NYC, Milan & Paris Fashion Weeks September–October 2025: Top Designers, Models & Runway Trends

The spring 2026 women's collections are being shown across four weeks this September and October. New York went first, from September 11 to 16. Milan follows from September 23 to 29, and Paris closes the season from September 29 to October 7¹,²,³. The organizers in New York, London, Milan and Paris set these season dates together¹.

Quick Summary

The spring 2026 women's shows run in New York from September 11 to 16, 2025, in Milan from September 23 to 29, and in Paris from September 29 to October 7¹,²,³. Michael Kors opened New York²⁴, where front rows included Gwyneth Paltrow, Rosalía and Jung Kook, and Kendall Jenner walked for Khaite²². Milan's final calendar has 54 runway shows, 85 presentations and 30 events, and the house of Giorgio Armani, who died on September 4, closes its physical schedule on September 28 with a show at Palazzo Brera²,⁵. The season is full of first collections from new creative directors: in Milan, Demna at Gucci, Simone Bellotti at Jil Sander, Dario Vitale at Versace and Louise Trotter at Bottega Veneta²; in Paris, Jonathan Anderson at Dior on October 1, Miguel Castro Freitas at Mugler, Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez at Loewe, Glenn Martens at Maison Margiela, Pierpaolo Piccioli at Balenciaga on October 4, Duran Lantink at Jean Paul Gaultier and Matthieu Blazy at Chanel on October 6⁴. They arrive as luxury sales fall: Bain and Altagamma expect the personal luxury goods market to shrink 2% to 5% in 2025⁶.

This season is unusual for two reasons. Paris and Milan will see a run of first collections from new creative directors, at Dior, Chanel, Balenciaga, Gucci, Versace, Bottega Veneta, Jil Sander, Loewe and others, a lineup Hypebeast called a historic roster of debuts²,⁴. And Milan opens less than three weeks after the death of Giorgio Armani, whose house will close the week's physical schedule with a show featuring his last creations⁵.

The changes arrive during a hard stretch for the luxury business. In June, Bain & Company and Altagamma said the global luxury sector faced its most far-reaching disruptions in at least 15 years, and in its likeliest scenario projected that the personal luxury goods market would shrink by 2% to 5% in 2025⁶. Kering, which owns Gucci, Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta and Balenciaga, reported first-half revenue down 16%⁷.

This guide sets out what is scheduled in each city, who is showing, who has already walked and watched in New York, and the numbers behind the season. Every date comes from the official calendars and the trade press that reported them.

September October 2025 Fashion Week Calendar Overview

The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), the Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana (CNMI), the British Fashion Council and the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode (FHCM) worked together to set the dates for the 2025 and 2026 seasons¹. For this season the official dates are:

New York Fashion Week: Thursday, September 11 to Tuesday, September 16, 2025¹.

Milan Fashion Week: Tuesday, September 23 to Monday, September 29, 2025².

Paris Fashion Week: Monday, September 29 to Tuesday, October 7, 2025³.

Each city publishes its calendar in stages. The CFDA released New York's preliminary schedule on July 22⁸. CNMI presented Milan's final calendar on September 11, and WWD reported no major surprises compared with the provisional calendar released over the summer². The FHCM published its Paris provisional calendar in July⁴.

A season of new creative directors

The FHCM's Paris calendar lists 76 runway shows and 36 presentations. Hypebeast described the season as one of historic creative overhauls, arriving while the luxury sector deals with falling sales and tariffs⁴. In Milan, WWD called the debuts of Demna at Gucci and Dario Vitale at Versace the hot tickets of the week².

The appointments behind this season were announced over nine months. Kering named Louise Trotter creative director of Bottega Veneta on December 12, 2024, succeeding Matthieu Blazy⁹. The same day, Chanel named Blazy its new artistic director¹⁰. Glenn Martens was appointed at Maison Margiela on January 29, 2025¹¹, and Simone Bellotti at Jil Sander on March 10¹².

