Pierpaolo Piccioli for
Balenciaga
Louise Trotter for
Bottega Veneta
Matthieu Blazy for
Chanel
Jonathan Anderson for
Dior
Duran Lantink for
Jean Paul Gaultier
Simone Bellotti for
Jil Sander
Jake Mccollough and Lazaro Hernandez for
Loewe
Glenn Martens for
Maison Margiela
Miguel Castro Freitas for
Mugler
This fall, a dozen of the biggest brands in fashion will have new talent at the helm. What makes them tick?
Welcome to the season of seismic fashion change. The tectonic plates of the industry are shifting, remaking the landscape in a way that hasn’t been seen since … well, ever. This year almost 20 fashion houses, including some of the most famous, influential names (Chanel, Dior, Gucci, Balenciaga), appointed new designers, meaning the clothes you see in stores or on the street, or when you’re immersed in the endless digital scroll, will soon be very different.
After all, each designer will be trying to make their mark, break through the noise and redefine the very idea of chic, not to mention the look of the decade. That’s the opportunity. Those are the stakes.
Yet for all the change taking place, the actual change makers seem, at least on the surface, very much the same.
Of the 13 designers whose work we will see this season, only one is a woman — Louise Trotter, at Bottega Veneta. A dozen are white men, and 10 are between the ages of 40 and 47. Ten are Europeans and three are Americans. Despite the clear need to bring imagination to the catwalk, there seems to be a general lack of imagination when it comes to deciding whom to hire.
To get below the very similar surface, we asked this season’s new guard a set of simple questions — not about their plans for their brands but about their taste: their personal likes and dislikes when it comes to the stuff that surrounds them and the choices they make.
Who are the men and woman who will shape how you dress for the foreseeable future? Read on.
Balenciaga
Bottega Veneta
Celine
Chanel
Dior
Gucci
Jean Paul Gaultier
Jil Sander
Loewe
Maison Margiela
Mugler
Versace
Pierpaolo Piccioli for
Balenciaga
Mr. Piccioli, 57, comes to Balenciaga after 25 years at Valentino, 16 of them as creative director, where he was widely recognized for his bold use of color, his humanity (he regularly brought his entire couture atelier onto the runway for a bow) and his lack of grandiosity. (At Valentino he eschewed living in Rome to stay in the small seaside town where his family grew up.) Mr. Piccioli started his gig at Balenciaga by working alongside Demna, then its creative director, a rarity in fashion (two creative directors overlapping!) but one intended to create an easy transition for the team.
I feel best wearing: My uniform — black tee, black pants
The first thing I look at in another person’s outfit is: I look at the way they wear the outfit.
I skimp on when buying: I never skimp.
I splurge on: I always splurge.
I am never caught wearing: Cowboy boots
Item I will never give up: My coral pendants on red silk ribbons.
Louise Trotter for
Bottega Veneta
Ms. Trotter, 55, is the first woman to lead Bottega Veneta, the Italian fashion house known for its intrecciato woven handbags, in more than 20 years — and only the second since the house was founded in 1966. A Brit and the mother of three, she was also the first woman to become creative director of Lacoste, which she ran for five years before taking over Carven, a label she put back on the fashion map. Now she is bringing her bent for minimalist luxury and dry wit to Milan.
I feel best wearing: Men’s wear
I splurge on: Vintage watches and jewelry
I am never caught wearing: You can hold me to never wearing paisley.
Item I will never let go of: My grandmother’s wedding ring
Favorite piece of art: It would have to be a portrait. A Lucian Freud, a Franz Gertsch, a Celia Paul.
Favorite cologne: My husband’s
Favorite ice cream flavor: Vanilla! I have a test in a gelateria. If they can master vanilla, they can do anything.
Favorite pen: I use pencils much more. My current pencil is a Black Wing 602 from Japan.
Mr. Rider, 44, didn’t have a traditional fashion education — he went to Brown University — but an early stint at Balenciaga under Nicolas Ghesquière followed by 10 years at Celine under Phoebe Philo and six years as creative director of Polo Ralph Lauren prepared him for his new post. He brought Celine back to the official runway after Hedi Slimane, his immediate predecessor, decided he would be beholden to no schedule but his own, and even brought Anna Wintour back to the front row, Mr. Slimane having banned her from the house. It’s the new open-door policy.
