In this day and age, it’s a free-for-all on opinions, likes and dislikes in every area of fashion, from the designers to the models and even which blogs or Instagramers you rate. What you’re about to read isn’t my opinions, it’s facts, in no particular ranking or order, of the last twelve months as a reminder of the exciting times we live in as far as global fashion is concerned. From lipstick to shoes, from couturiers to mass-produced copies of other people’s ideas, fashion is a broad “canvas,” for want of a better word, to take in. So, in the immortal words of Joseph Leo Mankiewicz as spoken by Bette Davis as Margo Channing in the film 1950 movie “All About Eve”, “fasten your seat belts, it’s going to be a bumpy night.”
So, without further ado, here they are.
Cos has jumped from a high street brand to a fashion name. Its sales were up in 2025, and it made various lists and ratings over the year as a great offering of well made, streamlined styled and quality clothing, but not as a cheap label since average sweater prices are around 80€ and coats go up to 1,000€.
Hermes launched cosmetics in a limited range in September 2025. Whilst at a similar time Louis Vuitton launched their cosmetics under the creative direction of Pat McGrath. At the same time, it was announced that Pat McGrath Labs, her own cosmetics line, is “restructuring.”
Designers switched and moved and appeared and disappeared in something less akin to the party game “musical chairs” than as pawns in a huge chess game. Contracts are short and the time to prove oneself a success seem to grow shorter as a danse macabre of highly skilled fashion designers stepped in and out of key positions. Diverse nationalities and training, experience at other houses and skills in social media, interviews and celebrity contacts all seem to play a part in the process and the role. It’s also a fact that right now Hedi Slimane, Olivier Rosteing, Kim Jones, John Galliano, Stefano Pilati, and others are not in senior roles anywhere.
The hot seat at Chanel was finally filled by French/Belgian designer Matthieu Blazy whose C.V. seemed to fit perfectly, and it at last dispelled the rumours. Gossip and “I know definitely” had led to much conjecture on the role as it does endlessly with news and fake news filling social media. He has now shown Pret a Porter for spring summer 2026 in Paris and Metiers d’Art in New York and about to reshow this in Seoul in May 2026. This will in fact be after his first couture in January and his second ready to wear show in March. Over at equally prestigious and historical house Christian Dior, Jonathan Anderson had long been rumoured to be the new incumbent as designer. Maria Grazia Chiuri left the role as head of womenswear design at Dior after nine years, she is moving to Fendi as Chief Creative Officer overseeing all collections womenswear, menswear, and accessories. Meanwhile, Anderson will also oversee the same broad role at Dior.
Maison Margiela Artisanal lost John Galliano and gained Glenn Martens. At the ready to wear both men’s and women’s at Jean-Paul Gaultier they appointed Dutch designer Duran Lantink whose first show was in September, meanwhile Givenchy selected British designer Sarah Burton, ex McQueen to take over, and she has shown two womenswear collections. Her role also covers menswear, and the rumour is couture will return. Haider Ackerman took over at Tom Ford designing both menswear and womenswear and first showed in March 2025. As JW Anderson had no sooner left his role at Loewe, when Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez founders of Proenza Schouler in New York whipped across the Atlantic to replace him.
Celine chose to appoint American Michael Rider, and he offered his first collection in September 2025. Whilst Soviet born Georgian Demna left Balenciaga to go to Gucci and celebrated by offering a ten year retrospective of his Balenciaga work in exhibition in Paris. His first collections and campaigns for Gucci have been shown in recent months. Meanwhile Balenciaga engaged Italian Pier Paolo Piccioli, ex Valentino to design for the house and his first full collection will be shown in spring 2026.
Versace chose to remove designer Italian Dario Vitale after only one season, and across the town at Valentino Italian Alessandro Michele continues at Valentino across all collections, ready to wear, menswear, and couture, although like several houses he only shows one couture a year. Irish designer Seán McGirr continues at Alexander McQueen, but restructures are in progress, and Kering have made it clear the house is not for sale. Olivier Rosteing left Balmain in November after fourteen years and is replaced by French designer Antonin Tron. Whilst over in Milan Marni is now under the creative Belgian designer Meryll Rogge and Jil Sander has engaged Italian designer Simone Bellotte to replace Swiss Luc and Lucie Meier. In a surprise move Véronique Nichanian left Hermes menswear after thirty seven years and is replaced by Anglo Jamaican Grace Wales Bonner promising exciting an innovative and fresh approach to the house in 2026. British designer Louise Trotter introduced her first collection at Bottega Veneta in September 2025
Dover Street Market continues to be amazing and innovative for retail at every outlet and in London Harvey Nichols has an entirely new team revamping the once fashionable store for the future. Various huge designer boutiques have opened up across the world often with major architectural visionaries involved. However, it’s important that from Visual Merchandising to Black Friday, from stock quantities to recycling and returns, retail continues to be a major subject of concern. Bricks and mortar versus online are a crucial element in fashion of all types. GAP is benefiting from Zak Posen, a new design studio, recycling etc and is emerging stronger than for some time, including returning retail to the U.K. Top Shop and Topman returned late summer 2025 so 2026 will be the year to watch them consolidate their return in fashion terms, whilst another successful name from the past ceased to exist, MTV will close on December 31st 2025 after forty four years. The words “end of an era” are totally applicable since for many pop videos and fashion were inextricably connected. From Dolce e Gabanna to the hottest CSM graduate many owed exposure on or around a performer on MTV to their big break.