March brought three more. Kering announced Demna as Gucci's artistic director on March 13, starting in early July¹³. The same day, Versace named Dario Vitale chief creative officer from April 1, with Donatella Versace becoming chief brand ambassador¹⁴. On March 24, Loewe named Proenza Schouler founders Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez as its creative directors¹⁵, and the next day Mugler named Miguel Castro Freitas¹⁶.

The spring and summer filled the remaining seats. Jean Paul Gaultier named Duran Lantink creative director on April 15¹⁷. Kering named Pierpaolo Piccioli at Balenciaga on May 19, effective July 10¹⁸. Maria Grazia Chiuri's exit from Dior was confirmed on May 29¹⁹, and Dior named Jonathan Anderson its sole creative director on June 2²⁰.

Milan goes ahead in memory of Giorgio Armani

Giorgio Armani died on September 4, 2025, at the age of 91, the Armani Group announced²¹. Presenting the final Milan calendar a week later, CNMI president Carlo Capasa said: "This Milan Fashion Week will be celebrated in memory of one of its founders"². The Armani company confirmed that its Giorgio Armani and Emporio Armani shows, and an exhibition of 150 archival looks, would go ahead as planned².

CNN reported that Armani had missed his own runway bow for the first time in June 2025, during Milan's men's shows, when the company said he was recovering at home²¹. The celebrations for his 50th year in business had already been planned for this month, including the exhibition at the Pinacoteca di Brera, which CNN described as the first at the museum dedicated to fashion²¹.

New York Fashion Week September 2025

New York opened the international season. The CFDA has run the official New York Fashion Week schedule since it acquired the Fashion Calendar in October 2014. The Fashion Calendar itself was founded in 1945 by publisher Ruth Finley⁸.

Key Dates and Schedule

According to the CFDA, Michael Kors would launch the American collections on Thursday, September 11, and the week would close on Tuesday, September 16. The preliminary schedule listed more than 60 runway shows and designer presentations, with more collections shown digitally and by appointment⁸.

The names on the official schedule included Altuzarra, Area, Bevza, Calvin Klein Collection, Campillo, Christian Siriano, Collina Strada, Cynthia Rowley, Diotima, Eckhaus Latta, Elena Velez, Jason Wu Collection, KidSuper, Lafayette 148, LaQuan Smith, Luar, Norma Kamali, Prabal Gurung, Sandy Liang, Sergio Hudson, Simkhai, Tibi, Todd Snyder, Tory Burch, Ulla Johnson and Zankov. International brands COS, Off-White and Toteme were also listed, and the CFDA announced Alexander Wang's return to New York Fashion Week⁸.

The CFDA listed nine first-time additions to the official schedule: 6397, Amir Taghi, Dwarmis, Lii, Maria McManus, Nardos, Raúl Peñaranda, Rùadh and SC103. The eight finalists of the 2025 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund (Ashlyn, Bach Mai, Bernard James, Don't Let Disco, Gabe Gordon, Heirlome, Jamie Okuma and Meruert Tolegen) were set to hold activations during the week⁸.

The CFDA also runs the CFDA NYFW Fund, set up in 2022 to build relationships between international press and the brands that show during the week. It has supported nearly 50 international editors to date through brand contributions and partnerships⁸. "New York Fashion Week continues to be a gateway for discovery, creativity, and storytelling representing the spirit and independence of American fashion," said Joseph Maglieri, the CFDA's director of fashion week initiatives⁸.

Some of New York's biggest names showed elsewhere. CNN noted that a growing number of influential designers, including Ralph Lauren, Carolina Herrera and Marc Jacobs, are choosing to show outside the official calendar or not at all. Ralph Lauren held an off-schedule show at its Manhattan headquarters²².

W counted 101 events on the CFDA calendar this season. It noted that Carolina Herrera would show its new collection in Madrid later in the month, that denim designer Jac Cameron would present her year-old label Rùadh on September 12, and that LaQuan Smith would close the week with a runway show on September 16²³. Rachel Comey and Brandon Maxwell had already shown before the official opening, and first-time label 6397 planned a salon-style event²³.

