by boat and settled in Paris.
He founded the internationally known brand with his first name in the 1970s.
Takada sold his clothing brand to luxury conglomerate LVMH in 1993 and retired six years later.
Source: BBC
