2 min readDemna’s Gucci—and its cast of characters—is officially here. With 15 debuts taking place throughout the spring 2026 season, there are a number of ways designers can stand out amidst the noise. Some, like Louise Trotter at Bottega Veneta and Jonathan Anderson at Dior, have opted for subtle soft launches, casually providing teasers through custom red-carpet looks. Others, like Matthieu Blazy at Chanel, have kept things incredibly tight-lipped, building anticipation. In Demna’s case, there’s been an air of mystique to his influence behind the scenes.
The cruise 2026 runway, which was presented at the brand’s archive in May, showcased subtle hints of the Georgian designer—faux-fur coats and brightly colored ’80s-inspired silhouettes. Now, in the final days of London Fashion Week and ahead of Milan Fashion Week, Gucci suddenly dropped a lookbook titled “La Famiglia,” declaring the official start of a new era. (Former Gucci creative director Alessandro Michele actually did the same for his recent debut at Valentino, surprising the industry with a hefty lookbook ahead of the runway season.)
The collection is presented as a study in “Gucciness,” or an examination of the core tenets of house codes: interlocking Gs, tricolor stripes, and an almost preppy sense of styling. (Plus, pairing an embossed bomber over a round-collared rugby shirt and Little Edie sunglasses just is timelessly chic.) The release mentions “effortless elegance” and “sprezzatura,” and since it could be argued that Michele’s tenure brought a more constructed form of glamour to Gucci, this signals a retreat to the classically Italian method of instinctual dressing.
Sure, there are signature Demna-isms: a muscular bare chest underneath a bomber jacket, a sleek sequined black tank top, and a classically Old-Hollywood feel to the formal wear. But even when they bubble to the surface, they’re also entirely translated through the lens of a new house, even if it’s just a short walk across Kering’s proverbial halls. It’s a less grandiose, more granular approach to his own design. Plus, the wonderfully slinky horsebit-pocket jeans bring a needed splash of sex appeal—to both Demna and Gucci.
Demna’s core ideology as a designer is revealed most clearly in the lookbook’s encyclopedia of characters. He frequently rotates through a roster of referential archetypes, something that was aptly shown in his couture farewell to Balenciaga. Each character, whether the excessively fussy-yet-fashionable “Primadonna” or the teenage-angst-induced “Incazzata” (the “pissed off” or “the fiery one”), represents a preliminary—and humorous—idea of the person on which Demna wishes to host his designs. From there, he is free to build upon these moldable identities.
However, for now, these new clothes remain exactly that: archetypes, this time playing out on the lookbook page. Later this week, the industry will descend upon Milan for the brand’s scheduled film-format presentation, and the true new era of Gucci will begin.
