Pieter Mulier Presents His Alaïa Swan Song

2 min read

At Paris Fashion Week, no topic of conversation—and no Instagrammed invitation unboxing—has been quite as ubiquitous as Pieter Mulier’s final show for Alaïa. The Belgian designer joined the house back in 2021, and news broke earlier this year that he was appointed Versace’s new creative director, effective July 2026.

Naturally, for Mulier’s summer/fall 2026 show for the brand, the front row was stacked with some of the top talent in the fashion industry: Matthieu Blazy of Chanel and Raf Simons of Prada were both there. The industrial venue was packed to the max, eventually rising to an emotional standing ovation from the audience while triumphant music played in the background. Homing in on the message of unity, Mulier thanked his entire team in the show notes, and the venue walls were decked out with display screens showing Keizo Kitajima portraits of each atelier member.

Under Mulier’s reign, simplicity, the body and shape have remained the ultimate love language of Alaïa. Strikingly simple, stripped-back clingy slip dresses opened the collection; they followed two of the runway’s biggest obsessions to date: ’90s style and body-con dressing. (And served as a little pop-culture Easter egg.) But these elementary initial looks were just the building blocks of his minimalist-forward swan song. Think: long and lean tailored double-breasted coats styled with gloves, draped gowns with shiny geometric croc-effect panels, column maxidresses and ruffled dresses with high cuts on each side of the tights. Archival deep dives, like draped hooded dresses and deliciously oversized outerwear, rose to the occasion too.

The fun part of Mulier’s mind–the bits and bobs his biggest devotees obsess over–came through in the final looks, each which represented those nuanced ways of dressing that his fans will instantly recognize. Conceptual, yes, but also somehow not too weird to be wearable in real life for the right adventurous dressers. (Think the skirt-pants with open sides or the fringed sweater knee-high leggings from last season.) Here, Mulier delivered plush swing coats with Mod-ified ’60s vibes, skirt suits with unexpectedly placed fur trim, coats that doubled as one-and-done outfits with frilled tiers, and most importantly, leather suit jackets with stiff cascading pleated tutus.

A sculptural marmalade tube dress with cuffs that attached to the ankles at the back proved to be one of the most provocative examples of Mulier stepping outside the box of conventional silhouettes. It was one last taste of the unusual; one final look at Mulier’s chapter at Alaïa. Who knows what’s next, given that Alaïa has yet to announce a successor. But most importantly, it left the greater collective waiting to see how Mulier will interpret the legacy of Versace in the coming months.

Kristen Bateman is a contributing editor at Harper’s Bazaar. Her first fashion article was published in Vogue Italia during her junior year of high school. Since then, she has interned and contributed to WWD, Glamour, Lucky, i-D, Marie Claire and more. She created and writes the #ChicEats column and covers fashion and culture for Bazaar. When not writing, she follows the latest runway collections, dyes her hair to match her mood, and practices her Italian in hopes of scoring 90% off Prada at the Tuscan outlets. She loves vintage shopping, dessert and cats.