Ranking Fashion Month's creative director debuts, from Bottega Veneta to Chanel
The Glossy Podcast · with Demna, Matthieu Blazy, Pierpaolo Piccioli, Louise Trotter, Jonathan Anderson, Jack McCollough, Lazaro Hernandez · October 10, 2025 · 78 min
Summary
This episode offers an in-depth look at the luxury fashion world, from the economic impact of rising gold prices on jewelry brands to an investigation into labor practices at Tod's. The hosts then meticulously review and rank the most impactful new creative director debuts across Fashion Month, analyzing their collections based on design, showmanship, brand consistency, reception, and projected business impact.
Key takeaways
The rising price of gold acts as an economic indicator and directly impacts jewelry brands' production costs and pricing strategies.
Luxury brands, like Tod's, are facing increased scrutiny over labor practices, highlighting the growing importance of ethical sourcing and worker welfare in maintaining brand reputation.
Creative director debuts at major fashion houses are evaluated on a comprehensive set of criteria including aesthetic merit, show spectacle, brand consistency, public reception, and potential business impact.
New creative director appointments are critical moments for luxury brands, offering opportunities for reinvention and market repositioning.
The fashion industry is increasingly under pressure to balance artistic vision and brand heritage with commercial viability and ethical production standards.
On the Glossy Podcast, senior fashion reporter Danny Parisi, international reporter Zofia Zwieglinska and editor-in-chief Jill Manoff break down some of the biggest fashion news of the week. This week, we’re taking a look at the skyrocketing price of gold, the effect it has on jewelry brands and what it indicates about the health of the global economy. We also discuss an investigation into the labor practices of the Italian luxury brand Tod’s, which is the latest of several luxury brands to come under official scrutiny for the conditions in its workshops. And in the second half of the episode, we discuss the slate of big debuts at this season’s Fashion Month. Across New York, London, Milan and Paris Fashion Weeks, over a dozen brands debuted collections from new creative directors. We focus on six big debuts: Demna at Gucci, Matthieu Blazy at Chanel, Pierpaolo Piccioli at Balenciaga, Louise Trotter at Bottega Veneta, Jonathan Anderson at Dior, and Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez at Loewe. For each one, we give them a grade based on the clothes, the spectacle of the show, the consistency with the brand and its ethos, the reception, and the expected business impact on the brand as a whole. At the end of the episode, we tally up all our scores and see which debuts had the biggest impact and which ones left something to be desired.
The rising price of gold acts as an economic indicator and directly impacts jewelry brands' production costs and pricing strategies.
What does this episode say about supply chain & operations?
Luxury brands, like Tod's, are facing increased scrutiny over labor practices, highlighting the growing importance of ethical sourcing and worker welfare in maintaining brand reputation.
What does this episode say about finance & fundraising?
Creative director debuts at major fashion houses are evaluated on a comprehensive set of criteria including aesthetic merit, show spectacle, brand consistency, public reception, and potential business impact.
What does this episode say about founder & leadership?
New creative director appointments are critical moments for luxury brands, offering opportunities for reinvention and market repositioning.
What does this episode say about brand & content?
The fashion industry is increasingly under pressure to balance artistic vision and brand heritage with commercial viability and ethical production standards.
