The Balenciaga of 2020 might be best known for its graphic hoodies as well as technological footwear, yet the brand is going back to its couture roots – and inviting men to the party for the first time.
Demna Gvasalia, Balenciaga’s creative director since 2015, first revealed his objective to relaunch haute couture in January. The brand hasn’t had a couture line since its Spanish founder, Cristobal Balenciaga, closed his original studio in 1968.
Now, it’s coming back and including both mens and womenswear.
Gvasalia won’t be the first to include male haute couture in a collection, both John Galliano and Bouchra Jarrar have put unisex couture to the forefront. However, Balenciaga’s take will surely be uniqe. It has solid brand visibility and managed to ride the line between Instagramable streetwear and elegant eveningwear.
Haute Couture is highly regulated, and overseen by a formal body – however that won’t be Gvasalia’s biggest challenge here. Before shutting up shop, Mr Balenciaga was seen as the biggest name in Couture. Christian Dior famous said that Balenciaga was, “the master of us all” while Coco Chanel referred to him as, “a couturier in the truest feeling of the words”.
The brand will have some time to get its designs sorted however. Balenciaga’s first show in half a century will be in JUly 2021.
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