I feel best wearing: Shorts
I am never caught wearing: Sunscreen
Item I will never give up: Dad’s ring
Favorite cologne: Don’t wear it
Favorite stationery: Don’t have any
Favorite ice cream flavor: Coffee
Favorite music for working out: Anything by Timbaland
Favorite flower for saying thank you: Wildflowers
Matthieu Blazy for
Chanel
Mr. Blazy, 41, snagged the most coveted job in fashion in December after a six-month search by Chanel. He will be only the fourth designer in Chanel’s history, tasked with transforming the brand for a new generation. Most recently he did exactly that for Bottega Veneta, with a fashion sleight of hand that made leather look like denim — and leather look like cotton, and leather look like flannel. Now, as he comes home to Paris, he is expected to work a similar alchemy on the pearls, camellias and CCs of the house that Coco built and Karl Lagerfeld redefined.
I feel best wearing: Nothing
I am never caught wearing: A printed T-shirt
Item I will never give up: The broken Bulova Accutron watch my father gave me
Favorite piece of art: “The Three Graces” by Lucas Cranach the Elder
Favorite cologne: Vetiver
Favorite ice cream flavor: Stracciatella
Favorite bed linen: Always white
Favorite music for working out: 1990s Euro dance
Jonathan Anderson for
Dior
Mr. Anderson, 40, made fashion history when he became the first Dior designer since Christian Dior himself to be in charge of both women’s and men’s wear for the house. (Moreover, Mr. Dior dabbled only in men’s pieces and never did a full collection, so in some ways Mr. Anderson is a pioneer.) An 11-year stint at Loewe, where he took the brand from largely irrelevant to one of the hottest names in fashion, with an estimated $2 billion in revenue, convinced LVMH, which owns Dior, that Mr. Anderson was the man to unite the two sides of the couture house. If that wasn’t a big enough gig, he’s still moonlighting as Luca Guadagnino’s costume designer.
I feel best wearing: Nothing
I skimp on when buying: Clothing
I splurge on: Art
I am never caught wearing: Florals
Item I will never let go of: A navy crew-neck sweater
Favorite piece of art: Paul Thek, “Untitled (Diver)”
Favorite cologne: Cheap body deodorant
Favorite stationery: Lined Paper
Favorite dinner party main course: Cottage pie
Favorite car: Land Rover Defender 90
Favorite music for working out: Mash-up of SoundCloud bad remixes
Eyebrows were raised when the mononymic Demna, 44, announced that after a decade, he was leaving Balenciaga, the fashion house he had taken from ivory tower elegance to pop culture phenomenon, to attempt a turnaround at Gucci. The Georgian-born designer, who will split his time between Los Angeles and Milan, now has to prove he can achieve the rare feat of reinventing himself and his (new) house, not merely repeat himself. Fans like Kim Kardashian, Nicole Kidman and Michelle Yeoh will be watching.
I feel best wearing: My own clothes.
The first thing I look at in another person’s outfit is: Colors
I skimp on when buying: I don’t skimp on much.
Item I will never let go of: My wedding ring.
Favorite ice cream flavor: Vanilla
Favorite cologne: Gucci Envy
Favorite dinner party main course: No idea
Favorite cocktail to order at a bar: Manhattan
Favorite shampoo: Head & Shoulders
Favorite music for working out: I listen to political podcasts when I work out.
Duran Lantink for
Jean Paul Gaultier
Mr. Lantink, 38, founded his namesake label in 2019, a year after Janelle Monáe wore his “vagina” pants in her “Pynk” music video. The Dutch designer won the Andam Special Prize in 2023 and LVMH’s Karl Lagerfeld Special Jury Prize in 2024, but it was a stunt during his fall 2025 ready-to-wear show — putting a topless man in a prosthetic female torso and vice versa — that made him internet famous. He shares a glee in thumbing his nose at propriety with the Gaultier founder, not to mention a facility for using fabric to reshape the body.
