Designer Rei Kawakubo is the figurehead of Comme des Garçons, which is now a design empire – Kawakubo is regarded by many in the fashion industry as a genius. The often avant-garde and always influential label was created by Kawakubo in Tokyo in 1969 before heading to Paris in 1981 where it garnered both acclaim and controversy with a debut collection of distressed and deconstructed pieces. The modern Comme des Garçons brand, which encompasses an entire family of sub-brands in fashion and fragrance, is worn by men and women with an esoteric style stance.