Martine Rose Named Creative Director of Balenciaga, Starts November 16

Kering announced on Friday, November 6, 2026, that Martine Rose will become creative director of Balenciaga. She takes up the role in Paris on November 16, succeeding Pierpaolo Piccioli, whose departure the group announced on Thursday.

Rose is a British-Jamaican designer based in London. She founded her own label in 2007 and built a loyal following with clothes that mix sportswear, everyday dress and tailoring. Her work draws on British subcultures linked to football, house music, rave and reggae, and her label has released collaborations with Nike, Supreme and Clarks.

A return to a house she knows

Rose is not new to Balenciaga. From 2015 to 2018 she worked as a menswear consultant at the house under Demna, the creative director whose run made oversized proportions and everyday clothes the core of the brand. The Business of Fashion reported that menswear accounted for as much as half of Balenciaga revenue under Demna, and that Rose has a strong record in that category. The same report noted she has yet to build a similar record in womenswear and accessories, the other parts of the job she now takes on.

Piccioli, a former Valentino designer, took over at Balenciaga in July 2025. His time in the role lasted less than 16 months. Kering announced his departure on Thursday, November 5, and named his successor the next day.

First hire of a new chief executive

The appointment is the first creative director hire made by Kering chief executive Luca de Meo. He has also started creative changes at Saint Laurent, McQueen and Brioni, the other houses in the group.

"Balenciaga has always been a house of radical creativity, challenging conventions and redefining the boundaries of fashion. Martine Rose embodies this spirit with a fresh, fearless and deeply contemporary vision," de Meo said in the Kering statement.

The Business of Fashion reported that Rose is only the second Black woman to take the creative lead at a major European fashion house, after Grace Wales Bonner joined Hermes as menswear designer in 2025. FashionUnited reported that she is the first woman to lead creative direction at Balenciaga.

The job is based in Paris, Kering said in its press release. Reports on Friday said Rose will lead womenswear, menswear and accessories for the house, and that she will keep the connection to the young buyers who made Balenciaga a regular topic in music and street culture during the Demna years. Piccioli, for his part, spent 25 years at Valentino before he moved to Balenciaga, Reuters reported in its account of his departure.

Rose had not commented on the appointment in the first reports on Friday. No date has been confirmed for her first Balenciaga collection.