Ten 10 key takeaways from the spring 2027 season, which was heavy on knee-length skirts-and eye-catching stunts
By Chantal Fernandez
At the spring 2027 fashion weeks, which wrapped up in Paris on Tuesday, the industry's focus was not always on the cut of a jacket, but also on stunts taking on class anxieties and AI. Here, standout moments off and on the runways this season.
John Galliano's Zara debut raises eyebrows -- and sells fast
What happened: Weeks after plans to fête John Galliano at next year's Met Gala were canceled amid renewed scrutiny of the designer, Galliano's first collection for Zara debuted during Paris Fashion Week. The collection recalled his designs for Dior and Maison Margiela -- and raised eyebrows for its non-fast-fashion prices (bags for $699, dresses for $359). Some styles sold out in days after being released.
What to make of it: Before the gala and corresponding exhibition reopened questions about Galliano's legacy, he had quietly regained success as a designer. Shoppers could decide if they cared about his reputation. His newest collection proves his vision still converts into sales.
Chanel and Dries Van Noten are winners of the big designer reset
What happened: A year after more than a dozen luxury houses installed new designers as creative directors, winners of that shuffle have clearly emerged, including Matthieu Blazy at Chanel and Julian Klausner at Dries Van Noten. Both designers are reinvigorating their brands without alienating the core customers.
What to make of it: A joyful, crafty maximalism is replacing quiet luxury.
Saint Laurent's designer leaves the industry in suspense
What happened: Saint Laurent's latest presentation sure seemed like a goodbye from Anthony Vaccarello, who is widely rumored to be leaving the label after 10 years. Set on a shiny gold runway across the Seine from the Eiffel Tower and featuring almost exclusively gold looks, the show culminated with Vaccarello handing off a key, which he gave to his young son in the audience.
What to make of it: No comment yet from parent company Kering, which also owns Gucci and Bottega Veneta. Vaccarello's exit would come at a critical time for the company, which is starting to show signs of recovery after a multiyear slump.
Anna Wintour goes all-in on AI
What happened: At Vogue World, the magazine's annual ticketed runway show extravaganza, humanoid Unitree Robotics robots plodded down the catwalk at the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in Milan. Sponsors for the event included Meta Glasses and OpenAI. A pro-tech message also permeated Vogue's promotions of the event, which included casting supermodel Vittoria Ceretti as "Vittori-AI" in a video with AI-generated special effects.
What to make of it: Amid widespread fears about the future of AI, Vogue is embracing new technologies and the companies that profit from them.
The fashion brand taking aim at billionaires
What happened: By mixing intricate evening wear with anticapitalist commentary, Matières Fécales, or Fecal Matter, has over the past year broken out as a high-fashion provocateur taking aim at the 1%. The brand centered its latest show on the 99%, a focus driven home by the way suited male mannequins blindfolded by dollar bills were carried on the backs of some models in its all nonwhite cast.
What to make of it: Most luxury labels are prioritizing the world's wealthiest shoppers, who represent the majority of their sales. The flurry of attention on Matières Fécales shows that criticizing elites can grab eyeballs.
Skirts are the trend of the season
What happened: Miuccia Prada and her co-creative director Raf Simons dedicated an entire collection to Prada's favorite item. The Prada show featured 63 different knee-length skirts -- some pleated, some embroidered, some tied together with Velcro. The silhouette of the season was also prominent at Chanel, Dries Van Noten, Jil Sander and Kallmeyer.
What to make of it: The tradwife staple has a new trendy appeal. Prepare to see statement skirts everywhere from the streets of Paris to Walmart.
A head rolls after a PETA headlock
What happened: When anti-wool PETA activists walked from the crowd onto a runway in New York, Steven Kolb, the head of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, aggressively pinned one of them down and pushed another. The shocking altercation was caught on video. Kolb apologized in a statement on Instagram, and resigned less than a week later.
What to make of it: Kolb led the CFDA for 20 years and the organization is searching for a new leader, who could shift the power dynamics of New York fashion. Meanwhile, PETA proved that after years of protesting fashion shows, its stunts can still generate headlines.
Gucci makes a not-so-subtle plea for shoppers
What happened: After influential tenures at Balenciaga and Vetements, creative director Demna joined Gucci last year to help turnaround the Italian megabrand troubled by years of lagging sales. Known for stunts, he built a fantasy version of a Gucci flagship store for his latest show and cast socialites and influencers as models.
What to make of it: Demna's take on Gucci has been entertaining and polarizing, but the label still lacks the product-moving heat of its past heydays under designers Alessandro Michele and Tom Ford.
The sequel to a viral $100 T-shirt
What happened: Emerging designer Conner Ives is beloved by uptown women for his embroidered silk skirts and fur-trimmed coats. But he's better known for a $100 tee that reads "Protect the Dolls," which has been worn by progressive pop singers and movie stars online and off (proceeds went to the nonprofit Trans Lifeline). This season, Ives followed it with a new tee that costs $180 and says "Bring Back Shame."
What to make of it: Ives seems to possess two qualities needed to break out in fashion today -- a vision that justifies luxury prices and a meme-able sense of humor that reaches people.
London is back on the fashion map
What happened: Alexander McQueen, still finding its footing under creative director Seán McGirr, had its first show in London since 2001. Meanwhile, Christopher Kane, who lit up London fashion with neon designs in the late 2000s before closing his namesake line in 2023, returned with a promising first collection for Mulberry.
What to make of it: London has long had a reputation as a city for edgy independent designers without much commercial impact, but its fashion week could reassert itself as more than just a steppingstone to Paris if these comebacks prove successful.
This article is being republished as part of our daily reproduction of WSJ.com articles that also appeared in the U.S. print edition of The Wall Street Journal (October 10, 2026).