I feel best wearing: White
The first thing I look at in another person’s outfit is: Shoes
I skimp on when buying: Clothes
I splurge on: Books
I am never caught wearing: Latex
Item I will never give up: A 1990s White & Lethal trash shirt by Walter Van Beirendonck that I have since the age of 12
Favorite piece of art: “Fountain” by Marcel Duchamp
Favorite cologne: Brutus by Orto Parisi
Favorite car: Bike
Favorite music for working out: I play tennis, so no music
Simone Bellotti for
Jil Sander
No one ever thought the Swiss label Bally would be a must-see of Milan Fashion Week, but that’s what happened after Mr. Bellotti, 47, took over in 2022 after 16 years behind the scenes at Gucci. At Bally, his penchant for accessorizing rigorous tailoring with strawberries and cowbells demanded that everyone look twice and should serve him well at Jil Sander, where he takes over from Luke and Lucie Meier.
I feel best wearing: Denim and a blue wool sweater
The first thing I look at in another person’s outfit is: The face and shoes
I am never caught wearing: Skinny pants
Favorite piece of art: “Study after Velázquez’s Portrait of Pope Innocent X” by Francis Bacon
Favorite pen: An old Parker Ciselè in silver from my father
Flowers for saying thank you: For everything, buttercups
Favorite music for working out: Always music, but not for workout
Jake Mccollough and Lazaro Hernandez for
Loewe
Mr. McCollough and Mr. Hernandez, both 47, became the latest Americans in Paris when they were handed the reins of Loewe earlier this year. As part of the deal, they stepped down from Proenza Schouler, the New York label they founded in 2002 (just after graduating from Parsons School of Design) and upped stakes for France, the better to concentrate on Loewe, where they are following in the (large) footsteps of Jonathan Anderson.
I feel best wearing: J: My old clothes. L: New clothes.
The first thing I look at in another person’s outfit is: J/L: Shoes.
I am never caught wearing: J: Jewelry. L: Flip-flops.
Item I will never give up: L: A small gold chain my mother gave me as a kid that I never take off. J: Our farmhouse in Massachusetts.
Favorite cocktail to order at a bar: J/L: Martini.
Favorite pen: J/L: Pentel mechanical pencil 0.5.
Favorite car: J: Vintage Land Rover Defender. L: Vintage Toyota Land Cruiser.
Glenn Martens for
Maison Margiela
Like Martin Margiela, Glenn Martens, 42, is Belgian. Like Martin Margiela, he went to the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp. (Mr. Martens graduated first in his class.) Like Mr. Margiela, he has a propensity for experimentalism and challenging classical ideas of beauty. Moreover, he is not just taking over the house that Mr. Margiela built, he is following in the footsteps of John Galliano, the most recent creative director, and doing double duty at Diesel, which he also designs.
I feel best wearing: Black T-shirt and black denim
The first thing I look at in another person’s outfit is: Shoes
I skimp on when buying: I buy my deodorant at the supermarket.
I splurge on: Food and drink
I am never caught wearing: Socklets
Item I will never give up: My jewelry: a ring that was my mothers that she wore her whole life, even when she gave birth to my brother and me; another ring that was my dad’s engagement ring, which he received from my mother; and necklaces and trinkets from friends and past lovers. I never take any of them off.
Favorite shampoo: Whatever stops balding
Favorite ice cream flavor: Cookie Dough
Miguel Castro Freitas for
Mugler
Mr. Castro Freitas, 45, was catapulted from unknown to must-know overnight when he was chosen to succeed Casey Cadwallader at Mugler, the house that big shoulders, bigger spectacles and a perfume called Angel built. Still, the Portuguese designer and Central Saint Martins grad has Dior (under John Galliano), Saint Laurent and Dries Van Noten on his résumé.
I feel best wearing: Shorts
The first thing I look at in another person’s outfit is: Shoes
I am never caught wearing: Red
Item I will never let go of: A black T-shirt
Favorite dinner party main course: Roasted chicken and fingerling potatoes, with lots of garlic, onions and herbs.
Favorite music for working out: Disco or house music
Favorite flowers for saying thank you: A combination of different seasonal flowers, specially if chosen from Debeaulieu, my favorite flower boutique in Paris.
Favorite joke: Current politics
The first Versace creative director who is not actually a Versace, Mr. Vitale, 41, comes to the fashion house after 15 years at Miu Miu, most recently as design director under Miuccia Prada during its period of explosive growth. His experience working with Mrs. P should stand him in good stead at Versace, since the Prada Group acquired the brand with the Medusa logo earlier this year.