As Paris Fashion Week drew to a close on Sunday, menswear was in a reinvigorated form, with spectacle, innovation and the return of big-name designers to the catwalk.
The week ended with the surprise return of Hedi Slimane, former designer of Dior and Saint Laurent, now with French brand Celine. Just two years ago he announced that he was done with the official fashion calendar.
Slimane – who gained enormous influence in the 2000s as a stylist behind bands like The Libertines and Daft Punk – has not performed a live show in Paris since February 2020. He had dismissed them as “obsolete” and preferred to present collections of videos shot in luxurious French locations.
He didn’t provide an explanation for his reappearance on the runways, but he returns when menswear has a renaissance.
– ‘A Bang’ –
In recent seasons, men’s and women’s shows have often merged into one – at London Fashion Week the distinction was completely abolished.
But this week in Paris, the divide seemed to be confirmed again as houses look to increase their focus on menswear at a time when demand is booming.
US designer Matthew Williams presented his first-ever standalone menswear show for Givenchy this week.
“It’s good to give men and women space, each with their own platform, to tell a story,” Williams told fashion site WWD. “There’s more room for more looks.”
His show was based on real-world styles from his native California, he said, with lots of utilitarian knee-length shorts, cargo pants and relaxed knitwear — much of it monochrome with a few splashes of pastel hues.
“Commercially, menswear is a market that has been developing strongly, with particularly strong momentum in Asia that has sparked a boom for men’s ready-to-wear designers,” said Serge Carreira, fashion expert at Sciences Po University.
– ‘Easier to access’ –
Her first menswear show was also French Marine Serre, one of the biggest names to emerge in recent years.
The 30-year-old has put sustainability and inclusivity at the heart of her brand, and that was evident at her sports-themed show at a stadium outside Paris on Saturday.
Many pieces have been recycled from old scarves and linen – this had been made into everything from swimming trunks to flags and jerseys.
The models came in all shapes and sizes, from children to the elderly, alongside celebrities such as ex-soccer player Djibril Cisse and Paralympic gold medalist Alexis Hanquinquant, as well as Madonna’s daughter Lourdes Leon in one of the house’s moon-patterned signature styles.
“Thirty percent of our sales have been in the latest menswear collections – we’re not at 50/50, but we do quite a bit of menswear and we have no intention of doing less,” Serre told AFP after the show.
“Upcycling is pretty rare for men, but the dressing room is very good for it,” she added.
“These are shapes that are less complex: it’s easier and we can have better prices, which means it’s more accessible for everyone to wear upcycled parts.”
Well-known names have also left their mark this week.
Dior took inspiration from the label’s founder’s childhood in Normandy, with a floral garden catwalk and some straw hats and chic outdoor loungewear among the outfits.
Hermes was also in a relaxed, pastel vibe that inspired designer Veronique Nichanian of “lightness, comfort, fun and pops of color,” told AFP.
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