All the highlights from Paris Fashion Week SS25

The much-awaited Paris Fashion Week Spring/Summer edition kicked off on September 23, marking a grand finale to fashion month after stellar showcases in New York, London, and Milan. With 66 runway shows and 40 presentations, the week promises to be an exciting season for fashion enthusiasts. Fashion giants like Dior, Saint Laurent, Loewe, Chanel, and Schiaparelli are set to put their best foot forward with new Spring-Summer '25 collections, while brands like Hermès, Mugler, and Miu Miu are also set to present.

With such a diverse lineup, there’s plenty of fashion to explore and discuss, and here are some of the notable highlights so far. 

Christian Dior

Archery has definitely had a hot girl summer. After a glamorous turn at the Paris Olympics under the golden dome of Les Invalides, the ancient sport took centre stage as Dior opened Paris Fashion Week. Italian performance artist and competitive archer, Sagg Napoli walked the runway carrying her her bow. Instead of a handbag, she carried arrows in a quiver slung over one shoulder. A plexiglass screen ensured safety, while the heartbeat of Italian techno matched the tension. Reviving a 1960s Dior Sport logo, the collection featured tracksuit pants with go-faster stripes and stretchy tank tops. Maria Grazia Chiuri shared that she was inspired by the powerful gestures of archery, and sought to adapt the Maison’s style for modern women with active lives. Chiuri’s mood board included images of the ancient Roman statue of Diana, the goddess of hunting, along with Wonder Woman. The Lady Dior handbag came with a new cross-body strap, for ease of movement. Asymmetry was almost the rule with one shoulder bare on many pieces—reminiscent of the early 2000s.

Saint Laurent 

At Saint Laurent, Anthony Vaccarello turned the clock back to the early 1980s (shoulder pads and all) by summoning the ghost of the brand's founder, Yves Saint Laurent himself. Bella Hadid led a battalion of female models dressed as the designer in trademark specs, double-breasted suits, and trenchcoats, parading in oversized variations of his classic male cuts from way back in the day. Saint Laurent was the man who changed women's fashion forever in 1966 by putting women in his black men's "smoking" tuxedo jackets, and Vaccarello seemed to be recreating the moment with an 80s timewarp. For a designer who often takes delight in showing as much flesh as possible, this was a decidedly demure collection of long trailing coats, silk brocade jackets, and aristo ruffs and cuffs. Leather and suede bomber jackets made an appearance too, all cut with a run of interesting miniskirts with contrasting underskirts.

Courreges

Courrèges showcased a sleek yet daring collection in Paris, exploring the principles of cycles and repetition, inspired by the Möbius band. Models paraded around an ocean-like pool, donning structured, monochrome garments, showcasing boxy silhouettes, silken tailoring, and buttery leather. Nicolas Di Felice once again perfected the balance between inventive detailing and wearable shapes with space-age, cape-like hoods and sophisticated, capsule shirts. The architecture of the 1962 haute couture cape was his starting point—simply put, the Courrèges SS25 collection was a minimalist’s dream! Thriving on subtle, subversive details with sharp, clean-cut lines and bold asymmetry, the brand gave each piece a striking edge. The futuristic ’60s aesthetic that the brand’s founder, André Courrèges, famously pioneered, was upheld strongly. Each look was the starting point of the next one. The result was a modern fusion where the sleek, space-age spirit of the brand’s archive was reimagined with a fresh sensuality that spoke to the bold confidence of the 21st century.

The Row

Following the extraordinary success of banning phones and recordings at last season’s show, the Olsen twins doubled down for The Row's latest SS25 show, establishing what seems to be a new tradition for the brand. It’s a smart idea as the collection was ultra-concise, featuring only 27 looks with three key pieces: a camel trench coat, a white shirt, and a pair of rubber clogs. Less was certainly more here! Quiet luxury brands typically prefer not to present runway shows as they tend to spotlight flashier, more eccentric looks. While The Row's shows are not entirely basic, their collections are always concise, focusing more on the idea of a small secret community. The showcase resembled presentations held in fashion boutiques, where clients sip champagne while observing the looks before making purchases. Unsurprisingly, the inability to see the clothes only magnifies their allure—if we saw them constantly we might grow tired of them. 

