The Creative Director Is Not the Problem
Only a few days ago, Olivier Rousteing was confirmed as the new creative director of Rabanne, with his debut collection scheduled for March 2027. Julien Dossena had stepped down from the house just weeks earlier, while Antonin Tron had already begun a new chapter at Balmain. Two major French houses reshuffled almost back-to-back, barely leaving enough time for one announcement to settle before the next arrived. This is what fashion's mercato looks like today. Not a crisis in the dramatic sense, but a permanent state of motion. Every few weeks, another house announces a departure, another appointment, and another new chapter. The industry borrowed the word from football's transfer market, and the comparison has become surprisingly accurate. The Transfer Window Over the past two years, nearly every major maison has changed creative leadership. Pierpaolo Piccioli left Valentino after twenty-five years. Jonathan Anderson left Loewe after eleven years. Matthieu Blazy moved fr...