Stars entering the show — a mix of surrealism and glamour — sheltered under black umbrellas. The presentation included the edgy brand’s new collaboration with Under Armour.
Amid pouring rain, Demna Gvasalia’s latest Balenciaga collection was staged at nightfall in Shanghai on May 30 on the banks of the Huangpu River. Held on the rooftop of Shanghai’s Museum of Art Pudong (PAM), the runway event saw brand ambassador Michelle Yeoh, Sophie Marceau and singer Juyeon of The Boyz sheltering under large black umbrellas.
Held independently of the Paris fashion show calendar — and following the Pre-Fall 2024 fashion presentation held on a street in Los Angeles last December — Balenciaga’s new Spring 2025 collection came to light among the skyscrapers of the bustling Chinese metropolis. The mood: very theatrical, almost somber, visually impactful, provocative and offbeat. It is atypical for spring with Balenciaga putting mostly black in place of the colors of the beautiful season, with looks poised between surrealism and glamour.
On the runway, there was a parade of nightmarish figures, elongated silhouettes wearing super-high boots with XXL platforms, imposing sneakers with a six-inch midsole, and jackets where everything from the shoulders to the sleeves seemed oversized. It is a wardrobe that mixes classic garments from the brand with innovative super-elongated silhouettes inspired by the skyscrapers of cosmopolitan metropolises. The imaginative finds have already gone viral on social media because of Balenciaga’s skill at creating unique accessories so singular and bold.
Among the items were a shirt and a trench coat that became a bag, what looked like a shoebox or a bag of chips was actually a clutch bag, and a dress case became a red carpet evening gown. Everything is frayed, deliberately worn and ruined, even the shoulder straps of bags.
Look 52 from Balenciaga’s Spring 2025 collection shown in Shanghai.
Courtesy of Balenciaga
The collection also highlighted the collaboration with sports brand Under Armour, with its first drop of garments and accessories that aim to repeat the commercial success of the past partnership between Balenciaga and Adidas.
It includes zippered, front-pocket sweatshirts, oversized T-shirts, embroidered baseball caps, baggy shorts, wide sweatpants and socks, with already many available for purchase following the end of the show. Also on the runway was a limited-edition Balenciaga x Alipay (China’s largest digital payment system) T-shirt that was somewhat reminiscent of Vetements’ much-coveted DHL T-shirt.
This story originally ran on The Hollywood Reporter Roma.