The autumn/winter 2009 collections from Karl Lagerfeld and Jean Paul Gaultier were delivered in Paris in low-key shows, in keeping with the harsh economic times. Christian Dior simply ignored the whole brutal issue to produce a spectacular, inhibition-free collection.

There may be haute-couture victims of the economic slowdown, but profit margins will still remain consistently high for most of the venerable houses. That's a tribute to French high fashion's immutable pedigree.........