Valentino drops first collection designed by Alessandro Michele

Alessandro Michele, the newly appointed creative director of Valentino, unveiled a surprise pre-spring 2025 collection look book during the penultimate day of Milan men's fashion week, three months before his highly anticipated debut runway show. The collection, consisting of 171 looks and 91 detail shots of accessories, marks the triumphant return of Michele's signature maximalist vision, much to the delight of the fashion industry.

Mr. Michele's opulent aesthetic, which effortlessly blends the contemporary with the antiquated and blurs the lines between genres, has been greatly missed in the fashion world. As luxury brands increasingly focus on producing mediocre merchandise disguised as high-end crafted goods, customers are yearning for genuine craftsmanship and individuality, qualities that Michele's designs embody.

Room for experimentation

During his tenure at Gucci, Michele's creative direction propelled the brand to new heights of financial success. However, since his departure, the brand has struggled to maintain its growth trajectory under the pressure of Kering's demand for consistently robust and outperforming turnover. At Valentino, where there is more room for experimentation across multiple categories, Mr. Michele's influence is expected to have a significant impact on both the fashion and financial fronts.

In an interview with Vogue Runway, Mr. Michele described his approach to Valentino's Pre-Spring 2025 collection as a collaborative effort, stating, "I started working at Valentino as if we were an orchestra; everyone was playing his instrument with so much love and dedication that I thought it'd be right to be thankful and grateful to the people who have worked so tirelessly to make it happen." He emphasized the importance of sharing and bringing the collection to light, viewing it as a beginning born out of love.

Valentino's decision to release the collection before the end of 2024 demonstrates the brand's ability to learn from the missteps of its competitors. In contrast to Gucci's delayed debut ranges under creative director Sabato De Sarno, Valentino recognizes the importance of providing customers with a minimal viable product to engage them in a new era of discovery.

As the fashion world eagerly awaits Alessandro Michele's first runway collection for Valentino, his pre-spring 2025 look book serves as a tantalizing preview of the creative vision that is set to redefine the iconic Italian fashion house.