Featured Designers and Shows

Michael Kors opened the week on the morning of September 11 at Terminal Warehouse in Manhattan. WWD's review described a collection built on travel, with pareo and caftan dressing, fluid white shirting and ballooning harem pants, which it called "already a budding trend this season"²⁴. Kors told WWD: "The show and this collection are very much laid-back, but it's elegant. It's sensual, not shrink-wrap sexy"²⁴. W described the opening look as an oversize button-down left undone almost to the navel, tucked into loose black trousers with a sheer skirt overlay and cinched with a long brown belt²⁵.

The week had its own debuts. Rachel Scott, the Diotima founder whom the CFDA named emerging designer of the year in 2023, was named creative director of Proenza Schouler on September 2²⁶. CNN reported that her early work for the brand was shown at an intimate show in a Chelsea gallery, which she worked on as a consultant before formally taking up the role next season²². Scott told Hypebae: "This is really a collaboration with the team: getting to know the language of the brand and silhouette and color, but then starting to inject a little bit of my point of view"²⁷. Nicholas Aburn showed his first collection for Area. He said he was returning to the roots of Area founders Beckett Fogg and Piotrek Panszczyk, "which is the nightclub", and told CNN: "It looks like New York to me, because there are these avant-garde, crazy characters, but they're framed by these normal, chic but quiet people"²².

Veronica Leoni presented her second collection for Calvin Klein. Hypebae described trench coats, trousers and blazers with details such as draping hairs and shredded fabric. "With my second collection I wanted to express this feeling of Calvin Klein as a way of being rather than a way of appearing," Leoni said²⁷. Alexander Wang returned with a show on the Bowery in Chinatown, where he announced he would turn a former bank into a permanent cultural space dedicated to Asian arts²².

At Coach, creative director Stuart Vevers showed baggy workwear pants, leather staples and plaid blazers meant to evoke the patina of the city's buildings. Accessories included earrings made of small books, a reference to the boxes of books New Yorkers leave on their stoops. Vevers told CNN he was thinking of "that bright morning light that I feel is very special to this city"²². Tory Burch showed in downtown Brooklyn, with her design team's monogrammed initials embroidered through the collection and slingback heels trimmed with delicate barbed wire. Burch said backstage that the collection explored the "complexity of women"²².

Off-White, designed by Ib Kamara, staged a 1970s-inspired collection on the rooftop basketball court of a Manhattan high school, where street artists created visual homages to the city's five boroughs²². Hypebae reported that the show also previewed an upcoming New York Liberty capsule²⁷. Collina Strada sent models out in pairs on a Manhattan pier, each followed by a "shadow" in the same look rendered in black, a concept founder Hillary Taymour tied to "humanity's darkest impulses". Rather than dismiss them, she wrote, "we must befriend our shadow. Bedazzle it, even"²². Prabal Gurung showed at St. Bartholomew's parish in Midtown, and Elena Velez turned a burlesque bar into a stage on the final evening, sending out corsetry, garters, bonnets and weather-beaten skirts that CNN said seemed to travel from dust bowl-era saloons to downtown Manhattan²². Area's final looks, CNN wrote, were a crescendo of colorful tinsel and gift ribbon that completely enveloped the models²².

Other designers stayed close to their signatures. At Khaite, Cate Holstein focused on bold shoulders, clean lines and exaggerated shapes²². Eckhaus Latta co-founder Zoe Latta told CNN: "We don't want to reinvent the wheel every season. I don't think that's how we dress"²². Luar's Raul Lopez built his show around the Carnival of the Dominican Republic, and Jason Wu worked with the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation on the artist's centennial²².

Willy Chavarria returned to New York with a small show inside the recently opened Printemps department store on Wall Street. CNN described a format that recalled the traditional salon show, with models in Zoot suits, trench dresses and wide-brimmed hats holding numbered cards to identify each outfit²². Grace Ling called her collection "Future Relics", and Hypebae described charms such as keys and padlocks used as closures and details²⁷.