Pantone continues to issue a huge colour story each season which is picked up by many, both press and businesses. Micro trends continue generally to be more important than single big cross season stories as back in earlier decades.
AI is an endlessly engaging conversation and its influence and importance on fashion from textiles to retail and from innovation to basic data continues to be a discussion point. Opinions range from total fascination and embracing of AI through to cynicism and dismissal of its importance. There is a huge gamut of opinions and attitudes in the same way as Bitcoin and other subjects can be decisive and engage violently different opinions. In the same vein we note that fashion online versus print continues to be a subject of importance. The announcement that Anna Wintour will no longer be the editor of American Vogue prompting huge news coverage, much of it inaccurate, since she will still oversee the magazine content as she does all Vogues, and Chloe Malle will be Head of Editorial Content. New print magazines are appearing still, but it seems niche, luxury, limited edition, local, collectible, and biannual are options editors are selecting.
Podcasts, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, and Tik Tok all have their fans, devotees, and practitioners. Trends in various methods and channels fluctuate and just as WhatsApp is used in different ways in different countries, so brands, labels, influencers, critics, and Individuals use different methods.
Rami Al Ali became the first Syrian couturier to be invited onto the FHCM official schedule for haute couture, Miss Sohee was the first Korean on the couture list and now in January 2026 Phan Huy become not only the youngest at 26 but the first couturier from Vietnam on the schedule.
Fashion exhibitions included the first massive retrospective on the most famous founding father of couture, Charles Frederick Worth at the Petit Palais in Paris. It gathered together the largest number of surviving Worth clothes ever and many had never been exhibited before. There was a Paul Poiret exhibition, A Rick Owens exhibition, also to close the year Azzedine Alaia & Dior both at the Galerie Dior and at the Fondation Alaia. Whilst London had Marie Antoinette and Cartier at the V & A, and also exhibitions on Leigh Bowery, Blitz, and Cecil Beaton during 2025. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York exhibition for the Costume Institute was “Superfine-Tailoring Black Style”
Controversy over Shein and Temu and their clothing and accessories products continued across various areas from stock market to retail. A Paris retail outlet proving especially contentious.
Fashion and jewellery invaded antique and art exhibitions such as Art Basel, PAD and Frieze, both amongst the stands and the attendees. The British Fashion Council appointed Laura Weir as CEO to replace Caroline Rush.
Fashion weeks continue to expand and contract in numbers across the world and indeed it seems that any any given moment a fashion week is taking place. The big four are still New York, London, Milan and Paris and live catwalk also remains, in spite of technology, the preferred method of showing collections.
Celebrities and influencers continue to be problematic and divisive in terms of investment, endorsements, advertising, and money. There are no guarantees on the financial returns and PR rewards in fashion by linking to a name. Watch in 2026 for which names are associated with which brands, labels, products, from handbags to lipsticks, and houses.
Finally in 2025 we lost English David Sassoon at 92, and Antony Price, Irish Paul Costelloe, and Scottish Pam Hogg, four greatly different designers based in London, Marina Yeo who was one of the original Belgian Six, and also the co founder of the great Italian knitwear house Rosita Missoni aged 93. The London born stylist Melanie Ward left us in October, in September Giorgio Armani died aged 91, he actually never retired from the house he founded, leaving behind a huge fashion imprint and legacy.
Now looking forward into 2026 what will the new year, new seasons and new products offer us? Well, I would propose we hope it’s a year for optimism and consolidation, a year of stability and creativity. The need to make money is understandable across the entire fashion business, of course any business, but now new people are in new roles, let’s give them a chance to prove themselves, let’s support everyone in their challenging roles and let’s see fashion bringing joy and creativity to the business, not just good sales figures. 2026 will see challenges of course, but how fashion and style respond should be with wonderful things we want or need, and with energy and elan. We’ve survived a year of constant change, not in the sense of what’s fashionable but of who is creating fashion, now let’s look forward to exciting stories from brilliant creatives.
So, there we have my 2025 reminder of what happened in fashion across the year. I leave you to make your own personal list of highs and lows, hits or misses and successes and failures, Happy New Year.
