| Joseph Corré | |
|---|---|
| Born | Joseph Ferdidand Corré 30 November 1967 (age 44) Clapham, England |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Years active | 1994–present |
| Known for | Being founder of Agent Provocateur |
| Spouse | Serena Rees (divorced) |
| Children | 1 |
| Parents | Malcolm McLaren (father) (deceased) Vivienne Westwood (mother) |
| Website | |
| Official site | |
Joseph Corré (born Joseph Ferdinand Corré on 30 November 1967[1]) is a British businessman best known for co-founding the British Lingerie company Agent Provocateur in 1994. He is the son of British fashion designer Vivienne Westwood and Sex Pistols' ex-manager, Malcolm McLaren.
Contents |
Corré was born in Clapham, England to fashion designer Vivienne Westwood and the Sex Pistol's former manager Malcolm McLaren. His surname comes from his father's maternal grandmother who was a Sephardic Jew from Portugal.[2]
As a child, he would wear his mother's designs long before they were popular. He would hang out with the Sex Pistols and regards them as his favorite band, despite his poor relationship with Johnny Rotten.[3]
He met Serena Rees, now ex-wife and former business partner, in 1992 at a night club. The pair divorced in 2007 and have one daughter together.
Agent Provocateur was established in 1994 after Rees grew tired of seeing drab undergarments. The two opened a shop in which they originally sold other designers' lingerie. Corré, a former Vivienne Westwood employee, had no intentions of designing lingerie. After not finding enough of the type lingerie they wished to sell, Corré decided to make their own brand of lingerie. Since then, the company has spanned to 14 different countries and 30 stores.
Following his divorce with Rees, Agent Provocateur was purchased by the private equity house 3i for £60m.[4]
In June 2007, Corré was awarded the MBE for his services to the fashion industry in the Queen's Birthday Honours list. However, he controversially rejected the honour in protest of outgoing Prime Minister Tony Blair's actions regarding Iraq and Civil Liberties.[5]