Models and Front Rows

New York's front rows drew film, music and television names. CNN reported Gwyneth Paltrow and Leslie Bibb at Michael Kors, and Rosalía, Lily Collins and Jung Kook of BTS at Calvin Klein, where his fans flooded the streets²². Olivia Wilde, Ariana DeBose and Kaitlyn Dever were also at Kors, according to W²⁵.

Alexander Wang's guests included Cardi B, Martha Stewart and stylist Law Roach. Coach ambassadors Elle Fanning, Charles Melton, Storm Reid and Soyeon sat front row at Coach, and Jessica Alba, Emma Roberts, Naomi Watts, Tessa Thompson and Mindy Kaling went to Tory Burch²². Hypebae reported Taylor Momsen, Bella Poarch and Ella Emhoff at Collina Strada²⁷.

Away from the runways, Jessica Chastain and Julianne Moore attended the Kering Foundation's fourth annual "Caring for Women" event, which coincides with fashion week in New York²².

On the runways, Kendall Jenner made her first runway appearance of the season at Khaite, wearing the penultimate look, an asymmetrical polka-dot skirt²². Vivian Wilson was cast in several shows, including Prabal Gurung. Off-White's cast included Natalia Bryant, Iris Law and Julez Smith. CNN also photographed Amelia Gray walking for Michael Kors and Quannah Chasinghorse for Grace Ling, and the artist Martine Syms appeared on the Eckhaus Latta runway²².

This guide covers casting and guests only where they have been reported. For Milan and Paris, that reporting comes after the shows.

Milan Fashion Week September 2025

CNMI presented Milan's final calendar on September 11: 54 runway shows, 85 presentations and 30 events between September 23 and 29².

Event Timeline and Highlights

Tuesday, September 23. Diesel and Alberta Ferretti show, and Gucci unveils Demna's first designs for the house at 7 p.m. It will be a presentation. His first runway show for Gucci is planned for March².

Wednesday, September 24. Simone Bellotti shows his first Jil Sander collection on the runway. Fendi stages another co-ed show designed by Silvia Venturini Fendi to mark the house's centenary, and Antonio Marras, Missoni and Etro also show. London label Knwls, founded in 2017 by Charlotte Knowles and Alexandre Arsenault and a 2022 LVMH Prize finalist, holds its first Milan show²,⁵.

Thursday, September 25. Max Mara, Prada, Moschino and Roberto Cavalli show, along with two Emporio Armani shows at the Armani Teatro on Via Bergognone, with shows starting at 3 and 4 in the afternoon².

Friday, September 26. Dario Vitale presents his first Versace collection at 8 p.m. in an intimate format. Blumarine shows David Koma's second collection, and Sa Su Phi holds its first runway show. Kering's S|Style showcase of sustainable emerging labels runs from September 26 to 28²,⁵.

Saturday, September 27. Louise Trotter shows her first collection for Bottega Veneta, which returns to the calendar after skipping February⁵. The CNMI Sustainable Fashion Awards move up to Saturday night this year because of the Armani celebration on Sunday².

Sunday, September 28. Giorgio Armani closes the physical schedule at 7 p.m. in the courtyard of honor of Palazzo Brera. Ferrari, Ferragamo and MSGM also show over the weekend².

The Designers Making Their Debuts

Demna at Gucci. Demna had been artistic director of Balenciaga since 2015, and started at Gucci, founded in Florence in 1921, in early July. Announcing his move, Kering chairman and CEO François-Henri Pinault said: "His creative power is exactly what Gucci needs"¹³. "I am truly excited to join the Gucci family," Demna said. He takes over a house under pressure. Gucci's first-half revenue fell 26% as reported to €3.0 billion, and 25% on a comparable basis⁷.

