OPINION / FRANCE

Paris Fashion Week Men’s lauds everyday life amid geopolitical uncertainty
By Grace Charlton

The Paris autumn/winter 2026 menswear edition had the unenviable task of taking place while The World Economic Forum was unfolding in Davos. The US president, in attendance, was dominating the global agenda and the media’s attention as he raised the spectre of hitting countries that opposed his takeover of Greenland with tariffs. And to think that, just a year ago, brands in the midst of a round of swapping creative directors were the ones grabbing headlines in the business pages.

“The US administration’s decision to impose a 50 per cent tariff on India a few months ago has rippled through the ecosystem in ways that are both abstract and brutally specific,” said Kartik Kumra, founder of the New Delhi-based brand Kartik Research. “We can follow the money; shift focus and try to sell more in Asia to cushion a slowdown in the US. But for the fabric vendors, embroiderers, loom artists and dyers in India, their margins are thinner,” he added, explaining how tariffs impact the fashion industry.

At his show (pictured above) an emphasis on craft infused the collection with a sense of generosity and national pride in the face of a lingering industry slowdown and the persistence of single-digit sales growth – and those tariffs. Elsewhere, designers also sought a sense of normality by celebrating the mundane as a form of resistance to an economic moment that is often beyond their control. 
 
Clothes for the work commute and the boardroom took centre stage. At Louis Vuitton (pictured below), the brand’s American creative director of menswear (and general multihyphenate), Pharrell Williams, showed his strongest collection to date. Models in ties and grey suits – rendered in technical, thermo-adaptive materials developed in the French luxury house’s atelier – evoked the Wall Street salarymen of the 1980s. Alexandre Mattiussi’s label, Ami Paris, brought a cross-section of Parisian society to the runway, from Sorbonne University students in baseball caps and wired headphones to financial consultants in oversized camel coats. 

This pursuit of the everyday (and the everyman and everywoman) is particularly salient in a time when many customers are tightening their purse strings. As a result, brands are doubling down on attending to the top-spending tier of VICs (very important clients). According to global consultancy Bain & Company, this group represents 2 per cent of the customer base but accounts for 45 per cent of global luxury purchases. In other words, the high price of luxury goods is not necessarily in line with a creative director’s intent on the runway, where functionality and accessible designs are shown and lauded for their effortless ease. 
 
For creative directors, the challenge now lies in developing their vision and sustaining interest as their luxury parent groups ride out the economic uncertainty. As the industry recalibrates and regroups after its flurry of new appointments and hirings, seeking simplicity where possible is an understandable urge.

Grace Charlton is Monocle’s associate editor of design and fashion. For more opinion, analysis and insight, subscribe to Monocle today.

Q&A / Ben Stubbington

Veilance’s creative director on technical-wear, defying trends and design with purpose

Los Angeles-based British designer Ben Stubbington is the creative director of Veilance, a premium line of technical-wear by Canadian brand Arc’teryx. Since taking over the role last year, Stubbington has focused on creating high-performance clothes for everyday urban life. The label showcased its new autumn/winter 2026 collection in Paris, which featured feather-light jackets, crisp shirts made from a Japanese washi paper blend and impeccably cut trousers. Here we speak to Stubbington about his vision for the label’s future. 

THE LIST / Best in show

Our top-10 highlights from a pristine Paris Fashion Week

The competition for attention was fierce in Paris, where 67 brands staged presentations and shows as part of the autumn/winter 2026 line-up. We round up the 10 that caught our eye, from the end of an era at Hermès to a masterclass in colour courtesy of Japanese brand Auralee. Here’s one to start. 

What brands and designers caught the attention of our editors? Click here for more.

OVERHEARD AT... PARIS FASHION WEEK

We put our ear to the runway and it didn’t disappoint 

“I’ve never seen a traffic jam on the Boulevard des Sablons, what’s going on? Louis Vuitton, really? Himself?” 
– Paris taxi driver confused by the fashion-week mayhem outside the Fondation Louis Vuitton.

“Bello. Bello… Bellissimo. Wow. Wow! Bellissima la giacca. Anche la bella donna! Bello, bello, bello.” 
– Italian buyer enjoying the Auralee show.

“People complain about fashion week but I love it. Everyone looks so great and it brings us a lot of business.” 
– An uncharacteristically friendly Parisian waiter in the Marais neighbourhood.

“What’s the name of the creative director again?” “I don’t know, I can’t keep track.” 
– Two industry veterans sitting front row at the Dries Van Noten show. 

“Take the bread basket and butter away from me, it’s too tempting.” 
– A Japanese stylist on a quick bistro lunch break between shows.

THE LOOK / paris

Clouds loomed but Parisians made raincoats shine

Call it effortless, call it safe, French style fascinates. The ability of Parisians to put together jeans and a blazer – and make it seem noteworthy – is well documented, perhaps almost sycophantically so. If asked, a Parisian might shrug and chalk up this je ne sais quoi to the chic ether they all bathe in. In reality, the key to French style is as obvious as it seems: tried-and-tested basics in a pleasing colour palette, with exceptional silhouettes. This mindset was on full display on the streets of the French capital, where showgoers chose longline raincoats to counter the inclement forecast.