Simon Porte Jacquemus has never heard of a schedule. We know this because, rather than presenting his collections in step with the official Paris timetable, for the last five years he’s danced to his own drum, showing months after the season’s end in glamorous locations across western Europe. It was all the more surprising then, that for AW25 Simon made his big return to Paris Fashion Week, even bringing tech giant Apple along with him to film the whole thing on an iPhone 16 Pro. Ironically, in returning to the schedule and doing the same as everybody else, the designer actually managed to generate record levels of anticipation for a Jacquemus catwalk – apparently absence does make the heart grow fonder when it comes to a fashion show. But if you weren’t one of the lucky few to bag an invite, do not fear – simply scroll down for everything that went down at Jacquemus’ La Croisière show.

THE INVITE MADE US SHED A TEAR

Hours out from the show, a handful of lucky editors would soon discover this season’s invite delivered to their hotels – but only for the object to blend in with the rest of the room. For AW25, Simon had selected the humble tissue box as an invite, subtly embossed with the Jacquemus logo and a personalised, hand-embroidered napkin within. Was the new collection about to be a tearjerker? Or was there a big dinner straight after the show? Either way, let’s hope some distracted guests didn’t throw theirs in the hotel bin.

THE SHOWSPACE WAS AN HOMAGE TO ICONIC FRENCH DESIGN

Each season, every Jacquemus location is more stunning than the last, whether it’s a modernist villa on a Capri cliffside, inside a prestigious art museum, or in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by fields of wheat. This season was no different, with Simon setting up shop in the historically preserved apartment of French architect Auguste Perret and his wife Jeanne Cordeau, at 51 Rue Raynouard.

“The apartment is a masterpiece of modern architecture, an exceptional testament to the architect’s work, designed by and for himself,” read the show notes placed on guests’ seats. “It is the manifesto of the greatest architectural production of the 1930s in Paris and an essential milestone in the oeuvre of Auguste Perret.” With the location, Simon seemed to boldly place himself within the lineage of iconic French design, and in doing so hinted at a reassessment of the Jacquemus house codes for AW25.

SIMON RANSACKED HIS LITTLE BLACK BOOK

As ever Simon dipped into his little black book of A-lister mates to fill his front row (okay his only row). Filing into the grand, historic apartment and ushered up by bellboys in chic little grey uniforms came The Last Showgirl Pamela Anderson in a sleek all-white look (brave given the weather), Tyla in a floor-sweeping black column gown with sexy cut-outs, plus Tems and Central Cee – seriously, it was like a who’s who of former Dazed cover stars. Simon has clearly been stockpiling copies of yours truly.

Also in attendance was Amelie herself, AKA French icon Audrey Tatou, British pop star Raye in a polka dot wrap dress, supermodel and former First Lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, and Monsters star Nicholas Alexander Chavez. 

THE CLOTHES WERE BOTH OLD HOLLYWOOD AND OLD JACQUEMUS

With this collection Simon explained post-show that he had wanted to strip things back and take the opportunity to dig back into his own archives. This meant a lot of the directional shapes he first made his name with, with dramatic sculptural gowns and coats reappearing for the season. Sexy bustier dresses with fishtails that emphasised the hips were first out the gate, before he had a go at voluminous 1940s-esque circle skirts which were matched with sleek, sporty windbeaters (one standout version came in semi-see-through white taffeta).

Simon also said he’d been really inspired by Old Hollywood and iconic, elegant movie stars for AW25, so out came a series of show-stopping looks – worn by runway legends Laetitia Casta and Adriana Lima – that took their cues from the curved lines of artist Erte’s illustrations. One 1930s-inspired floor-length column gown came in scarlet and was Jacquemus-ified for the contemporary wearer by having the sides stripped away to show plenty of back, side-boob, and the curve of the body as the waist leads into the bum, while the look Mona Tougaard wore came with its own attached opera glove which when extended turned the dress into a sculptural piece of art. Elsewhere, red carpet-ready pieces like a big egg-shaped ostrich feather two-piece (worn by Alex Consani) and a dramatic black and white polka dot number were both highlights that channelled past collections. 

The collection was called La Croisière, which translates to “The Cruise”, as Simon was also imagining the golden era of the cruise liner, when people would take massive trunks full of couture on their trips. So even though he was back in Paris for the first time in a while, his mind was as ever still on far-flung destinations.

Head to Dazed Fashion for everything else from the AW25 shows