What saint Laurent's next designer should understand. Luxury giant Richemont and US retailer Signet Jewelers Ltd. are in talks to join a consortium that's in prime position to buy diamond miner De Beers, according to five people familiar with the matter. Saint Laurent's legacy is less a collection of codes than a way of seeing women and the world. Vaccarello's successor should look beyond iconic images and silhouettes to the convictions that shaped them, argues biographer Laurence Benaïm. The country has a massive domestic market and unique authority in hair and body care. Now it needs to stoke interest around the world. A subtle and contemporary Chinese-inflected aesthetic has long made the designer's label the star of Shanghai fashion week. After over a decade in business, he's finally ready for growth.

Richemont: 'A Bunch of Designers' unveil the work of its inaugural cohort through a three-week pop-up. During Paris Fashion Week, Richemont is turning its attention to the next generation of fashion talent with the first edition of its "A Bunch of Designers" programme. The initiative showcases six emerging designers from the AZ Academy in a Paris pop-up running from September 30 through October 17. Selected for their distinctive creative identities, commercial [...] By Daniel Martinez | 3 October 2026 PHOTO: Richemont: 'A Bunch of Designers' unveil the work of its inaugural cohort through a three-week pop-up. During Paris Fashion Week, Richemont is turning its attention to the next generation of fashion talent with the first edition of its "A Bunch of Designers" programme. The initiative showcases six emerging designers from the AZ Academy in a Paris pop-up running from September 30 through October 17. Selected for their distinctive creative identities, commercial potential and hands-on approach to making, the designers - Brais Albor, Caterina Moro, Liwen Liang, Manon Marcelot, Merle Breuker and Sandra Jao - are presenting projects that explore everything from ceramics and leather to modular design and unconventional materials. From ceramics to accessories. Liwen Liang draws heavily on his Chinese heritage and family background in ceramics. During the Covid-19 lockdowns, he began experimenting with ceramic garments inspired by the armour of the Chinese army. After years of development, his designs combine Italian, French and Chinese leather with ceramic tiles measuring just 0.3 millimetres thick. His collection includes skirts, dresses, tunics and bralettes in shades ranging from anthracite to gold. Following collaborations including one with Miniso, Liang now hopes to shift his focus toward accessories and commercially viable pieces designed for women. Finding beauty in the ordinary. Sandra Jao combines Japanese innovation with Italian craftsmanship, taking inspiration from everyday objects that are rarely considered glamorous. Her latest collection transforms umbrellas, fishermen's ropes and wet fabrics into sculptural, entirely black designs. Among the standout pieces is a skirt based on the construction of an umbrella but stripped of its traditional frame, alongside a jacket made from tubes filled with insulating foam. Designing for tall men. Galician designer Brais Albor has developed a luxury wardrobe specifically for tall men, a customer group he believes remains underserved by mainstream ready-to-wear. His work reinterprets the powerful silhouettes associated with his home region while moving away from traditional masculine stereotypes. The collection combines Italian semi-bespoke tailoring with underwear and beachwear produced in France by Chantelle. As he prepares for his first commercial launch, Albor is also working to find plus-size models who can represent his focus on stature, confidence and elegance. Fashion designed to last. Merle Breuker's "The Lasting" challenges the conventional fashion calendar with sustainable, transformable garments designed for long-term use. Drawing on her background in costume design, Breuker personally makes around 80% of her work, often using her grandmother's sewing machine. Her unisex collection combines menswear-inspired patterns with European deadstock fabrics, while modular details allow individual garments to change shape and function. A tailored jacket, for example, can be shortened and paired with a detachable skirt, allowing pieces to evolve with the wearer rather than being replaced each season. Nature as a design language. Caterina Moro approaches sustainability through what she calls "responsible" rather than simply sustainable fashion. Her work treats nature as a source of design inspiration while focusing on reducing waste and preserving craftsmanship. Her first unisex capsule collection includes limited-edition pieces made in Italy from materials such as technical wool, recycled nylon, silk printed with