The fashion set return to Milan this week, bringing back glamour and runway revelry to Italy's northern city that has been wrapped up in Olympics fever.
Hundreds of buyers and media from around the world will descend on the fashion capital beginning Tuesday (Feb 24) for Milan Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2026 and its more than 50 runway shows from top Italian luxury names like Dolce & Gabbana, Prada and Giorgio Armani.
The upcoming shows, which run through March 2, come during a "moment of extraordinary visibility for Milan", sandwiched between the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics and the Paralympic Games, Mayor Giuseppe Sala told journalists earlier this month.
Fashion watchers are eagerly awaiting the first collection of veteran Dior and Valentino designer Maria Grazia Chiuri for Fendi, the Rome-based luxury label where she began her career 35 years ago, now owned by French fashion conglomerate LVMH.
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And eyes will be on the Gucci runway to see if the debut looks presented by new artistic director Demna Gvasalia, formerly of Balenciaga, are compelling enough to help reverse a protracted sales slump at Kering's flagship brand.
The week's festivities will be a welcome distraction from a myriad of challenges facing the luxury fashion industry, which has struggled against a two-year global slowdown in demand, fuelled by high inflation, economic turbulence and geopolitical uncertainty.
A warning from LVMH chief executive Bernard Arnault last month that "2026 won't be simple either" points to the difficulty of a sector recovery.
The president of the National Chamber of Italian Fashion, Carla Capasa, told journalists this month that revenue in Italy's fashion industry was estimated to rise in 2026 by a mere 1%.
The industry has also seen the recent passing of two designer giants, who enjoyed outsized influence on the world of fashion and exemplified the art of Italian tailoring.
Giorgio Armani, 91, died in September and Valentino Garavani, known just as Valentino, died in January aged 93.
Green, white, red
The Olympics opening ceremony paid tribute to Armani, whose Emporio Armani brand has dressed Italy's Olympic athletes since 2012. Willowy models dressed in satin suits of green, white and red paraded across the stage in three lines, mirroring the Italian tricolour flag.
Top Italian model Vittoria Ceretti was flag bearer, wearing a high-collared white Armani gown that recalled that worn by Carla Bruni for Italy's last Winter Olympics in Turin in 2006.
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Official marketing for Milan Fashion Week has also tapped Olympics fever, with billboards featuring brooding models in an Alpine landscape, carrying vintage iceskates, skis and other sports equipment hailing from the Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Milan is expected to get a financial boost of €320mil (approximately RM1.5bil) from the Winter Games, while the February fashion week typically brings in about €200mil (RM917mil), according to Milan city council member Alessia Cappello.
"The two things influence each other. Some people come for fashion and stay for the Olympics, or vice versa." – AFP
