House: Balenciaga
Designer: Pierpaolo Piccioli
Resumé: Creative director of Valentino
What to expect: After 26 years of setting the tone at Valentino, beginning as an accessories designer in 1999, this move marks a big change for Pierpaolo Piccioli—not to mention the added challenge of filling the oversized shoes of Demna. In contrast to the outgoing creative director’s postmodern, dystopian vision, Piccioli’s design signature is decidedly romantic and sweet. He brings an Italian irreverence that’s sure to mesh well with the heritage of Cristóbal Balenciaga, the Spanish visionary who brought a new sculptural soul to haute couture. Whether Piccioli will transpose his megawatt pink to a voluminous balloon jacket remains to be seen, but it’s a fashion fantasy worth dreaming of.
House: Bottega Veneta
Designer: Louise Trotter
Resumé: Creative director of Carven, Lacoste, and Joseph
What to expect: A veteran of some highly successful commercial brands including Gap, Tommy Hilfiger, and Calvin Klein, Louise Trotter has a track record of bringing a fashion girlie-approved It factor to the high street. That savoir faire is sure to push Bottega Veneta into its second “New Bottega” era, one that delivers on a promise of timeless designs that women truly want to wear. “I like things to be practical and useful and beautiful at the same time,” Trotter told Vogue last year. It’s a trifecta that’s sure to earn her a new crop of fans at the maison.
House: Chanel
Designer: Matthieu Blazy
Resumé: Creative director of Bottega Veneta and deputy to Raf Simons and Phoebe Philo
What to expect: Matthieu Blazy brought major buzz to Bottega Veneta when, alongside then creative director Daniel Lee, he breathed new life into intrecciato, the house’s signature leather-weaving technique, by blowing it up and colouring it Bottega green, the de facto tone of 2021. Pushing a well-established label in new directions while staying true to house codes is a skill that’s going to come in handy at Chanel, where longtime lead Karl Lagerfeld wrote the book on remaining loyal to signatures—in Chanel’s case, tweed jackets, pearls, gold chains, and camellia flowers—while adding an au courant flair.
House: Dior
Designer: Jonathan Anderson
Resumé: Creative director of Loewe and founder of JW Anderson
What to expect: The Northern Irish designer who has gifted the world with surprise hits including a life-sized, pigeon-shaped clutch, Jonathan Anderson has a cheekily eccentric outlook that may at first seem at odds with Dior’s quintessential French chic. But if the sneak peek of Sabrina Carpenter wearing his new New Look to Dior’s Dracula-inspired spring 2026 menswear show in June is any indication, Anderson is poised to bring the heritage house into a fresh chapter, one that combines classic elegance with an offbeat, totally relevant, and highly desirable sense of playfulness.
House: Gucci
Designer: Demna
Resumé: Creative director of Balenciaga and co-founder of Vetements
What to expect: A provocateur who left an indelible mark on the culture during his decade-long tenure at Balenciaga, Demna became synonymous with the French maison thanks to some unforgettable viral moments, from fat footwear and a $2,000 take on the IKEA shopping bag to his pandemic runway collaboration with The Simpsons. Like Alessandro Michele before him, he’ll no doubt bring this penchant for pushing the envelope to a place of reinvention for Gucci, the Florentine house where he has plenty of legacy design inspiration—not to mention some pretty incredible handbags—to remix.
House: Loewe
Designer: Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez
Resumé: Founders of Proenza Schouler
What to expect: At Proenza Schouler, Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez reinvented uptown-meets-downtown style in the early aughts with icons such as the PS1 satchel. While they maintain a minority stake in their debut house, their appointment at Loewe marks their first design duties at another label—and one that was recently reinvigorated by the outgoing creative director, Jonathan Anderson. The CFDA darlings are sure to bring an edgy, New York sensibility to the sensual Spanish line, and a modern sophistication that keeps in step with the loyal Proenza client—a multifaceted woman who knows exactly who she is.
House: Mugler
Designer: Miguel Castro Freitas
Resumé: Senior design roles at Christian Dior Couture, Sportmax, Yves Saint Laurent, and Dries Van Noten
What to expect: As a former dancer, a background in movement he shares with Thierry Mugler himself, Miguel Castro Freitas brings two decades of working with the greats—Galliano, Elbaz, Simons, Van Noten—to his new role at Mugler. After seven years under Casey Cadwallader, Mugler is one of the hottest tickets at Paris Fashion Week this season, where all eyes will be on how Castro Freitas brings his technical expertise to a legacy house renowned for its powerful sex appeal. And if the addition of Sharon Stone as a recent face of the brand is any indication, things are about to get even spicier.
House: Versace
Designer: Dario Vitale
Resumé: Design and image director of Miu Miu
What to expect: Although Dario Vitale is the first designer in Versace’s 47-year history outside of the immediate famiglia, he’s cut from the same cloth. A native of Naples, Vitale spent the past 14 years at Miu Miu, a label that has seen astronomical gains in recent years thanks to trend-setting styles including the spring 2022 micro miniskirt, a not-too-distant cousin of the pleated metallic mini Kate Moss modelled in Versace’s fall 1994 show. Vitale’s main ambition will be keeping up with the unparalleled Italian glamour the Versaces are known for. With Donatella in the wings as brand ambassador, that aesthetic continuity is all but guaranteed.
Read more from our Autumn 2025 issue.
