Glenn Martens’ Margiela debut is closer than you think

Since Glenn Martens was announced as Maison Margiela’s new creative director in January, we’ve been patiently waiting for news of his first collection for the house – and now that wait is over. Today (May 12), the French maison released a statement confirming that Martens’ debut will take place in July 2025 – and it’s going to be couture.

“Maison Margiela is pleased to announce that creative director Glenn Martens will debut his first collection for the house during the Autumn/Winter 2025 Paris Haute Couture week in July,” read the statement. “This marks the beginning of an inspiring new chapter for the Maison, rooted in our core creative values and shaped by Margiela’s couture heritage.”

The Belgian designer previously designed a guest couture collection for Jean Paul Gauliter in 2022, which was universally lauded. In the statement released today, Maison Margiela also added that, under Matens’ direction, “couture will continue to ignite creativity for the brand and drive boundary pushing designs.”

This last statement is likely a reference to Margiela’s most recent couture offering, the house’s 2024 Artisanal runway show. A critically-acclaimed über-success and John Galliano’s swansong for the house, the collection was heralded as a return to the golden age of fashion, and cut through beyond the confines of the industry to make a noticeable mark on popular culture. The Pat McGrath marionette make-up was endlessly recreated on TikTok, people poured over the footage for months, and the show even got its own documentary, so it makes sense Margiela would want to harness that hype for the Martens era.

For some, the news that Martens will debut in July means his first Margiela collection is arriving much closer than we thought. It was generally rumoured that the Belgian designer would be starting with ready-to-wear for the SS26 season, rather than follow Galliano with his own couture collection. Despite the big shoes to fill, the decision could prove a canny one. Showing for AW25 rather than SS26 avoids a packed September schedule, featuring big debuts from Matthieu Blazy at Chanel, Louise Trotter at Bottega Veneta, and possibly Demna at Gucci and the Proenza boys at Loewe, however the last two are yet to be confirmed. Having said that, couture week still looks set to be a busy one, with Michael Rider presenting his Celine debut on July 6, and Demna leaving Balenciaga behind for good on July 9.

Scroll through the gallery above to revisit Maison Margiela’s 2024 Artisanal show, and the gallery below to see Martens’ take on JPG couture.