Couture label ArdAzAei names Ulrik Garde Due as CEO

Swedish couture label ArdAzAei has reached a new milestone by appointing a CEO. The label, which shows at Paris haute couture week as invited member and is known for its sustainable design, has tapped the luxury sector expertise of Danish executive Ulrik Garde Due, who has taken charge of the label to fast-track its growth.

“Ulrik is a highly experienced luxury industry executive. He has a thorough understanding of the industry and is capable of transforming creative excellence in market opportunities. This is a decisive step for our label. His leadership will enable us to balance our uncompromising artistic standards with the operational strength we need to grow,” said Johannes Falk, who co-founded ArdAzAei with Swedish-Iranian designer Bahareh Ardakani, the label’s creative director.

ArdAzAei premièred on the official Paris haute couture calendar in June 2024. The label has also developed a ready-to-wear line, which it intends to strengthen by creating a more extensive collection which will be presented at the next Paris Fashion Week Women, in October.

Garde Due, who has worked in Asia, Europe and America, is a highly experienced luxury industry executive, having held senior positions at several fashion and jewellery brands. After studying business and marketing in Copenhagen, Paris and London, he worked for Celine, Cerruti and Burberry.

In 2007, he took charge of Danish jewellery brand Georg Jensen. Six years later, he was named CEO of British fashion label Temperley London, and in 2016 he took charge of a division of Finnish kitchenware producer Fiskars Group.

At the end of 2018, he was named CEO of long-established US luxury leather goods brand Mark Cross. In parallel, Garde Due became chairman of the board of consulting firm Positive Luxury, a sustainability specialist, and operational chairman of the board at Danish label Cecilie Bahnsen, which shows in Paris.

“With this appointment, ArdAzAei is affirming its vision: to gear up for sustainable growth, transforming the brand with rigour and preparing the label for a new stage in its international expansion,” said the label in a press release. ArdAzAei was founded in Stockholm in 2018 and established a presence in Paris in 2022, opening a store and an atelier near place de la Concorde, at 11 rue Saint-Florentin.

ArdAzAei’s sophisticated minimalist style “is a blend of French expertise, Persian heritage, and Scandinavian design principles,” and takes great care to respect the environment. Most of the items in its next ready-to-wear collection will be “GOTS-certified and crafted from organic, custom-developed textiles. The garments will be produced in EPV-certified ateliers in France (entreprise du patrimoine vivant, or living heritage company), ensuring full traceability,” said ArdAzAei.