Breaking: Hedi Slimane is $13m richer thanks to Kering lawsuit

In the fickle world of high fashion, nothing is ever what it seems. And so it was with the curious case between Hedi Slimane and his former employer - Saint Laurent's parent company Kering. At first glance, it would seem Slimane's lawsuit was over his terminated contract with the French luxury label and the non-compete clause that usually places a one year ban on the designer from heading to another rival company. After departing Saint Laurent in April this year, it seems the non-compete clause was abolished, leaving Slimane free to take up post wherever he liked.

While many speculated the designer/photographer was headed for the likes of Dior or even Calvin Klein, the lawsuit brought to light Slimane's real plans: he wanted a payout, not another high-profile assignment. And lucky for Slimane, he got his wish and was awarded a $13 million payout from Kering. According to Reuters, Slimane's lawyer Herve Temime was pleased with the result. "I'm happy because this [is] a natural outcome. The contract terms were absolutely clear."

The whole case just leads us to ask one thing: if $13 million is what Slimane got for not going to a competitor, we wonder how much his whole four-year Saint Laurent contract was worth? Perhaps that's a question we should pose to the Saint Laurent's new creative director Anthony Vaccarello?