Dries Van Noten 

Dries Van Noten debuted its first collection without its namesake designer. Now, the brand is writing its next chapter: no new creative director has been named just yet, so the imprint’s in-house team designed the SS25 collection through the lens of the eponymous fashioner’s archives. The studio designers effectively honored Van Noten’s legacy, which was marked by striking prints, rich textiles, provocative colour palettes, and sophisticated shapes. Many of the former designers’ codes converged along an optimistic path, extending from the earliest women’s collections through what lies ahead, as the label’s show notes explained. Animal prints, electric colors, strong stripes, and illustrative graphics all collide in singular looks. Snakeskin trench coats met silken satin shirts and trousers, while slim bomber jackets were paired with ornamental skirts and reptilian clutches. The studio’s formals were crisp—a pinstripe blazer-top hybrid with just one lapel stood out; while vivid eveningwear, like lime green gowns and lace-clad dresses, were eager for friskier endeavors. In all the mayhem, the colour story kept the line in some sort of order, as looks transitioned from warm neutrals to romantic purples to earthy hues and to springtime pastels.

Rabanne 

Rabanne returned to the runway and made quite the splash. Debuting an all-gold look in the middle of their standout SS25 show in Paris, the label included a standout pure gold bag, which was composed of 18-karat solid gold. Never thought you’d see every day Rabanne? Julien Dossena presented a layered-up, easy-going daytime vibe of cotton boxer shorts, oversized shirts, and cagoules, worn with practical goloshes and handbags carried in protective plastic purses. Light flounced lace dresses, printed with metallic foil panels, fluttered by, while even the chainmail had a chill vibe, worn loose with slouchy boots. The assemblage pieces are always a highlight with the designer focusing on materials. A milky lucite mini dress was worn with a matching bag whilst a gold coin shift dress was accompanied by the most expensive bag. It was all presented with youthful zing, despite the serious status-symbol price tag. One golden dress shed its fluttering gold leaf veneer with every step, summing up the lightness and the mood.

Acne Studios

Acne Studios' SS25 collection plays with twisted domestic codes, reimagining classic home elements in fashion. The brand begs to be worn out—out to the club, out on the streets, out to a bar, out to dinner. But creative director Jonny Johansson started at home this time. The idea for this collection started from a twisted domestic scenery, where classic domestic codes were translated into fashion. The end result was both domestic and alien. The suiting is blown up by way of exaggerated padding. Elsewhere, polka-dot hot pants, ladylike cardigans, and hip-exaggerating dropped hoop skirts reigned. Denim reaches entirely new proportions, paired with second-skin tops or blazers with no shirt at all to create a shape that’s almost inhuman. Easy jersey pieces are draped around the body, sleeves, and necklines hanging at odd places, in a palette of nudes. High boots, low waists, retro floral prints and tartan that recalls grandma’s house. Though its roots came from home, this is hardly a stay-at-home collection. 

Balmain 

Designer Olivier Rousteing referenced Monsieur Balmain’s breakthrough French style as well as the unique pillars of his coined uniform. For SS25, Balmain became a canvas for grand expression: realistic faces, nails, and lips took over the label’s architectural silhouettes via intricate embroidery, while rounded heads formed skirts and dresses alike. This collection was extremely focused, created with the goal of ensuring that every design is immediately recognisable as containing key strands of the DNA of today’s modern Balmain. The House’s artisans only continue to master the art of powerful shoulders, angular waists, and glittering embellishments in the contemporary. The often-repeated combo of skinny leather pants and a jacket thrown over a simple tee or tank has been the label’s go-to look for closing runways—and now it’s been adapted to form part of this season’s extensive daywear offerings. At Rousteing’s house, art imitates life—both that of the Balmain woman and himself.

