What was (really) new at Paris Fashion Week?

The sun shone brightly over Paris as fashion week for women's autumn/winter 2025 collections commenced. In this light-filled setting, the luxury industry presented its latest offerings, an attempt to stimulate consumer spending, which faced significant challenges in 2024 and, according to consulting firm McKinsey, remains on shaky ground, with projected growth of only 1 to 3 percent annually until 2027.

However, the major luxury brands hardly dared to venture into anything truly new. Instead, they relied on tried-and-true strategies and industry clichés.

Fashion that isn't made for everyone

After a brief hype around inclusivity on the runways, Paris Fashion Week has long since returned to old patterns. Castings are dominated by size 0 (US) / size 4 (UK) models – or smaller. The past fashion week was no exception. The industry's long-established beauty ideal persists, even among brands that once showcased more diversity.

One example is Paris-based Marine Serre. Her collection, described in the show notes as a "personal and creative turning point," featured 47 looks inspired by the 'Femme Fatales' of the 1950s and 1980s. Yet, the promised "powerful stature" and "emphasised waist" translated only into conventionally attractive, slim silhouettes – a missed opportunity.

The dominance of slender body images continues to exclude those who don't fit this ideal – a sign of a luxury industry that increasingly presents itself as an exclusive parallel world. While Shein leads the ultra-fast-fashion market and secondhand has become commonplace for many shoppers, luxury brands are increasingly focusing on differentiation to justify their exclusivity.

"I wanted to create things that inspire and that can never be copied by fast fashion," explained Daniel Roseberry in the notes for the Schiaparelli show. The Parisian house's ready-to-wear line, revived under his creative direction in 2019, translates the glamour of haute couture into wearable designs. This season, the opulent lacing at the waist and the figure-hugging knit dresses were particularly memorable.

Alaïa and Hermès: Craftsmanship as a unique selling proposition

Luxury thrives on craftsmanship and technical perfection – a promise of quality that also justifies the pricing. This was particularly evident at Alaïa. The label, which belongs to the luxury goods group Richemont, focused on draped dresses made from cast metal tubing, molded directly on the body. Part of the manufacturing process was even documented on Instagram. Equally impressive were voluminous pleated skirts, handcrafted using traditional techniques.

This refined combination of purist silhouettes and exceptional craftsmanship contributes to the brand's continued success, which has been palpable since Pieter Mulier's appointment as creative director in 2021. The hype surrounding his rhinestone ballerinas and mesh shoes in 2023 and 2024 has further amplified Alaïa's momentum.

Hermès once again demonstrated its masterful craftsmanship. The autumn/winter 2025 collection showcased sharply tailored silhouettes with accentuated shoulders, perfectly in line with the excellent business figures from 2024 – the company reported a 6.8 percent increase in net profit to 4.6 billion euros.

The innovative processing of leather was particularly impressive. Lambskin leather pieces could be recombined with buttons or zippers, while saddle fragments were fused into shorts or dresses. In addition, Hermès announced its ambition to enter haute couture – an exclusive league hand-picked by the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode.

A new beginning for Givenchy

Givenchy's official Instagram profile now reads "Givenchy by Sarah Burton" – a clear signal of a fresh start after the Matthew Williams era. The former Alexander McQueen designer is stepping up to bring the legacy of Hubert de Givenchy back into sharper focus.

Her debut showcased impeccable tailoring, dramatic evening gowns, and sexy mesh looks – a return to the classic Givenchy woman. The purist cuts underscore the precise couture craftsmanship and lend the brand a new clarity after its profile became increasingly diluted in recent years.

Coperni: Innovation as a trademark

Generating buzz, surprising audiences, and creating an iconic moment with every show – that's the credo of Arnaud Vaillant and Sébastien Meyer, the creative duo behind Coperni, who founded the brand in 2013. This spectacular approach has already proven successful. The legendary spray-on dress performance with Bella Hadid went viral and achieved a Media Impact Value (MIV) of 26.3 million dollars within 48 hours – a massive sales boost for the label.

After a show at Disneyland Paris, this time Coperni invited the audience to the Adidas Arena, where around 200 gamers participated in a parallel LAN party. But the masters of virality always keep the collection itself in focus. This season, the label showcased numerous allusions to the Lara Croft universe and the world of hackers: cargo tights, fake tattoos, leather boots, and distressed denim. Particularly memorable were the Tamagotchi Swipe Case Bag and a collaboration with Ray-Ban and Meta.

