Balenciaga‘s Spring 2025 Ready-to-Wear collection made a grand debut in Shanghai, referencing the city’s iconic skyline with super-elongated, vertical silhouettes inspired by the towering high-rises of Pudong. The collection reimagines traditional shapes with deconstructed new hourglass forms, showing the house’s avant-garde aesthetic. Trompe l’oeil effects on silk dresses, simulating textures like cable knit, crocodile, and fox fur, added layers of visual intrigue. The show also featured innovative designs such as hourglass skirts and full digital-print bodysuits that create illusions of pantashoes, jeans, and shirts.
A standout element of the collection was the array of experimental semi-couture and couture dresses. These included a cocoon column-like dress pieced together from travel bags, a vinyl bell-shaped bow dress, and a Tyvek paper dress. Further pushing the boundaries, Balenciaga introduced dresses made from unconventional materials such as gift packaging gold foil, black velvet jewelry displays, and even clothing rack covers. One particularly notable piece was a dress crafted from collected pink plastic bags, hand-cut and pierced to create a feather effect.
Accessories in the collection continued the theme of architectural inspiration, with platform metalhead boots mirroring the verticality of Shanghai’s skyscrapers and layered platform sneakers. Ripped tights pantashoes, pointy Flyknit Derby shoes, and over-the-knee sock boots added to the eclectic mix. The collection also featured archetypal wardrobe items reimagined as bags, including a leather sneaker box clutch, a chain bag with trousers belt buckle closure, and a metal chain hand-knitted fisherman tote.
Balenciaga also unveiled notable collaborations as part of the collection. The Balenciaga | Under Armour series, released exclusively following the Shanghai runway show, merged Under Armour’s technical fabrics with Balenciaga’s signature silhouettes. This limited series included hoodies, T-shirts, caps, shorts, sweatpants, and socks, all featuring a unique logomark combining both brands’ logos. Another collaboration with the revered Shanghainese restaurant Nu Xiang Mu Dou introduced custom dim sum and packaging, blending French black truffle with traditional xiao long bao, served in bamboo steamer boxes.
To commemorate the collection’s debut, Balenciaga collaborated with Alipay on an exclusive T-shirt release. This limited-edition item, featuring the logos of both Balenciaga and Alipay, was made available immediately following the runway show in select stores and online platforms. The Spring 2025 show itself was an event to remember, with music by BFRND, held outdoors at the Museum of Art Pudong against the twilight backdrop of Shanghai’s skyline.
Take a closer look at the collection in the Gallery below:
