He found business "boring, " and chose fashion, enrolling at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts.

WSJ: The Insider's Outsider

Mr. Ackermann studied fashion at Antwerp's Royal Academy of Fine Arts, whose alumni include Dries Van Noten, Martin Margiela and Ann Demeulemeester.

WSJ: The Ackermann Effect

Ms. Demeulemeester graduated from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp in 1981 with other soon-to-be-famous designers Dries Van Noten and Dirk Bikkembergs.

WSJ: Deconstructing Designer Ann Demeulemeester