This week, Paris will become the epicentre of fashion’s next era as it kicks off the Spring/Summer 2026 season of catwalk shows and presentations. While the calendar is full as usual, with 74 shows and 37 presentations lined up to be exact, what really makes this season unmissable is the sheer wave of leadership changes and creative-director debuts set to redefine several legacy houses. 

Paris Fashion Week in Context

Paris has long held its place as the crown jewel of the “Big Four” fashion weeks. It’s where haute couture was born in the 19th century with Charles Frederick Worth’s private salons, and where the first official Paris Fashion Week was organised in 1973 under the Federation that still governs it today.

Haute Couture Week remains a showcase of extraordinary craftsmanship and made-to-measure artistry, but Ready-to-Wear Fashion Week is about reach, relevance, and spectacle, and this season brings a rare wave of transformation with multiple high-profile debuts.

The Big Creative Debuts to Watch

Jonathan Anderson at Dior

Jonathan Anderson steps into one of fashion’s most scrutinised roles, leading Dior’s women’s, men’s, haute couture, and accessories under a unified creative vision, a structure the house hasn’t operated under since Christian Dior himself.

While we already saw his first men’s collection earlier in the year, his first official women’s runway show in Paris is expected to be a defining moment, with observers keen to see how he reconciles his bold, craft-driven approach with Dior’s storied codes. 

Matthieu Blazy at Chanel

Chanel’s new creative director, Matthieu Blazy, will unveil his first collection for the house in Paris. This moment marks a symbolic transition, the third major shift in leadership since the passing of Karl Lagerfeld and the departure of Virginie Viard.  All eyes will be on how Blazy balances continuity and innovation, and whether he leans into the quiet luxury, modern references, or reinterprets core Chanel motifs in a more experimental key.

Pierpaolo Piccioli at Balenciaga 

Perhaps no debut is as charged with expectation as Pierpaolo Piccioli’s takeover at Balenciaga. Formerly at Valentino, Piccioli was appointed on 10 July 2025 to succeed Demna, who had led the house since 2015.

Jack McCollough & Lazaro Hernandez at Loewe

After Jonathan Anderson’s departure from Loewe, the brand is now in the hands of Proenza Schouler co-founders Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez. Their first show during this Paris week will surely be deeply scrutinised: can they maintain the brand’s leap into global cult status while imprinting their own language and sensibility? 

Additionally, other debut shows include Miguel Castro Freitas at Mugler, Mark Thomas at Carven, and the ripple effects of these shifts across the schedule. 

New Show Times and a changed calendar

Some houses are moving away from tradition: Chanel is staging a rare evening show, and Louis Vuitton has shifted to an earlier slot. These tweaks reflect changing strategies around audience, media cycles, and global attention windows.

This Paris season is less about trends and more about turning points. The fashion world is watching not just for standout silhouettes, but for the identities, values, and voices that these newly appointed creatives will bring to iconic houses.