From Louis Vuitton to Chloé: Proven formulas for success

Louis Vuitton, the prestige brand of the LVMH group, didn't take any big risks this season and relied on its proven brand theme of travel. The show at the Étoile du Nord, near the Gare du Nord, presented colourful, portable travel trunks and reinterpretations of iconic best-selling bags like the Speedy. The rest remained true to the style of creative director Nicolas Ghesquière, presenting a harmonious blend of eclectic references from past decades.

At Dior, also part of the LVMH portfolio, Maria Grazia Chiuri continued her exploration of feminism, which began in 2016, drawing inspiration from Virginia Woolf's novel Orlando – the story of a character who fluidly transitions between male and female identities. Her autumn/winter 2025 collection showcased an abundance of white blouses, detachable ruffled collars – a modern nod to Orlando's Renaissance ruff –, Bermuda shorts paired with knee-high leather boots, masculine blazers, and plenty of transparency and lace.

A particular highlight, however, was the return of the iconic "J'adore Dior" T-shirt from the John Galliano era. Once an affordable entry point into the world of luxury, its reissue could be seen as a tongue-in-cheek response to critics who consider Chiuri's collections too commercial. Should the rumour of her impending departure prove true, this would be a clever closing statement to her Dior era.

On Thursday, Chloé invited guests into a softly toned setting with plush, greenish-gray carpeting – an ambiance that underscored the house's feminine DNA. Indeed, Chloé has almost consistently been creatively led by women, a rarity in an industry dominated by male creative directors. For autumn/winter 2025, Gabriela Hearst, at the helm as creative director since late 2023, once again placed the "Chloé woman" at the centre of her work.

"The connection between the house, the Chloé woman, and myself is deeply personal," she wrote in the show notes. By reinterpreting iconic Chloé codes – flowing silhouettes, romanticism, and sensuality – Hearst presented a wardrobe that celebrates archetypal femininity, as the house has done since its founding in 1952.

The collection continued the lingerie aesthetic that began in spring/summer 2025 but amplified the bohemian touch typical of Chloé. Particularly noteworthy was the reissue of the Paddington bag, the legendary It-bag from 2004, which already made a comeback in 2019 under Natacha Ramsay-Levi. A bestseller whose prices on the secondhand market are now likely to rise again.

From Miu Miu to Issey Miyake: Freshness and freedom

Few luxury brands manage to use fashion as a field of intellectual experimentation without sacrificing wearability – Miu Miu is one of them. The Prada subsidiary has dominated the Lyst Index for several seasons and is likely to maintain this status.

For autumn/winter 2025, Miuccia Prada and stylist Lotta Volkova played with everyday basics – cardigans, knee-length skirts, bras – to create the most authentic female silhouette possible. The result was looks that appear both sophisticated and casual. Skirts that don't match the cardigan, a deliberately flashing bra strap, a coat carried in hand because it's too warm, slouched socks – a refreshing realism in a post-truth era where even politicians deny facts.

This playful nonchalance was also reflected at Issey Miyake. Particularly striking was a paper bag that transforms into a garment, a top that can be converted into a sleeve with additional buttons, or a shirt that can be worn in new ways thanks to various sleeve openings.

But it was primarily young brands that brought a breath of fresh air:

• Weinsanto (founded 2020) remains one of the most talked-about newcomers. Particularly striking: leather pieces with a washed denim look. Weinsanto was also one of the few brands to cast plus-size models.

• Christopher Esber, Australian designer and 2024 Andam Award winner, presented covetable silhouettes that many guests would likely adopt immediately.

• Abra from Spain – known for his designs for Loewe and Jacquemus – combined eye-catching buzz looks with wearable, feminine styles. Particularly coveted: kitten heels with pompoms.

• Bernadette, present in Paris for the first time, scored points with taffeta dresses and sparkling pieces that combined elegance and casualness. New in the range: shoes.

• Zomer impressed with playful, transformable looks, including knitwear by Cécile Feilchenfeldt. "Playing means creation, the familiar is reinvented," the show notes stated. Particularly exciting: knitted looks by Cécile Feilchenfeldt.