New faces at Tom Ford, Dries Van Noten make debuts in Paris

Tom Ford and Dries Van Noten are set to reveal
the first collections from their new chief designers at Paris Fashion Week on
Wednesday, underlining how recent changes have left much of the luxury
clothing industry in transition.

Julian Klausner, 33, took over at Dries Van Noten last September and his
catwalk debut is one of the most hotly anticipated moments of the Fall-Winter
womenswear 2025 shows.

Having vowed to do things differently to founder Dries Van Noten, who
stepped back from the brand last year, observers are keen to see how much
Klausner diverges from the house’s characteristic bold prints and relaxed
tailoring.

At Tom Ford, which is showing at Paris Fashion Week for the first time, new
creative director Haider Ackermann is also under scrutiny, having taken over
recently.

The 53-year-old Frenchman, who has previously worked at Berluti and his own
brand, has been dressing celebrity power couple Timothee Chalamet and Kylie
Jenner.

His show is one of the last of the day, at 1800 GMT.

“It’s interesting (Tom Ford’s) choice of showing in Paris because it’s a
brand with a very international and American aura,” Alix Morabito, chief
womenswear buyer at French department store Galeries Lafayette, told AFP.

She said it reflected a desire to be “closer to French fashion”.

Friday will see British designer Sarah Burton take her first bow as chief
creative at Givenchy after taking over the reins of the acclaimed French house
in September.

Other major international brands that are either bedding in new designers
or looking for fresh talent include Chanel, Dior menswear, Bottega Veneta,
Celine, Martin Margiela and most recently Gucci which ousted creative director
Sabato De Sarno after a slump in sales.

Dior womenswear creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri is also widely
rumoured to be on her way out.

The luxury clothing market as a whole is struggling with slackening demand,
most significantly in China, but also in developed markets, due to economic
uncertainty.

Consultants Bain & Company estimates that only about a third of the world’s
luxury brands experienced growth in 2024.

“Global luxury consumers, grappling with macroeconomic uncertainty and
continued price elevation by brands, cut back slightly on discretionary
items,” said Bain in a January report.

Wednesday also saw the first collection from British designer Stella
McCartney since she bought back full control of her brand from luxury
conglomerate LVMH in January.(AFP)