Balenciaga has officially announced the appointment of Pierpaolo Piccioli as its new creative director, effective July 10, 2025. Piccioli, renowned for his tenure at Valentino, will succeed Demna Gvasalia, who is set to take on the role of chief designer at Gucci.
Piccioli brings with him a wealth of experience from his 25-year career at Valentino, where he served as the sole creative director for nearly a decade. His debut collection for Balenciaga is scheduled to be presented in October 2025 during Paris Fashion Week.
This leadership change at Balenciaga comes amid a broader restructuring by Kering to rejuvenate its top brands amid declining sales. Balenciaga, once critically acclaimed for its ready-to-wear and haute couture collections, faced backlash in late 2022 over a controversial ad campaign, leading to reputational damage and declining sales from €2 billion in 2022 to €1.5 billion in 2023.
Industry observers are keen to see how Piccioli’s romantic and expressive aesthetic will influence Balenciaga’s future collections, especially considering the brand’s recent history of provocative and boundary-pushing designs under Demna.