Dario Vitale at Versace. Vitale came from Prada-owned Miu Miu and replaces Donatella Versace, who had led the brand's creative direction since the death of her brother Gianni. "It has been the greatest honour of my life to carry on my brother Gianni's legacy," she said. Vitale said he was "truly honoured to join Versace"¹⁴. On April 10, the Prada Group agreed to buy 100% of Versace from Capri Holdings for an enterprise value of €1.25 billion, with closing expected in the second half of 2025. Founded in Milan in 1978, Versace will keep its creative DNA within the group, Prada said, and the deal is funded with €1.5 billion of new debt²⁸.

Louise Trotter at Bottega Veneta. Trotter was creative director of Carven when Kering hired her, and joined Bottega Veneta at the end of January 2025. Kering praised her "ability to draw inspiration from real life" and her "meticulous approach to craftsmanship"⁹. Bottega Veneta's first-half revenue rose 2% on a comparable basis to €846 million, while Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent and Kering's other houses declined⁷.

Simone Bellotti at Jil Sander. OTB appointed Bellotti in March after his tenure as creative director of Bally. His career includes 16 years at Gucci and stints at A.F. Vandervorst, Gianfranco Ferré, Dolce & Gabbana and Bottega Veneta. "I am incredibly honored to join Jil Sander, a storied house that created a new aesthetic with its unique approach and strong identity," Bellotti said¹².

Armani's Anniversary Show and Returning Names

The Armani show will feature what FashionNetwork called "the last creations by 'King Giorgio'", and it will also mark the 50th anniversary of his label⁵. The archive exhibition at the Pinacoteca di Brera opens on September 24².

Armani was born in Piacenza in 1934. He worked as a window dresser and then a buyer at La Rinascente in Milan before Nino Cerruti hired him to design menswear in 1964, where he first learned about the unstructured jackets he later perfected and became famous for. With his partner Sergio Galeotti, he founded Giorgio Armani in 1975²¹. "Il Signor Armani, as he was always respectfully and admiringly called by employees and collaborators, passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loved ones," the group said²¹. CNN noted that he was one of the few designers to remain the sole shareholder of his company, which Bloomberg Intelligence analysts valued at 8 to 10 billion euros in 2024²¹.

His clothes were a fixture on red carpets. CNN recalled Julia Roberts's menswear-inspired Armani look at the 1990 Golden Globe Awards, a 2001 retrospective at the Guggenheim in Bilbao, where he was the first fashion designer to exhibit, and the Légion d'honneur he received in 2008²¹. In Milan, Mayor Giuseppe Sala confirmed that the Armani family had approved his offer to add the designer's name to the Famedio at the city's Monumentale cemetery, alongside the country's most honored citizens².

Several names return to the calendar this season. Boss, The Attico, Stella Jean and Calcaterra are back after missing recent editions⁵. Boss and The Attico show on September 25 and 26, in line with their strategy of staging a single show a year². Anglo-Nigerian designer Ineye Tokyo James, who first showed in Milan in February 2022, is back on the calendar, and Vietnamese designer Phan Dang Hoang returns after debuting in Milan in September 2024. Indian designer Dhruv Kapoor moves from the men's to the women's schedule⁵.

Among the newcomers, FashionNetwork describes Knwls as a celebrity favorite known for sensual Y2K silhouettes and a focus on female empowerment, stocked by more than 50 multibrand retailers. Sa Su Phi, founded in 2021 by finance executive Sara Ferrero and design consultant Susanna Cucco, began in luxury knitwear and now sells through about 70 retailers⁵. WWD noted that looks from Sa Su Phi were spotted on Meryl Streep while filming "The Devil Wears Prada 2"².

The week also has a crowded events program. The Maestri d'Eccellenza prize for Italy's top artisans is presented on September 23, the Black Carpet Awards return for a third edition on September 24, and Kering and Vogue Italia host the Cinemoda Club film festival from September 25 to 27⁵. Pucci presents its "Pucciverse" at Palazzo Clerici on September 24, JW Anderson shows its resort 2026 collection on September 27, and Trussardi screens a short film starring Eva Herzigova at the Anteo cinema on September 28².

