Founded by Sisters Gerber, Bertrand and Chanterelle in 1895
Exotic and breathtakingly beautiful dresses bearing the Callot Sœurs label still astound. Like their creators, they have an air of mystique. ‘A curious situation controls the house of Callot. Its gowns are known wherever smart gowns are worn, yet the women who govern the house are almost mythical. It would be a mockery to apply the word “fashionable” to these women: they would despise it. They never go out at all,’ said Vogue in 1915.
Previously in business separately, the reclusive Callot sisters decided to pool their resources, eventually moving to the avenue Matignon, Paris, employing 1,500 workers and supplying a huge American market. The Callot Sœurs were world authorities on antique lace and were often called upon for advice by French and foreign museums. Vogue imbued the sisters with a legendary sense of mystery: ‘Silently, working away with their shears and thread, they weave clothes that bring them millions, and from their workroom, into which no stranger penetrates, they govern the destiny of continents they have not seen.’
