Dictator of women’s fashions

The Eaton’s ad on the last page of the February 22 1930 Toronto Globe contained this offering of white gardenias:

Patou, the “dictator of women’s fashions”, was almost certainly Jean Patou (1880-1936), a French fashion designer and perfume maker. His design career was ended shortly after this ad by the Great Depression, so he retreated into perfumes. When he died in 1936, his sister and her husband continued on as the House of Patou, which (under various designers) designed women’s clothing until 1987.