Marni is sitting out the runway calendar this season. It is showing its spring 2026 collection to buyers by appointment, with new creative director Meryll Rogge's runway debut planned for February. Philipp Plein, GCDS and Del Core are also missing from this edition². Gucci and Versace are off the runway show calendar too, since both chose presentations⁵.

Paris Fashion Week September October 2025

Paris runs nine days, from Monday, September 29 to Tuesday, October 7. The times below come from the provisional calendar the FHCM published in July, and every show on it is marked "by invitation"³.

Schedule Highlights

Saint Laurent opens the week on Monday, September 29 at 8 p.m. On Tuesday, September 30, Louis Vuitton shows at noon, a slot near the start of the week, with Dries Van Noten at 4 p.m. and Stella McCartney in the 8 p.m. slot that evening³.

The rest of the week includes Balmain on October 1; The Row, Rick Owens, Schiaparelli and Isabel Marant on October 2; Issey Miyake and Yohji Yamamoto on October 3; Alaïa, Junya Watanabe, Hermès and Comme des Garçons on October 4; Celine, Valentino, Chloé and McQueen on October 5; and Miu Miu and Chanel on October 6³.

Chanel's show returns to a transformed Grand Palais. The building, put up for the 1900 Universal Exhibition, fully reopened in June after a five-year, 486 million euro renovation. Chanel was the exclusive private sponsor of the work, and its craftsmanship hub Le19M made a 49-foot curtain in nine sections for the building's central section, a job that took 720 hours of atelier work. The renovation removed a partition wall between the front and back of the building, increased the space open to the public by 140% and added 40 elevators and lifts and 30 staircases. Chanel resumed staging shows at the Grand Palais in fall 2024 after a four-year break²⁹.

Ready-to-Wear Debuts

These are ready-to-wear collections, and Hypebeast wrote that all eyes will be on the luxury houses and their new designers⁴.

Dior, October 1 at 2:30 p.m. Jonathan Anderson shows his first Dior women's collection⁴. Chiuri had led Dior's women's collections since 2016. Announcing her exit, Christian Dior Couture chairman and CEO Delphine Arnault credited her with "tremendous work with an inspiring feminist perspective and exceptional creativity"¹⁹. Before Dior, Chiuri worked at Valentino with Pierpaolo Piccioli, who now makes his own debut at Balenciaga²⁰. Anderson spent 11 years at Loewe before stepping down in March, a run the Associated Press said made Loewe a major global brand¹⁵. He has already shown his first Dior men's collection⁴.

Mugler, October 2 at noon. Miguel Castro Freitas makes his debut⁴. The Portuguese designer, a 2004 Central Saint Martins graduate, held senior roles at Sportmax, Dries Van Noten and Christian Dior Couture, and succeeds Casey Cadwallader. Like the house's founder, Manfred Thierry Mugler, he was a dancer in his youth. "As one of the 20th century's great couturiers, Mr. Mugler reimagined the power and limits of fashion," Freitas said¹⁶.

Loewe, October 3 at 11:30 a.m. Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez show their first Loewe collection⁴. They founded Proenza Schouler in 2002, stepped down there in January 2025 and moved from New York to Paris for the job. Loewe began in Madrid in 1846 as a leather-maker serving the Spanish royal family¹⁵.

Givenchy, October 3 at 5:30 p.m. Sarah Burton shows her next collection for the house³. Givenchy appointed her in September 2024, and her first collection was scheduled for March 2025. The Associated Press reported that she became the eighth designer at the house founded in 1953 by Hubert de Givenchy, and its second female creative director³⁰.

Maison Margiela, October 4 at noon. Glenn Martens shows his first ready-to-wear collection after his couture debut for the house in July⁴. OTB appointed him in January. "I am proud to have a third couturier at its helm," OTB's Renzo Rosso said, noting that Martens studied at Antwerp's Royal Academy of Fine Arts, as Martin Margiela did¹¹. His Diesel show opens Milan Fashion Week on September 23²,³¹.

