The marathon of designer debuts continued on days five and six of Paris Fashion Week. Here are the moments that stood out.
Loewe
Alessandro Lucioni / Gorunway.com/Gorunway
Spanish label Loewe (recently vacated by Jonathan Anderson, who is now at Dior) has two new principals at the helm: Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez, the founders of Proenza Schouler.
The duo presented their Spring 2026 collection at Paris’s Cité universitaire campus, which fit the collegiate sportswear theme. Referenced in press materials as “printer-cartridge hues,” bold crayon colours gave life to bomber jackets, anoraks, blazers and V-neck sweaters.
A perpetually wrinkled white shirt poked fun at quintessential dorm room style. Poppy-red penny loafers, kitten heel jelly sneakers and yellow rain hats channelling Paddington Bear lent the looks an air of youthful joy, while long-sleeve polos tied over bare torsos added edge.
True to Loewe’s heritage, leather savoir-faire was showcased in shredded, textured jeans and sculpted jackets and mini dresses (the latter softened by printed flowers). The single-handle Amazona 180 bag is a reinvention of the brand classic – the logo only revealed when the bag is left unzipped, like a student may do when running from class to class.
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Balenciaga
Pierpaolo Piccioli’s debut at Balenciaga added yet another layer of anticipation this season. The Italian designer left his post at Valentino last year and wholeheartedly dove into the world of his original predecessor, Cristóbal Balenciaga, dubbing this collection “The Heartbeat.”
Piccioli refreshed classic house silhouettes by rethinking their construction, such as a kimono-inspired bomber jacket; a poncho cut from flat leather panels, cropped in the front and long in the back; and denim palazzo shorts with overlapping panels. The new creative director also brought prestige to a sheer black T-shirt by adding a matching cape (Anne Hathaway wore a rock-and-roll version to the show).
Maison Margiela
To be filed under “Classic Paris Fashion Week Moments:” A surprised audience watched as an orchestra of child musicians, costumed in adult-sized black suits, scrambled onto the stage. It was adorable to see the tiniest ones drowning in oversized jackets and a flyaway timpani mallet quickly and indiscreetly retrieved. The children’s out-of-tune score underlined the theme of beauty in the bizarre.
In line with the bizarre theme, creative director Glenn Martens had runway models wear mouthpieces that pinned their mouths open, mimicking the four stitches of the signature blank white label found on the house’s garments.
The first look re-examined a tuxedo waistcoat, rendering it as a sultry halter top. Another tux redux saw the bottom of the jacket attached to a skirt and pants. Silk slips became a top layer over a trench coat, and the iconic Tabi shoe was reinvented with plexiglass wedge heels.
Issey Miyake
Last month, Parisians bid farewell to The Centre Pompidou while the museum closes for a five-year facelift. So it was a treat to see Issey Miyake’s Spring 2026 collection within its hallowed, inside-out walls. Artistic director Satoshi Kondo provoked discussion with his collection, “Being Garments, Being Sentient.” He invited the audience to consider the question: What if garments are conscious?
The takeaway is that clothes must be confused. Consider the striped polos with raised shoulders, the deconstructed white dress shirt with sleeves growing out of the placket, neck holes sprouting in unexpected places, rolls of toilet paper and other random objects trapped beneath sheer fabrics, and sweaters shaped like pillowcases.
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Despite the unusual sartorial paradigm – or because of it – the garments (colourful knits, billowing trench coats, tailored suits) were avant-garde and beautiful. A folded paper bag carried like a purse was surprisingly elegant.
In the same eccentric vein, the Paris-based Lebanese artist Tarek Atoui “listened” to the textiles in the collection (as well as to water, stones and animal skins) to create the show’s eclectic soundscape.
Hermès
Filippo Fior / Gorunway.com/Gorunway
There is a French proverb that loosely translates to: “We don’t change players of a winning team.” Such is the case for the Hermès family, who has employed Nadège Vanhée-Cybulski as artistic director of the luxury label since 2014.
Entitled “Free Rein,” the presentation’s summery runway was laid with sand and sprinkled with broken seashells.
Hermès stayed faithful to its historic codes, with the brand’s equestrian roots in saddle and harness manufacturing top of mind. The famous Hermès silk scarf was reworked into jackets, bustiers and dresses; or twisted with chains into choker necklaces. Miniature Kelly bags were buckled to the hip, and the Birkin made a low-key cameo in suede.
Leather was everywhere, from pencil skirts to straight-leg pants, balanced by racerback tops and accessorized with straps, buckles and rings. Most novel were a pair of cream-coloured riding boots, harness bras strapped over bandeau bralettes and flowing tops, and a sporty skort layered over cycling shorts.