Chloe 

In just a season, Chemena Kamali has shifted the paradigm of what style looks like. The nouveau-boho movement that’s currently afoot can largely be attributed to her, along with the return of hobo bags and 70s wedges. Her SS25 collection captured that longing for summer and the way summer makes you feel. Dubbed the “Freedom Collection,” it included wispy, angelic guipure lace that radiated sensuality, tiered dresses, bubble skirts, and babydoll frocks. In her show notes, Kamali said that she wanted the fabrics and colours to look sun-faded, almost as though they’d been on a vacation of their own. There were well-cut jackets in sherbet hues that were based on the lines of the house’s flou blouse, 70s-style trousers, and crocheted pieces– and a few wild-card items, like a bathing suit, emblazoned with a flamingo, an oversized gold shell belt, and whimsical bloomers (perhaps this season’s most unexpected trend). Unsurprisingly, the accessories were a standout. The mix of shell and stone jewellery felt like pieces from someone’s personal collection, while raffia bags and jelly flats screamed summer. 

Mugler

Mugler stole the show with an apocalyptic collection for SS25. The label put on its usual spectacle with an eerie backbone– the collection was dark and sinister, a 29-look range that looks to tomorrow. The brand’s sensual suiting embraced a reimagined aesthetic. The looks came from the future and took inspiration from Thierry Mugler’s expansive archive, putting a modern twist on classics. Curved collars bloomed from blazer-like dresses open at the chest, with the inaugural series sprouting with spiked shoulders in black and bedazzled textiles. Mugler’s works of art returned with dainty dresses frozen in time, while pointed pantsuits were widened at the hips for an abstract silhouette. Military uniforms and netted ensembles came ready for battle with contrast panelling. Finally, menswear suiting donned corset accents with laced additions, completing the collection with strapped denim uniforms, angelic bodysuits, and feathered looks cemented in mid-air. 

Rick Owens 

Back at his usual venue, the Palais de Tokyo, Rick Owens unveiled his SS25 collection and offered an ode to Hollywood, the "boulevard of vice," where he previously lived. The key word for this presentation could be antithesis, breaking with his desire for exclusivity with his last few shows, but also moving from the theme of the little-known Porterville to the gigantic Hollywood. From intimacy to extravagance, from virginal white to assumed black: Owens played on the contrasts between his latest creations and the new ones. We saw a multitude of oversized dark looks with the House's characteristic boots, followed by deflated versions of those from last season, flowing capes, monochrome dresses, biker jackets, pieces sometimes in knitwear, sometimes in denim. References to Hollywood glamour came twisted with a dark spirit, soiled, crumpled, lacerated bronze. There were gold-painted column dresses as well as gold knit gowns cut out and spliced up in such a way that it looked as though they were dripping off the body. Sculptural jackets were paired with goth opera gloves, and almost all of the skirts came with trains. 

Schiaparelli 

At Schiaparelli's SS25 show, Daniel Roseberry paid tribute to all the women who have supported his creative vision and work at the maison. As expected, there were essential references to the surrealist world of Elsa Schiaparelli scattered here and there– like the lobster and keyhole motifs. On the catwalk, Kendall Jenner paraded in an everyday uniform, revisited with a Schiaparelli twist– low-rise jeans paired with a cream corseted bodysuit, a technical feat since it is actually a single piece attached to the waistband of the jeans and the hem of the bodysuit. Other iconic models come to enhance the designer's creations: Irina Shayk, and Adriana Lima, among others. The maison's summer wardrobe surprises with its casual codes (jeans, sweaters, and shirts) skillfully transformed into exceptional, extraordinary pieces, using unusual proportions and Elsa's famous patterns.

