Yet Again Jil Sander and Prada Part Ways

Yet Again Jil Sander and Prada Part Ways
Jil Sander - who sold her fashion house to Prada four years ago, left four months later, then made a dramatic comeback in 2003 - has left the company again, Prada said yesterday in Milan.

In a terse statement, Prada said that the decision by Patrizio Bertelli, chief executive of Prada, and Ms. Sander to end her involvement in the company was amicable. Separately, a Prada spokesman, Jason Jacobs, said: "They had a difference in opinion about the future financial plans for the Jil Sander brand. It was not about creativity".

Ms. Sander, who was at her home in Hamburg, Germany, could not be reached for comment. She had hinted to retailers in recent months of frustrations with Prada's strategies with her brand, which she started in 1973. "When you've been your own boss for 30 years, it's difficult to work with Big Brother watching you," said Janet Brown, whose boutique in Port Washington, N.Y., carries the Sander label. "They are both strong individuals and they're not used to running a relay race."

In 2000, Ms. Sander sold 75 percent of her company to Prada, largely with the expectation, she said at the time, of having Prada's expertise in leather goods and shoe-making to build her accessories business. Four months later, she resigned as creative director of the company, citing differences with Mr. Bertelli.