scanned botanical motifs, and paper-silk blends. A trench coat can transform into a skirt, while a T-shirt uses leaf veins to create the appearance of a ribcage. Rural life reimagined in leather. For Manon Marcelot, leather is closely connected to her upbringing in a cattle-farming family in France's Creuse region. The artisan and leatherworker translates rural life into unconventional bags, including the "Auge", inspired by a livestock drinking trough, and a clog-inspired design. Her signature "Sonnaille" bag takes its bell-shaped form and double zips from the workwear of cattle farmers. The collection uses luxury deadstock sourced from houses including Delvaux, with Marcelot still producing most of the pieces herself. From creativity to business. Beyond providing exhibition space, the A Bunch of Designers programme and AZ Academy are giving the designers insight into the commercial realities of building a fashion brand. The participants say the programme has helped them understand production economics, connect with craftspeople and manufacturers, meet potential clients and think more strategically about scaling and distribution. Jao described the opportunity as unusual access to resources that many young designers never receive, while Breuker highlighted Richemont's network as a valuable way to establish industry connections. For Marcelot, the experience has also changed how she approaches design, particularly through a deeper understanding of the customers she hopes to serve. Together, the six projects demonstrate how emerging designers are combining craft, experimentation and commercial thinking - while developing distinctive approaches to what a contemporary fashion brand can become. Daniel's expertise in beauty and his sharp eye for runway details create an unmatched combination for readers seeking the latest makeup and style inspirations.

"That would lead to the lowest growth since Corona" - Swatch and Richemont shares under pressure after China data. Richemont and Swatch shares fall on Tuesday. Disappointing retail data from China weigh on the entire sector. 15.09.2026 03:15 Prices of luxury goods shares are under pressure on Tuesday morning. Shares of industry leader LVMH fall by more than 2.6 percent to 406.55 euros. This immediately snuffs out the tentative stabilization attempt from the previous day. Shares of the luxury goods group are now at a price level last seen six years ago. Alongside European competitors such as Hermès (-2.1 percent), Dior (-2.1 percent) or Brunello Cucinelli (-1.3 percent), Swiss sector representatives Richemont and Swatch are also declining. Richemont sheds more than 2.5 percent to 168.70 francs, Swatch falls around 2.1 percent to 171.95 francs. Richemont is thus at a three-month low. Swatch shares have almost completely given back their price gains of more than 12 percent since the end of July. Triggers for the setback, besides the weak overall market, are disappointing retail data from China. These fell well short of expectations and, according to Barclays, are at the lowest level since the coronavirus pandemic. Disappointing Chinese retail sales and falling estimates. In August, Chinese retail sales rose only 0.4 percent year on year - economists had expected 0.8 percent. "That would lead to the lowest growth since Corona," says one trader, referring to a Barclays study. The bank lowers its full-year growth forecast after the new data from 3.7 percent in 2025 to only 1 percent. "Demand from Chinese customers is 'the' topic in luxury," emphasizes another market participant. For around a third of the sector's revenue depends on consumers in the Middle Kingdom. The latest earnings revisions by analysts for Swatch and Richemont reflect this setback. Over the past three months, experts lowered the forecast for earnings per share growth at Swatch from minus 10 percent to minus 11 percent. For Richemont, they still expect a plus of 9.2 percent, down from 11.4 percent previously. Because of the higher growth, more analysts favor Richemont shares. For example, 14 of 20 experts recommend buying the Geneva group's shares, only one recommends selling. At Swatch, however, the picture is the opposite. Here only two of 17 analysts advise buying, nine recommend holding and six selling. The average price target for Swatch is around 1.9 percent below the current price level, while for Richemont it is almost 25 percent above it. Richemont's half-year figures on November 13, 2026, and Swatch's annual figures in January 2027 are likely to provide further indications of the development of the core business. In addition, the data provide important insights into the state of Chinese consumers. Even earlier, LVMH's quarterly results are on the agenda - the industry leader will publish its third-quarter results on October 9 after the close of trading.