It’s official: Pierpaolo Piccioli is Balenciaga’s new creative director
Balenciaga has a new king: Pierpaolo Piccioli has just been officially confirmed as creative director. The man responsible for Valentino’s hot pink era is taking the reins from former head honcho Demna (who announced his move to Gucci in March this year), and will likely usher in a new age of bold, hyper-colourful fashion. Which, granted, is a big key change from the Balenciaga trademark of audacious culty set pieces. But there’s every reason to believe that it’ll be just as impactful.
Announced just this evening, Piccioli was one of several names floated on the internet as the frontrunner. Now, the rumours can be laid to rest. Francesca Bellettini, deputy CEO of Kering, Balenciaga’s parent company, said in the official release: “I couldn’t be happier to welcome Pierpaolo to the group. He is one of the most talented and celebrated designers of today. His mastery of haute couture, his creative voice, and his passion for savoir-faire made him the ideal choice for the house.”
And it’s those two words – haute couture – that are very much Piccioli’s bread and butter. As the most elite collections of the most elite brands, this offshoot of luxury fashion is custom designed, and often deemed to be the ultimate expression in fashion-as-art. Funnily enough, that is Balenciaga’s backbone too; founder Cristóbal Balenciaga opened his first couture store in Paris, 1937, and he is largely credited for introducing a sleeker, more sculptural fluidity that was pretty novel for the time. For all of Demna’s teeth baring, fashion shock antics, his couture was well-received for its faithfulness to Balenciaga’s heritage, and Piccioli will no doubt continue the hot streak. Plus, he has quite the CV: the designer spent a quarter of a century at Valentino. He announced his departure in March last year.
What that means for menswear remains to be seen. But under Piccioli, you could expect languid elegance, and maximum colour. “I must first and foremost thank Demna; I’ve always admired his talent and vision,” Piccioli wrote in a letter that accompanied the announcement. “I couldn’t ask for a better passing of the torch.”
Pierpaolo Piccioli‘s runway debut for Balenciaga will be unveiled in October 2025, during Paris fashion week.
First published on gq-magazine.co.uk
