Gabriela Hearst to show in Paris RTW this fall

By

Godfrey Deeny

Published
Jul 7, 2020

Designer Gabriela Hearst has announced plans to move her next runway show to Paris during the French ready-to-wear season this fall, in a major win for the City of Light.

“We have become an international brand with most of our clients living outside of the US. That’s why in February 2018 we opened our showroom and home in Paris. When we started to asses with the team what the best course of action was to navigate the ever changing landscape as a result of the pandemic, we realized that for many reasons it became increasingly clear that we will have to present in Paris from an environmental perspective and from a logistics and transportation perspective. But above all, it is always a dream for any designer to show in Paris. This is the time for us to manifest this dream,” said the designer in a release.

Of Uruguayan origin, Hearst has become one of the most happening brands – and shows – in the New York season. Her ability to blend the earthy aesthetic of the gauchos and rural imagery of her native land, with a chic patrician take on sustainable fashion, have made her an important contemporary voice in fashion.

The decision to move her next presentation to Paris underlines the continuing attraction of the city as the world’s leading fashion capital, which has lured such influential designer labels as Paul Smith, Proenza Schouler and Rodarte to show here in the past few seasons.

“I moved to New York 20 years ago, this is the city where I grew from a young adult to womanhood. In New York, is where I have manifested so many of my dreams including being the mother of three New Yorkers. We did our first show in New York in February 2017 without any plastic and using repurposed materials and dead stock fabrics,” noted Hearst, both founder and creative director of her eponymous label.

Hearst’s most recent show was held in February, in Chelsea, staged amid a small maze of walls of upcycled paper bales that a recycling facility in Brooklyn had transformed from her own company’s waste. Practically, every look had a recycled component – like recycled cashmere yarns used in superlative, loosely woven columns. Hearst even revamped Turkish carpets to become very cool, gothic, paisley dusters.

Since launching her label in 2015, Hearst has gone on to retail in major international stockists, and open two key flagships on Madison Avenue in New York and Brook Street in London last year. Her debut in Paris for the next season – to be held in late September and early October – will be a must-see event.