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Michael Rider’s debut show for Celine on 6 July was a coming home of sorts — and it showed in the well-received collection, which referenced and evolved the heritage of the house.
Rider previously worked at Celine as design director of ready-to-wear for a nine-year period that spanned Phoebe Philo’s tenure. He was appointed creative director in October 2024, taking up the role in early 2025 after six years at Polo Ralph Lauren, where, behind the scenes, he made the label look more distinctive than it has in years and raised its cool factor.
At Celine, Rider has big shoes to fill: he succeeds Hedi Slimane, who almost tripled the LVMH-owned house’s sales during his six years as creative director, targeting a sophisticated, bourgeois customer with high-quality, classic cuts, and introducing menswear, fragrance and makeup. (Sales rose from below €1 billion in 2018, per Morgan Stanley estimates, to €2.49 billion in 2024, per HSBC estimates.) And the pressure is on to remain resilient as the industry continues to face headwinds.
The timing of the show, on the eve of couture week and before the packed womenswear season, felt strategic. There will be a dozen designer debuts in September and October, including Demna at Gucci and Matthieu Blazy at Chanel, as well as Jonathan Anderson’s womenswear debut at Dior (following his inaugural menswear show for the brand in Paris on 27 June).
“This felt like the right time to get going,” Rider said backstage after the show. “We felt ready, and it felt nice to speak in a moment where there was a little bit of air.” When I pressed him on whether he wants to show in the official calendar from now on, he replied: “Absolutely. I love the calendar; I believe in the calendar — probably the womenswear calendar and menswear calendar. We’re going to chart that course as we go and be guided by intuition, whatever feels good.” A spokesperson for the house later confirmed: “We haven’t decided yet, but our intention is to get back into the official calendars.”
For this first outing, Rider opted for a co-ed show. “Setting a foundation felt like something that shouldn’t be specifically gendered,” Rider explained. “And Celine in the last six years has become as much of an authority across men’s and women’s and everyone else.” (Slimane presented his first standalone menswear show in January 2019.)
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The show was held on 16 Rue Vivienne where the Celine studio and atelier are located. “Coming back here to this building where I spent nine amazing years, it all kind of unfolded from there,” Rider says. Seats in the courtyard were placed in the shape of the brand’s Triomphe signifier, and a giant scarf covered the courtyard. The front row included BTS’s Kim Taehyung, known as V, who created buzz by arriving on a Celine bike; actresses Kristen Wiig and Naomi Watts (whose daughter Kai Schreiber walked the runway); singer Alanis Morissette, fresh from her Glastonbury debut last week; as well as Jonathan Anderson, Raf Simons, stylist Law Roach and Anna Wintour.
Building on a foundation
For the Spring/Summer 2026 collection, Rider paid homage to the Philo and Slimane years, while bringing newness. For example, the double ‘C’ Triomphe logo was used playfully throughout the collection; Slimane also tapped into the logo over the years. “That’s pretty special about Celine — those first years with Céline Vipiana, the nine years I was here [under Philo], the last six years [with Slimane], which were also extraordinary in a slightly different way,” said Rider. “I think all of it feels foundational. I definitely did not want there to be a sense of erasure. There was a foundation to build on here. It felt modern, ethical and strong.”
For its next chapter, Rider’s eveningwear stood out, including the classic little black dress and a white gown worn by Schreiber, as did the beautiful coats. The collection involved a lot of small accessories, including scarves (the show invite was a silk scarf wrapped around the invitation) and an AirPods case that could help reach a wider consumer base at more accessible price points.
“I think it’s going to be a hit,” Sidney Toledano, senior advisor to LVMH chair and CEO Bernard Arnault, tells Vogue Business. “Michael is comfortable in Paris; he understands the Parisienne, but an international Parisienne.”
On the playful use of the logo, Rider said: “ A sense of levity and humour is sorely missed in fashion. I would never want to be perceived as ironic or cynical, but having a sense of humour in the space of luxury is a beautiful thing. Logos are something from the ’60s and ’70s that Madame Vipiana used frequently in a way that was always chic. I like what logos do because they move from really tasteful to very different from that.”
“Michael Rider presented a collection that is in line with the house’s DNA, keeping Hedi Slimane’s purity while evolving it, adding colours — blue and red — and developing accessories — jewellery, scarves, bag charms,” says Arthur Lemoine, head of buying at Galeries Lafayette.
Benjamin Simmenauer, professor at Institut Français de la Mode in Paris, agrees: “There’s a play on proportions which results in many varied silhouettes, but all united in an effortless attitude that works well, like in the opening look and efficiently conveys the ‘cool bourgeoise’ identity of Celine. There’s something with branding, too, an intentional pastiche that’s playful. I hadn’t seen such creativity and risk-taking coming from a megabrand in a long time: some looks feel ‘off’ but in a good way.”
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