Alexis Lavigne was a French tailor and inventor. Alexis Lavigne invented the couture mannequin and the supple measuring tape.
In 1841 he established Guerre-Lavigne which became ESMOD, the first fashion school in the world. In 1847 he invented the soft metric ribbon and took ESMOD internationally by publishing his cutting methods books in German and English.
In the International Exhibition fair in 1849, he displayed the first of his Bust Mannequins. In the same year, he established a famous couture house to display his Amazonian costumes.