Alexander Wang is leaving his job as creative director of Balenciaga.

The Spanish fashion house and its parent company Kering have decided not to renew the contract of the 31-year-old fashion designer, although the precise reasons for his departure are unknown as of yet.

Alexander's last Balenciaga show will be spring 2016 during Paris Fashion Week - scheduled for 29 September to 7 October - which means the search for a ''lesser-known'' successor is in its early stages.

A source told WWD.com: ''Kering is open to considering a lesser-known, hidden talent for the plum post, emboldened by the positive feedback and outpouring of goodwill it had in promoting Gucci insider Alessandro Michele to succeed Frida Giannini at the helm of the Italian brand earlier this year.''

Alexander's stint at the helm of Balenciaga has been relatively short-lived compared to the career of his predecessor, Nicholas Ghesquiere, who enjoyed 15 years in the creative director chair, before leaving to take up the top job at Louis Vuitton in 2012.

It was rumoured earlier this month that Alexander was in talks to renew his contract.

A spokesperson for Kering said: ''There are discussions between the designer and Balenciaga regarding the renewal of the contract''.

However they refused to discuss the ''likelihood of an agreement''.