Lorraine Beauchamp

Lorraine Beauchamp was a Quebec designer of high-end women’s fashion whose eponymous collections were marketed in the 1980s and 1990s. Her clothes, primarily dresses, were sold in Canada and the United States, notably in New York department stores Bergdorf Goodman and Neiman Marcus.

As a student of literature and education at Université du Québec à Montréal (UQÀM), she developed an interest in fashion when she worked as a model for various manufacturers. After earning her bachelor’s degree in 1971, she became a writer and translator. However, in 1976 she entered the fashion industry to work as a coordinator for Daymor Couture, a manufacturer of evening wear. In 1978, she began designing her own collections for the company under the Lorraine Beauchamp label.

She left Daymor Couture to launch her own company in 1989, setting up her studio on St. Ambroise Street in Montreal’s St. Henri neighbourhood. Two years later, she joined forces with Typhoon, a manufacturer for whom she also created high-end collections under her name.

She started working freelance in 1993 and was then recruited by the LaSalle College. Working primarily on the school’s annual fashion show and various special events, Lorraine Beauchamp remained at LaSalle College from 2000 to 2009, the year she died of cancer.