Princess Charlene Is Wearing a Akris Dress and Coat

Princess Charlene Is Wearing a Akris Dress and Coat. Akris is a Swiss fashion house specializing in luxury goods for women designed by creative director Albert Kriemler.

Akris was founded in 1922 by Alice Kriemler-Schoch in St. Gallen, Switzerland; the word "Akris" was derived from the letters of Kriemler-Schoch's name. The company initially made simple, dotted aprons that were crafted by Kriemler-Schoch on a single sewing machine. Each piece is still designed in Switzerland and the Swiss dot (polka dot) is still used by the company on gift boxes and tissue paper as well as the logo of the Akris Punto line 7. In 1944, Kriemler-Schoch's son Max Kriemler took over the business. The company grew significantly and began producing ready-to-wear clothing. Following the lead of Max Kriemler, Akris also produced clothes for French designers Givenchy and Ted Lapidus.

However, in 1980, Max Kriemler's right-hand man[who?] died. Though Max's son Albert Kriemler had planned to travel to Paris to study fashion and apprentice at Givenchy, Max asked Albert to postpone his education for two years to assist in the company's transition. He agreed. Albert would never complete his fashion education; within those two years, he had already begun to take over the company. Peter Kriemler, Albert's brother, joined Akris in 1987 after studies at St. Gallen University on law and economy to head its financial side. Peter is now Akris's global CEO, handling management and manufacturing. Peter Kriemler is credited with bringing the Akris collection to Asia with subsidiaries in Japan and Korea, as well as developing the worldwide network of directly operated stores.

Since 2004, the Akris collection is shown during Paris fashion week - the only Swiss house in the Fédération française de la couture, du Prêt-à-Porter des Couturiers et des Créateurs de Mode.