Men's fashion returns to Paris with an intense line-up and Louis Vuitton once again in the spotlight

By

Dominique Muret

Translated by
Cassidy STEPHENS

Published
Jan 15, 2024

After creating a worldwide buzz in June with his first Pharaonic show on the Pont-Neuf for Louis Vuitton, Pharrell Williams is well on the way to doing it again. On Tuesday, his show is sure to create a stir at the opening of Paris Fashion Week, dedicated to the men's collections for Autumn/Winter 2024/25, which runs until January 21 and promises to be intense. Alongside LVMH's star house, other names will be shining with a total of 74 brands on show, 41 of which will be making their mark on the catwalks.

All the big names in luxury are present, from Dior Homme to Hermès, Loewe, Dries Van Noten, Paul Smith, Rick Owens and Givenchy, which will be showing without its creative director Matthew M. Williams, who left at the beginning of January, alongside leading Japanese designers and creative brands such as Wales Bonner, Botter and Lemaire.

Following the men's pre-collection for autumn 2024 unveiled in Hong Kong in November, all-rounder Pharrell Williams will unveil his third men's collection for Louis Vuitton on Tuesday January 16. After the Pont-Neuf, this time he has set his sights on the Jardin d'acclimatation in the Bois de Boulogne, for a show that is a cross between a carousel ride, fashion and music.

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But there's more to Paris than Pharrell! Other not-to-be-missed events include the show by Louis Gabriel Nouchi, who was recently awarded the Andam Prize. His show is expected to attract a big crowd on Wednesday, January 17, with the presentation of his new collection inspired by Guy de Maupassant's Bel Ami. The day after, on Thursday evening, the Ami Paris show by designer Alexandre Mattiussi, a regular at major media events, is also expected to be packed with a host of celebrities, as is the show on Saturday, January 20, by American label Kidsuper, whose last show in June - a veritable performance at the Théâtre de l'Odéon - had the square invaded by a frenzied crowd. A show that will not be forgotten. 

Last season, Paris Fashion Week featured 43 shows. For this winter edition, eight names have dropped out. These departures from the official calendar were offset by six returning and new names. Starting with Japanese label Auralee, known for its textured, luxurious fabrics, which opens the show on Tuesday, followed by American brand Winnie, with its timeless elegance combining traditional tailoring and multicultural references, and China's Ziggy Chen, who will close the week on Sunday, January 21.

All three have already made their mark in Paris. The Auralee brand was founded by Japanese designer Ryota Iwai in 2015 and joined the programme of presentations in March 2019. Nigerian-American designer Idris Balogun, who trained in London and has worked for the likes of Burberry and Tom Ford, has been presenting his work in the capital since 2020. He launched his brand Winnie in 2019 and won the Karl Lagerfeld prize at the 2022 LVMH Prize competition. Shanghai-based Chinese designer Ziggy Chen, who has run his own brand since 2012, also joined the calendar of presentations in January 2020.

Also of note are the long-awaited returns of Valentino, which moved to Milan in June, Balmain Homme, which has opted for presentations in recent seasons, and the German label GmbH by the duo of designers Serhat Isik and Benjamin Alexander Huseby, which since October 2022 had switched to the women's calendar, subsequently abandoning catwalk shows for presentations.

While a number of young French brands, such as EgonLab and Bluemarble, are continuing to make inroads on the Paris catwalks, many are deserting the catwalk programme for this winter session, such as Koché, Christelle Kocher's label, which is currently undergoing a major reorganisation, having repositioned itself on the men's calendar last June. Ludovic de Saint Sernin, meanwhile, is not taking part, as exceptionally he will be showing at New York Fashion Week on February 11.

Some houses are changing their strategy. Marine Serre, for example, will no longer be showing men's and women's collections together during Men's Fashion Week, preferring instead to organise a presentation event dedicated to a men's collection, while showing the women's collection during the Women's Ready-to-Wear Week. For its part, Études Studio is skipping this season to work on a new project. Among the young international brands, Hed Mayner and Lazoschmidl are also absent, opting for presentations. 

On the presentation programme, Paris Men's Week is welcoming three new brands: Kartik Research, founded in 2021 by Indian designer Kartik Kumra, semi-finalist for the LVMH 2023 prize and previously named Karu Research; Meta Campania Collective, the discreet luxury brand born in Paris under the impetus of Jon Strassburg, Heiko Keinath and Constanze Walcher; and another French label, Ouest Paris, helmed by Arthur Robert, which will be joining the Sphère showroom, from January 17 to 21, alongside Jeanne Friot, Steven Passaro, Lagos Space Programme, Rolf Ekroth and Valette Studio.

Finally, in the events department, Paris Fashion Week should not disappoint with a number of parties, including one to celebrate the Coperni x Puma collaboration on the 18th, and a cocktail party to reveal Stéphane Ashpool's Olympic collection on the 19th. Not to mention, of course, a packed programme of parallel events.