Alessandro Michele To Lead Valentino and Marine Serre Is Pitti Uomo 106’s Guest Designer in This Week’s Top Fashion News

This week, some of fashion’s biggest news moments spanned a crucial creative director announcement, new campaigns and collaborations and more.

Leading the charge was the announcement of Alessandro Michele as Valentino’s new creative director. On its heels was the announcement of Marine Serre as Pitti Immagine Uomo 106’s guest designer.

Elsewhere, Coach revealed Jayson Tatum as a new brand ambassador; Balenciaga released its Summer 2024 campaign; Supreme x MM6 Maison Margiela dropped its Spring 2024 collaboration and Karl Lagerfeld’s Paris apartment sold for $10.8 million USD.

Below, Hypebeast has rounded up the top fashion stories of the week so you can stay up to date on trends in the industry.

Alessandro Michele Named Valentino’s New Creative Director

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Last week it was announced that Pierpaolo Piccioli is leaving Valentino after a 25-year career with the luxury house. To the pleasant surprise of many, it was shortly announced that Alessandro Michele will be Valentino’s next creative director.

The designer most notably spent 20 years at Gucci – holding the esteemed creative director role from 2015 through 2022 where he brought the Italian house into new fiscal territory. “It’s an incredible honor,” Michele told the outlet. “I feel the immense joy and the huge responsibility to join a Maison de Couture that has the word ‘beauty’ carved on a collective story made of distinctive elegance, refinement, and extreme grace.”

The designer will begin his post at Valentino on Tuesday, April 2. Michele’s debut collection for the house is set for the Spring/Summer 2025 season, which will take place during Paris Fashion Week in September.

Marine Serre Named Pitti Immagine Uomo 106’s Guest Designer

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Marine Serre has been announced as the guest designer for Pitti Immagine Uomo 106, which is scheduled to take place from June 11-14 in Florence, Italy.

With her successful track record, also being a Paris Fashion Week mainstay, it makes sense that the designer be plucked for the renowned Pitti Immagine Uomo event. The French designer is set to reveal her menswear fashion show on Wednesday, June 12 during the festivities. However, the location of the show is yet to be revealed.

“It’s an honor for me and my team to be the Guest Designer of Pitti Uomo this season,” said Serre. “We’re looking forward to bringing the essence of MARINE SERRE to Florence, mixing craftsmanship our way, and shaking the lines of what’s expected to be, bringing imagination at the service of transformation.”

Stay tuned for Hypebeast’s forthcoming coverage of Marine Serre’s menswear show at Pitti Immagine Uomo 106.

Coach Welcomes Jayson Tatum as New Ambassador

Coach

Coach is expanding its portfolio by welcoming Jayson Tatum as a new brand ambassador.

To debut the new partnership, the Boston Celtics Small Forward appears in the brand’s Spring 2024 campaign against pastel landscapes while wearing the “Gradient Keyhole Square Sunglasses” and “Jackson Watch.”

“Jayson is an inspiring individual who captures the spirit of confidence and authentic self-expression at the heart of Coach,” said Coach’s creative director, Stuart Vevers.

Balenciaga Summer 2024 Campaign Tricks the Eye With Luxurious Seamless Backdrops

Balenciaga

Balenciaga has revealed its new Summer 2024 campaign through a portfolio of still and move portraits shot by Jitka Hanzlová.

The new campaign leans into the nature of trompe-l’oeil with realistic backdrops that reveal ballrooms, halls and fancy foyers. “In these portraits, a line is blurred between a three-dimensional person and a two-dimensional space, questioning the ideas of luxury that the interiors propose,” the brand explained.

Additionally, the campaign stars the likes of Demna’s mother, Ella, his husband BFRND, his former professor, Linda Loppa, actress Renata Litvinova, Krish Ghai, artist Eliz Douglas and a hose of models like Tommy Blue, Simone Embrack, Bibi Hoad, Jay Pak and more.

Supreme x MM6 Maison Margiela Spring 2024 Collaboration

Supreme

To liven the Spring 2024 season, Supreme has revealed its new collaboration with MM6 Maison Margiela.

Bringing the new collaboration into the fold are pieces like a faux fur coat, a deconstructed varsity jacket, a metallic and aged work jacket, a washed cotton suit and vest, hoodies and more. Through the range of items, the collaboration fuses Supreme’s signature streetwear pieces with MM6 Maison Margiela’s avant-garde tailoring.

The Supreme x MM6 Maison Margiela Spring 2024 collaboration has been released via Supreme in the U.S. and will be released on March 30 in Japan.

Karl Lagerfeld’s Futuristic Paris Apartment Sells for $10.8M USD

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Karl Lagerfeld’s Paris apartment has sold for $10.8 million USD (€10 million EUR).

The late German fashion designer and Fendi and Chanel creative director is still known as one of the foremost figures in fashion. Therefore, of course, his home had to match not just his esteem but his personality.

Selling for just over double the guide price, the apartment rests in a 17th-century building in Paris’ Saint-Thomas d’Aquin district overlooking the Seine River. The designer remodeled the apartment to have a “futuristic style” which consists of concrete floors and walls of sandblasted glass alongside a completely stainless steel kitchen.

Additionally, the apartment comprises 2,800 square feet alongside a 540-square-foot dressing room.