Closing Paris Fashion Week, Chanel Dazzles Under Matthieu Blazy

It was a successful venture for the young Franco-Belgian designer Matthieu Blazy, who presented his very first collection for Chanel on Monday evening at the Grand Palais. Tasked with giving the fashion house a new aesthetic direction, Matthieu Blazy, who took up his position as creative director last April, lived up to the expectations of the fashion world. In a colorful cosmic universe, the models paraded in revisited tweed looks, sometimes with masculine touches, brilliantly borrowing from Chanel's codes. This new direction could revitalize sales for the fashion house, which has also been affected by the global slowdown in the luxury market in 2024, with sales down 4.3% to €16.2 billion.

Paris Fashion Week, which began on September 29 and ended last night with Chanel's show, attracted a crowd of enthusiasts this year, eager to discover the results of this long fashion transfer window. The ready-to-wear shows for the spring-summer 2026 season were marked by many new beginnings.

Several iconic luxury houses presented the collections of their new designers for the very first time: Pierpaolo Piccioli for Balenciaga; Glenn Martens for Maison Margiela; Duran Lantink for Jean Paul Gaultier; and Dario Vitale for Versace unveiled their first designs to the public.

At the helm of Balenciaga, Italian Pierpaolo Piccioli, who had long been in charge of Valentino's collections, proposed a series of more “restrained” designs for the Spanish fashion house, contrasting with the extravagant and unconventional style of Georgian Demna Gvasalia. While Balenciaga flirted with streetwear under Gvasalia, Piccioli has returned to the brand's original codes, drawing inspiration from the style of its creator Cristóbal Balenciaga, who founded the house in 1917. Under Piccioli's leadership, Balenciaga is revealing a more elegant side, focusing on timelessness, a highly sought-after aspect from a commercial point of view and a guarantee of stability.

A new chapter has also begun for Maison Margiela, which invited its guests to Centquatre-Paris, an eclectic cultural center in Paris's popular 19th arrondissement, to present the first collection by its new creative director Glenn Martens.

Duran Lantink also took his first steps at Gaultier. The designer chose the basement of the Quai Branly-Jacques Chirac museum to present his show. Since Jean-Paul Gaultier's departure five years ago, the brand has focused on haute couture shows presented as real spectacles and directed by guest designers, each time different. This solution did not allow for a lasting presence on the fashion market, an essential factor in maintaining its connection and appeal to consumers. With Lantink, a new era has begun.

Dario Vitale has designed his first collection for Versace. This is the first time that the designs have not been created by a member of the family, generating very high expectations. The young designer rose to the challenge with panache, drawing inspiration from several aspects of Gianni Versace's collections.

The star-studded audience was also impressive. Demi Moore and Gwyneth Paltrow were the focus of photographers' attention at the Gucci show, while Helen Mirren opened the Stella McCartney show. Singer Lana Del Rey signed a collaboration with Zimmermann and was present in the front row.

According to a study by the Institut Français de la Mode, Fashion Week generates nearly €10 billion in transactions each year. The French fashion industry generates nearly €150 billion in revenue and accounts for around one million jobs in the country.