Balenciaga, October 4 at 8 p.m. Pierpaolo Piccioli shows his first collection, following Demna's departure for Gucci²,⁴. Piccioli was previously creative director of Valentino for 16 years¹⁸. Kering's Francesca Bellettini called him "one of the most talented and celebrated designers of today", and Piccioli said: "What I am receiving is a brand full of possibilities that is incredibly fascinating"¹⁸.

Jean Paul Gaultier, October 5 at 4:30 p.m. Duran Lantink's first collection brings the house back to ready-to-wear after more than a decade⁴. The Dutch designer won the Karl Lagerfeld Prize at the 2024 LVMH Prize, and Numéro described him as the first official successor to Jean Paul Gaultier, who stepped down from his brand in 2020. Lantink launched his own label in 2019, presented his first runway show in Paris in March 2023, and builds much of his work on upcycling¹⁷.

Chanel, October 6 at 8 p.m. Matthieu Blazy shows his first Chanel collection at the Grand Palais⁴. CNN reported that he is only the fourth head designer in the house's history, and that he spent more than four years at Bottega Veneta, three of them as creative director. His trademark there was trompe l'oeil leather made to look like flannel shirts, paper grocery bags and denim¹⁰. He succeeds Virginie Viard, who left in June 2024 after five years as artistic director and 30 years at the company. Chanel fashion president Bruno Pavlovsky said Blazy's "audacious personality, his innovative and powerful approach to creation, as well as his dedication to craftsmanship and beautiful materials, will take Chanel in exciting new directions"¹⁰.

Spring Summer 2026 Trend Forecasts

Trend forecasters published their spring 2026 color outlook well before the shows. In May 2024, WGSN and Coloro named five key colors for spring/summer 2026: Transformative Teal, Electric Fuchsia, Blue Aura, Amber Haze and Jelly Mint³². Transformative Teal, a blend of blue and green, is their Colour of the Year for 2026³³.

Emerging Design Directions

New York has already given a first read. WWD's review of Michael Kors noted an ease running through New York for spring 2026, with designers leaning into relaxed American sportswear and escapism, and it flagged harem pants as a trend taking shape²⁴. Kors cited Sicily as inspiration for the collection's rusticity and sunrise-to-sunset hues, and WWD saw nods to photographs of Peter Beard and Lauren Hutton on the beach in new pareo and caftan dressing. "I think Mrs. [Diana] Vreeland was smart, the eye has to travel," Kors said²⁴.

CNN saw a related caution. With shoppers more price-sensitive and spending carefully on high-end items, it wrote, some designers presented collections that felt like smart extensions of past seasons²². Tory Burch and others spoke of designing with optimism through color and texture²².

Color and Fabric Innovations

The TexSPACE Today summary of the WGSN and Coloro palette describes each color. Transformative Teal reflects "the growing demand for eco-conscious practices". Electric Fuchsia is a "vivid neon, straddling the line between pink and purple". Blue Aura is a "serene greyed-blue", Amber Haze a "green-toned yellow", and Jelly Mint a playful shade aimed at "kidult" consumers³².

New York's runways offered their own materials story. Grace Ling used sculptural metalwork shaped like leaves and branches, Alexander Wang showed chainmail, and Eckhaus Latta mixed two-toned sanded denim with ultra-sheer knits and mesh²². Coach layered organza maxi dresses with celestial motifs²².

New York's palettes ran from quiet to loud. W described the tonal styling of Michael Kors's "primarily white, black, and earthy brown" ensembles²⁵. Coach worked in gray, tan and white, Khaite showed leather jackets and skirts in cherry red and mustard, and Tory Burch put low-slung pants and monogrammed textiles front and center²². Collina Strada paired pastel lilac, butter yellow and green looks with black tulle and dark lace versions of the same pieces, and Luar used bright cobalt²⁷.

Planning Your Fashion Week Experience

Ticket Access and Venue Information

Admission to the official shows is by invitation. Every show on the Paris provisional calendar is listed that way, and many are also marked for livestream or digital release. Hermès, for example, is listed with a film of its show released at 5:30 p.m. Paris time³. In New York, some collections on the official schedule are shown only digitally or by appointment⁸.

