Max Mara Celebrates 75 Years of Timeless Style in Shanghai

2 min read

At 75, Max Mara proves that great style only gets better with age. Today in Shanghai, the Italian brand celebrated its diamond jubilee. Creative director Ian Griffiths presented the cruise 2027 collection before an audience immersed in “The Max!,” an exhibition at the Long Museum celebrating the house’s remarkable journey.

As models wove through artifacts of the brand—archival sketches, heritage coats, and decades of imagery arranged on industrial shelving—a fresh expression of the house’s enduring codes came into focus. Dubbed “Kinetic Chic,” the collection crescendoed on the runway, with guests like Katie Holmes and Eileen Gu looking on, but it all started with the brand’s signature tailored polish.

Rather than channeling a single muse, the collection paid homage to the countless iterations of the Max Mara woman who have come to define the house over the years. The opening look, a sharp, strong-shouldered trench, was made modern in playful sequins and anchored by an exaggerated wrap belt that carved out the waist, a styling device that returned again and again.

The silhouettes remained distinctly Max Mara—sleek, polished, and endlessly wearable. Coats practically demanded to be strutted in, sharply tailored jackets conveyed authority, and micromini skirts were grounded by boxy mod jackets, while calf-length pencil skirts came topped with striking outerwear.

Moments of surprise arrived through flashes of saturated color—including the brand’s signature deep red—and paillettes, which shimmered unexpectedly across the backs of otherwise understated knitwear. Archival motifs were splashed onto plunging sweater dresses and louche blouses, worn with cutout high heels with ankle straps.

Rather than dwell on nostalgia, the anniversary underscored what has always made Max Mara relevant: clothes that meet women where they are, then elevate them. Or, in the words of its founder, clothes that “make the ordinary extraordinary.”

Matthew Velasco is the Fashion News Editor at ELLE. Based in New York City, he previously worked as a News Writer at W magazine and an Assistant Editor at V magazine. Outside of fashion, he enjoys interior design, tennis (both watching and playing), and a jam-packed antique store.