Paris Fashion Week continues to attract fashion professionals from all over the world. This is largely thanks to the wide diversity of contemporary fashion to be found in the French capital, whose rivals have tended to represent a particular type − commercial in New York, exploratory in London, chic in Milan. With 109 events scheduled for the Fall-Winter 2025-2026 Season, Paris has established itself as the city where creativity adopts a wide range of expression, as illustrated by the shows held over the weekend of March 8 and 9.
No brand has come to symbolize understated luxury more than Hermès. The company, a leader in craftsmanship since 1837, has taken pride in its French-based manufacturing, doesn't use a logo and refrains from selling its best-selling bags online. The outstanding results for 2024 (15.2 billion euros in sales and 15% growth over 2023) have reinforced the brand's conviction that it should remain true to its principles.
Its uniqueness has also been expressed through its fashion shows. Hermès likes to invite its guests to the parade of the Garde Républicaine to call attention to its origins as a saddler. Celebrities in attendance have generally been part of the French cultural world, from director Rebecca Zlotowski to actress Amira Casar. No ostentation in the decor either, simply a dirt floor and a series of curved walls reproducing the shape of horseshoes.
Since 2014, Nadège Vanhée has been developing the women's line. Each season, she has refined her vision of a rider whose wardrobe reflects power and sensuality. "What interests me is the tension that arises from paradoxes: playing on strength and vulnerability, structure and letting go. It's part of the essence of Hermès," said the designer.
On the one hand, there are figures wearing outfits that have been designed for the great outdoors, such as chic bikers and riders with their zipped jackets, leather pants and equestrian-inspired boots; on the other, in a more sensual vein, there are leather dresses that reveal skin and knitwear that emphasizes shapes. The wardrobe has been composed of deep browns, blacks and anthracite, as have the accessories, including variations on the Bolide and Birkin bags, respectively designed in 1923 and 1984, but still as effective as ever. Further proof that, at Hermès, consistency has remained a guarantee of success.
At McQueen, Sean McGirr has finished his third collection. The first was messy, the second fine-tuned a more convincing, darkly romantic proposition; this latest has continued in the same vein. The Irish designer, born in 1988, has drawn inspiration from fellow Irishman Oscar Wilde to create a mixed wardrobe of nocturnal dandies, infused with references to the Victorian era.
First, we see them in black wool gabardines and suits with gigot sleeves that contrast with the stark white of blouses with intricate lace, embellished with collars made from layered silk that ripples when you walk. The figures then take a more extravagant turn, with long, transparent ribboned dresses in bold colors of absinthe green or blood-red. A fluidity that contrasts with statuesque sheepskin furs that are like plush armor. The final silhouettes are even more intense, with imposing dark dresses embroidered with light-catching stones.
The ensemble has been well executed, and has the merit of occupying the gothic-chic fashion space little patronized by competitors since Riccardo Tisci left Givenchy in 2017. Yet it has struggled to be truly convincing. Perhaps it's not helped by the venue: The Jardin des Plantes geology and mineralogy gallery, a long hall with polished parquet flooring, doesn't really fit the dark story McGirr is trying to tell. The collection lacks the spark that would give these nocturnal creatures a form of authenticity.
On the other hand, Alessandro Michele has exceptional talent at directing, which has sometimes relegated his clothes to the background. You enter the Valentino show through a narrow door that leads to a gray vestibule. Then a second, which opens onto a gigantic public-restroom set, with rows of dozens of other doors revealing a glimpse of feet. A few washbasins and mirrors, all bathed in red light.
This astonishing décor reflects Michele's contemplations on intimacy and is meant to allow us to reach our "deep core," "as opposed to the masks that mass society seems to force on us." In his statement of intent, in which the designer refers to philosophers Hannah Arendt, Michel Foucault and Romano Madera, he explains that he imagines public toilets as "a counter-place that suspends the dualism between inside and outside, intimate and exposed, personal and collective." An ambitious program.
One by one, the models emerge from the doors that make up the set, in a deafening, hypnotizing ballet, the bass rattling the mirrors on the walls. The wardrobe is faithful to Michele's baroque, maximalist style, with lots of ruffled dresses, miles of lace, abundant embroidery and cascades of ribbons. And there's always that dimension of playfulness, with thick apple-green socks in sequined sandals, a dress embroidered with rhinestones representing a cat's head and the countless bows edging the little high-neck dresses.
These visually striking elements, whose commercial potential has remained uncertain, have been complemented by other, more realistic items: wool pants with just the right amount of flare, retro shearling furs, all-weather coats and geometrically patterned sweaters. In other words, a pretty, less complex (and therefore less expensive), more wearable range that could attract Valentino's long-standing customers, who were sidelined after the first over-the-top show. At the same time, they have given Michele a chance to reinvent himself a little.
Another master of staging is Demna, Balenciaga's designer. Since his arrival in 2015, he has produced some of the most striking shows of recent years, where the stunning scenography (the reproduction of the European Parliament, of a snowstorm, staging of the apocalypse, etc.) always underpinned ruminations on complex subjects (political and social conflict, the war in Ukraine and the climate crisis, among others). This time, guests are welcomed into a labyrinth with high black walls.
"It's reminiscent of the backstage at a fashion show, where the creative process begins. The shape of the labyrinth is symbolic, evoking both fashion and our current era. We live at a time when many important decisions are being made," said Demna. Are we to understand that he himself has a choice to make? The Georgian designer hasn't said so, but his collection, which looks like a compilation of his work over the years, feels more like a conclusion than a new chapter.
Seeking to explore "the concept of normalcy," Demna has imagined a series of characters one might encounter in real life. First there are the office workers in their slightly rumpled and worn suits, then the teenagers in tracksuits (in collaboration with Puma), the gym-goers in torn T-shirts revealing their toned muscles, the night owls emerging from a long evening with their hoods pulled down over their heads and glasses to hide their dark circles, and so on. The play on proportions and details (impressive riding boots, studded motorcycle gloves) gives them a disquieting aura − Demna's signature. Some strictly flawless designer dresses complete the ensemble.
"Fashion is all about the garment. Finding the right proportions, the right cuts, that's what counts," the Georgian said emphatically, after the show. "Look, for the first time I'm wearing a suit because I've finally managed to design one suitable for me!" The introspective, activist Demna of years gone by seems to have given way to a more cautious, measured designer, both in substance and form.
Translation of an original article published in French on lemonde.fr; the publisher may only be liable for the French version.