The calendars also separate runway shows from presentations and appointment-only showings. Milan's final calendar counts 54 runway shows against 85 presentations², and Paris lists 76 shows and 36 presentations⁴. Milan saves its last day, Monday, September 29, for digital shows, including Maxivive, Mein Corp by Italian designer Lorenzo Sala, and Zenam, the label of Cameroonian designer Paul Tanonkou⁵.

For dates and times, the official calendars are the most reliable guide. The CFDA publishes New York's schedule through its Fashion Calendar⁸, CNMI publishes Milan's², and the FHCM publishes Paris's³. The provisional times can change, so check them close to each date.

Venues are part of the story each season. This season's announced venues include Terminal Warehouse for Michael Kors²⁴, St. Bartholomew's parish for Prabal Gurung²², the courtyard of Palazzo Brera for Giorgio Armani² and the Grand Palais for Chanel⁴.

Global Fashion Week Impact and Industry Influence

New York City's own estimate dates from February 2015, when the city said its two fashion weeks a year drew about 232,000 attendees to more than 500 shows, for a total economic impact of $887 million³⁴. The same announcement said the fashion industry employed more than 180,000 New Yorkers, and that New York's wholesale fashion market attracts more than 500,000 visitors a year to its trade shows, showrooms and fashion shows³⁴. In a September 2015 op-ed, Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney wrote that New York Fashion Week and the U.S. Open together generate more than $1.5 billion in economic impact for the New York area. Citing a Joint Economic Committee Democratic staff report, she called fashion a $1.75 trillion global industry. She put New York City's fashion industry at $98 billion and said the semiannual New York Fashion Weeks by themselves generate close to $900 million a year³⁵.

France has its own measure. A 2018 study by the Institut Français de la Mode and Quadrat Etudes found that French fashion generates €154 billion in direct turnover, 3.1% of GDP in direct and indirect added value, and 1 million jobs³⁶.

The Milan season opens against weak figures for Italian fashion. At the Milan calendar presentation, CNMI forecast that 2025 sales for fashion and related industries would fall 3.6% to €92.4 billion, with exports expected to fall 3% to €88.4 billion. Capasa blamed tariff threats, geopolitical instability and weak domestic demand².

The big groups are feeling it too. LVMH, which owns Dior, Loewe and Givenchy, reported first-half 2025 revenue of €39.8 billion, down 4%, with its Fashion & Leather Goods sales down 8% to €19.1 billion. Profit from recurring operations in that business fell 18% to €6.6 billion, and group net profit fell 22% to €5.7 billion³⁷. Kering's first-half revenue fell 16% to €7.6 billion. Yves Saint Laurent's fell 10% on a comparable basis, and Gucci's recurring operating margin dropped to 16.0%, down 8.7 points. In the second quarter, Kering said sales in its own stores fell 29% in Japan on a comparable basis, mainly because of a sharp decline in tourism⁷.

Bain and Altagamma put the personal luxury goods market at €364 billion in 2024, down 1%. They estimated that the market slid a further 1% to 3% in the first quarter of 2025, and linked the pressure to economic and trade tensions, and to a growing disillusionment with luxury among younger shoppers, notably Generation Z⁶.

Hypebeast framed the Paris debuts in those terms, asking whether the wave of new creative directors could turn around a sector hit by falling sales, labor scandals, data breaches and tariffs⁴. The Associated Press made a similar point in March, reporting that LVMH had been recasting key creative roles to reignite growth after luxury's post-pandemic slowdown¹⁵.

Conclusion

By the time Paris closes on October 7, the eleven houses covered here will have shown first collections under new designers, and Milan will have closed its week with the Giorgio Armani show. New York's week is already done. It opened on a relaxed note with Michael Kors, welcomed new designers at Proenza Schouler and Area, and filled its front rows. The calendars from the CFDA, CNMI and FHCM set out what comes next.