Balenciaga. Couture 2025/2026 - Paris

 

 After 10 years, Demna Gvasalia has held his final show, and to be a complete finale for Balenciaga, it was a couture showing, which in his ten year tenure, Demna was only able to offer five couture collections, including this one, to be his last.  Considering, although in name only, that Balenciaga was a couture exclusive under Cristóbal Balenciaga, before Ready-to-Wear became the runway favourite for the fashion industry template, followed by other seasonal collections.  Demna's homage, in its irony, is of course in name only, in the shape of Demna's Balenciaga, be it of his exaggerated, postmodern pieces, with only a slight nod to the late Cristóbal himself.

The transfer of Demna from Balenciaga to Gucci under Kering, the holding company who owns both these luxury brand names, was not a creative decision, but solely a business one.  Kering, which is owned by French Billionaire François-Henri Pinault, in desperation to its falling share price, which has plunged 37% in one year, mostly due to Gucci's collapsing sales, and mostly to do with the Chinese consumer tightening their belts, since in our strange hyperreal world, we no longer have recessions,and inflation is called high costs of living.  The luxury sector, like everything else, is unable to bypass the reality that capitalist markets eventually do go bust. 

Regardless, Demna who was relatively an unknown designer from Georgia, who descended onto the Paris fashion world in 2013, with his brother Guram, under their brand Vetements.  Did indeed, under Balenciaga, carve a niche for Kering.  Decreeing his anti-fashion ethos, within its 1990s Eastern European charm of reworking back to the Western Fashion world, a sardonic overture of knock offs, and imitation streetwear styles, to which has its roots from the East Europe rave scene of 35 years ago, where counterfeit ADIDAS, and other U.S., U.K., France sports brands held a lost-in-translation Westren allure, be it from their odd sizing, large fits, strange lettering and everything else in between.  Where a pair of original Nike sneakers were cherished for over a year, to become a gruppy, well worn, and tainted pair of sneakers, that saw a many underground raves in Tbilisi, Georgia.  Sound familiar?  Refer to Demna's 'destroyed' Balenciaga sneakers, that fetched prices over $2000 (USD).

And this is the point, the biggest earner for Kering was Gucci, and Demna, as mentioned, was able to niche the brand to be primarily focused towards young 20 something Chinese consumers, turning Balenciaga into a young adult, sardonic laced, anti-fashion street wear brand, was a brave move, despite it mirroring Vetements business model, it did pay off.  As 10 years in the Fashion world to be a creative director of a conglomerate owned band name, is a rare occurrence.

Demna's held his final show at the late Cristóbal Balenciaga's restored Maison in Paris, in which the previous four couture's showings, under Demna, were also held within the Maison and the questions will remain; Will Italian designer Pierpaolo Piccioli, who is now the new creative director for Balenciaga, maintain a couture imprint for Balenciaga?  Can Piccioli risk dialing back Demna's Balenciaga?   The 2025, 2026 Couture collection did not offer any subtley to its styles, rather it was, within its final context, Demna's parting shot.  Indicating, that  his version of Balenciaga would not leave gracefully, including the soundtrack of everyone that ever worked with Demna's Balenciaga speaking out their names, including Demna's ragtag looking models.  It may take a few seasons for Piccioli to unwind it all.

But, Gucci is, metaphorically speaking, cursed.  And the main question everyone will be asking, will Demna be able to slam his Eastern European 1990s imprint onto Gucci, and sell it back to the Chinese market, who may have missed him at Balenciaga?

We shall see.

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(A.Glass 2025)

For all my Balenciaga reviews of the 10 years, please refer: chiasmusmagazine.blogspot.com/search/label/Balenciaga