Fashion month is finally over and we’ve witnessed the debut of all of the new creative directors at their new fashion houses. With creative directors constantly moving between brands, this fashion month felt different; it felt refreshing, because you wouldn’t have been able to guess what the collections were gonna feel like.
Collections that had all eyes on them were Matthieu Blazy at Chanel, Louise Trotter at Bottega Veneta, Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez at Loewe, Jonathan Anderson at Dior, and Pier Paolo Piccioli at Valentino. There were a few more, however, that I’ve either already covered or whose debut, in my opinion, was not of notable importance.
Louise Trotter at Bottega and Matthieu Blazy at Chanel remain the most notable of the fashion month debuts. These two collections were so good and felt so true, yet differed greatly from previous successful collections. Trotter was able to encapsulate her time at Carven and Lacoste, bringing over new concepts to Bottega without hindering the house codes of the brand. Even though the pieces felt commercial, Trotter was able to provide a twist that past creative directors like Mattieu Blazy and Daniel Lee were able to bring to the company. The collection felt intentional and refreshing, which is why many critics agreed that her debut was one of the best this year. Notably, Trotter was among the few women presenting a womenswear collection during Spring/Summer 2026 (SS26).
Chanel attracted the most amount of attention this season as it is not common for the house to change creatives. Also, since there is no menswear, there is only one creative director for the brand. Matthieu Blazy—a newer name in fashion—had the entire world in a tizzy when it was announced that he was going to take over for Virginie Viard. I really liked this collection a lot. While Virginie made Chanel commercially successful, her designs and styling lacked the substance that Karl Lagerfeld had previously brought to the company. Virginie’s designs were simply lacking — a refresh was needed, an uncertain outcome for a fresh industry creative like Blazy. Shockingly, this season’s collection was a major upgrade. Maybe I’m just a Blazy fan, but this SS26 collection was fantastic. It was a Chanel that I’d never seen before, and it felt so different because you can tell that he brought in his own codes while also taking inspiration from the archives of Coco Chanel. His play on textures, minimalism, and smart styling was outstanding.
However, not all debuts were great. They were good in their own right, but it can’t be overstated how upsetting the Jean Paul Gaultier collection was this season. Just search up “Duran Lantik at Jean Paul Gaultier.” Look at his collection and compare it to previous Gaultier collections. He didn’t look into the archives, barely used the house codes, and did a disservice to what the collection was: womenswear. He instead created a collection that felt like a mockery to women and a disrespect to the legendary company. Yes, Jean Paul Gaultier is supposed to be out there, but this was out there in a bad way — from poorly fitting pieces to hairy trompe l’oeil, and only using his personal codes. Lantik and Blazy represented opposite ends of the spectrum this season. I felt rage-baited, and I hope this hits the SSENSE sale as soon as it drops.
This fashion month was a lot, and now it’s finally over. Some fashion that I am so excited to see next in January’s Men’s Fashion Week and Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week are Loewe, Bottega, Schiaparelli, Chanel, Balenciaga, and Gucci. Now, it’s time for all of these new creative directors to find their footing and to start getting situated at their house. As for the consumers, it’s time for us to also get used to this new stage in fashion and to see where these companies deserve to see our money.