Loewe

Jonathan Anderson experimented with “radical reduction” for Loewe’s SS25 collection. In a world of endless distractions, it felt almost liberating to strip things away and simplify. It was an adventurous collection that focused on the lines of clothing, unencumbered by added associations. With the assistance of boning and wiring, skirts swooped and dipped or extended to exaggerated widths. Swinging leather capes, slick wet-pavement sequins, dresses strewn with Impressionist florals, and sculptural trousers rounded out the lineup. The printed feather T-shirts were a standout, featuring classical music or Impressionist art motifs that felt like a new take on the well-worn graphic tee trope. The best part? Accessories that were thrillingly practical. The models wore flats, including boat shoes, oxfords, and ballet runners. Anderson showed fresh iterations of his beloved Puzzle bag and debuted a new trapezoidal style, the Madrid. The simplicity was refreshing yet captivating!

Hermes 

For her spring-summer runway show, Hermes designer Nadege Vanhee sent out a parade of mesh crop tops and calfskin coats in tan hues. The show was kicking off with a series of light, beige looks– loose trousers, sheer tops, and a suede coat cinched in the back. The parade continued, featuring long sheer skirts unzipped to the thighs, bright pink dresses, and belted outerwear. We saw a casual, utility wardrobe with luxe and real sex appeal, along with some surprises for the house’s growing younger customer base– the high-waisted Hermès denim, sportif sheer, and opaque layers. Versatility was the name of the game, sheer pants, tanks, and tunics in earthy colours were zipped and unzipped in layers showing hints of skin on a refreshingly wide array of body types. More traditional cotton utility looks, including jumpsuits, anoraks, polos, and pleated pants, were occasionally over-complicated with too many zips, snaps, buckles, pockets, and pulls. And we saw the new inside-out Birkin bag soft enough to collapse and hug close– or to pack in a suitcase. The clogged sandals were also seasonal must-haves.

Valentino

At Valentino, a vast floor was laid with smashed mirror tiles, glittering like a ballroom after an earthquake. It felt as though the Maison was shaking off the cobwebs for a new era and hitting the dancefloor. At his debut, Alessandro Michelle took the jewel-toned Roman sophistication of Valentino and spiked it. There were crisp ladylike jackets, crystal nose rings, romantic tiered gowns, and kitsch bellhop jackets. We saw seventies ladies in trailing chiffons, and Gen Z boys in tattoos and pearls. The models’ faces were veiled, dramatically shaded under picture hats, or decorated with jewels. Handbags were held with the chain straps trailing messily. There was lots that shouldn’t work, but it did. For all the layers, each silhouette was precise. Every detail had a backstory. The nose and the mouth were decorated, Michele said, because fashion is about the senses. He took archival references from “Valentino’s golden age” – the 1970s, along with nuggets from the 60s and early 80s. The matchstick-tip red which is Valentino’s house colour flared bright. There were turbans, polka dot gloves, white lace tights layered with ankle socks, John Lennon glasses paired with beanies, and tiny black ribbon bows dotted all over pigtails like butterflies on lavender.

Stella McCartney

At Stella McCartney’s SS25 showcase, “About F–king Time” caps were placed on every seat along with a copy of The Stella Times– a newspaper detailing the British designer’s conscious approach to luxury and her accomplishments. The collection was realized with 91 percent sustainable materials and several guests toted the new Ryder bag, a 100 percent vegan top-handle style with a sloped back. Flitting confidently between masculine archetypes– strong-shouldered tailoring, often pinstriped, and boyishly baggy jeans– and sexier feminine fare– clinging knit dresses and bandeau tops, and sheer, sensually draped dresses, which seem to be everywhere this European season. McCartney is a minimalist at heart, and she adds drama to her clothes with volume, sparkles, trailing streamers, and lots of toned abs. Accessories were accentuated, especially Ryder bags ranging in size from mini to microwave, plus hand-carved dove jewelry made of gold and silver repurposed from photocopiers and medical X-rays. Stella surely intended a call to action on environmental issues. “For me, it’s about f–king time that we stopped killing animals for fashion,” she said. Hence not a single feather was plucked for McCartney’s collection. Instead, there were doves printed on airy silk dresses and puffball bomber jackets that truly resembled fluffy chicks. 
 

Feature image: Christian Dior

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