By Kate Salgado

On May 19th, 2025, the French luxury goods company Kering and the iconic Spanish fashion house Balenciaga shared a joint post on Instagram, announcing “the appointment of Pierpaolo Piccioli as creative director of Balenciaga”. Receiving the torch from Demna Gvasalia, Pierpaolo Piccioli has an iconic legacy to uphold. However, Piccioli is a connoisseur of couture; over the past 10 years, Balenciaga has been widely recognised for its loud and unique streetwear aesthetic, with Demna wielding irony to create outrageous interpretations of couture. As a result of this announcement, many people in the fashion world are asking themselves how Piccioli will translate this into his own design language and bring a new lease of life to Balenciaga?

Previously the creative director of Valentino, Piccioli stood down from his role on March 22 in 2024 after a tenacious 20 years working for the house. In recent years, Piccioli’s most recognised work takes form in his elegant, elaborate gowns, with signature motifs of glamour, romance and confidence, or perhaps the iconic Pink PP, a powerful shade of fuschia created with Pantone, which dominated the stage of his AW22 show and is most notably worn by Valentino brand ambassador Zendaya throughout the campaign collection.

Valentino FW22 campaign shoot, Michael Bailey-Gates

A major reason why the announcement of Piccioli taking over from Demna shocked the fashion industry is the fact that this suggests Kering, Balenciaga’s parent company, wants to take the house in a different direction; with Demna’s bold, somewhat satirical designs such as Kim Kardashian’s all black ensemble at the 2021 Met Gala, his SS23 mud show in Paris and his fetish-inspired Resort ‘23 show at the New York Stock Exchange, his design language is a clear response to traditions and preconceived expectations, and could be considered a social reaction to ongoing events in the wider world through changing the concept of garments when it comes to couture. However controversial his work may have been, it’s hard to overlook the fact that Balenciaga under Demna was incredibly sought after and became infamous in its own right, thanks to his ability to amass a ‘cult following’ and consistently produce highly acclaimed pieces. Demna transformed and inevitably challenged the lengths haute couture would stretch to, which reimagined the brand we have been seeing on the runway and in the streets for the past 10 years.

Valentino Haute Couture SS20 look 52, photographer unknown

Piccioli, although a master in couture and a seasoned candidate for this role, is more typically known for his striking designs that are centred on strength, beauty and inclusivity than the current streetwear aesthetic of Balenciaga. He aims to honour and embrace the past while simultaneously looking to the future, celebrating modernity and championing diversity, which to him is the definition of beauty. We as the audience should remember not to be too quick to jump to conclusions about the passing of the torch from Demna, as Piccioli has a unique ability to craft, incredible talent and range, and has proven himself as more than worthy for this coveted position. Effective on July 10th of this year, Pierpaolo Piccioli’s first collection as creative director will be an SS26 show held during Paris Fashion Week, which is sure to be a visually refreshing take on couture in regards to the house’s past collections.

In many previous interviews, Piccioli has stated that he is aware Balenciaga already exists. He is not coming to radicalise or reinvent the iconic fashion house, but rather continue the story Cristóbal Balenciaga has created; this is simply his own chapter in the ever-evolving world of fashion and haute couture. He recognises the target audience that already exists and knows who he will be presenting his work to. The fashion world must say goodbye to Pink PP and instead welcome the bold, graceful, philosophical idea of Balenciaga under Piccioli. Demna Gvasalia’s legacy will hardly be forgotten, but it’s exciting to imagine and soon see in late 2025, what Pierpaolo Piccioli will bring to the table for the new future of the innovative House of Balenciaga.

Goodbye Pink PP; Pierpaolo Piccioli the new creative Director of Balenciaga