Because couture can read as a relic of a bygone era, it’s also crucial for designers to appeal to a younger audience and find other ways to delight clients. “A major challenge is keeping haute couture cool and contemporary, in step with our times, even when it comes to an evening gown,” says Mabille, who last season innovated dresses that could transform into double looks — black on one side; gold or fuchsia on the other.
For a brand like Hermès, traditionally known for understatement rather than red carpet dressing, the rationale is less obvious. A spokesperson for the brand told Vogue Business that it was not currently commenting on couture ahead of the show. Still, experts see an opportunity for Hermès to emphasize its commitment to craftsmanship while reaching a younger audience online. “It [represents] huge marketing around the name, and Hermès definitely needs it for young people, because [the brand] is not really on their radar,” says Viglezio. “And if they do an astonishing couture, they might become visible on their screens.”
“We also know that some of the super rich who are shopping Hermès bags also do have the budget to shop couture,” adds Chabbi. “It’s a two birds, one stone situation.”
The future of couture
The couture market isn’t booming across the board. Giambattista Valli canceled its January couture show at the last minute after a review of its operations; it decided not to hold the show “to ensure the company’s sustainability”. Valentino, meanwhile, has slimmed down its couture shows to only once a year to cut costs (Balenciaga also shows couture annually, much like Margiela).
“It is a very hard business because it demands a lot of labor and skill, but the volumes are incredibly small and it is hard to scale,” says Saunders. To succeed from a commercial perspective, couture requires a small but very loyal customer base while also working to burnish the brand’s image. “Couture might not be a money-spinner directly, but it may have a very positive impact on sales of regular products, or on how a brand is perceived.” In this sense, it can also be viewed as a marketing expense, but, as Saunders says, “only the very premium brands will find this worthwhile.”
Lepor similarly sees couture as a long-term investment in brand value. “The artistry and creativity of couture can inspire customers and enthusiasts to covet a brand, cultivating lasting admiration across generations,” she says. “Investing in couture is not a short-term play, it’s a long-term strategy that can drive sales across verticals and broader brand loyalty over time.”
Couture shows, she adds, are just as much for brand enthusiasts as for existing clients, reinforcing a brand’s vision and artistry even when the collections are not profitable in their own right.
Ultimately, the renewed focus on couture may be less about a fundamental market shift than a way for brands to extend their reach — whether to clients spending private jet money on bespoke gowns, to shoppers saving up to buy a shirt off the rack after being enchanted by the spectacle. As Chabbi puts it: “There’ll always be rich people the same way there’ll always be red carpets. It’s just the way it operates.”
