Balenciaga Spring 2025 Stands Very Tall in Shanghai
Some seriously towering looks got sent down the runway in Shanghai at Balenciaga's Spring 2025 show. Despite the rain, house ambassador and Thai star PP Krit marched triumphantly down the catwalk, alongside a collaboration with Under Armour.
The Balenciaga Spring 2025 show, along with the stars and the fashion cognoscenti, descended upon Shanghai's Pudong Art Museum just before night fell on 30 May. The runway spectacle took place outdoors in a stark space overlooking the Bund and the iconic, always-glimmering Shanghai skyline. Nevermind the incessant downpour that day, Oscar-winner and house ambassador Michelle Yeoh, Juyeon from K-pop act The Boyz, actress Roh Yoon-seo and more braved the elements, adding some serious star power to the evening.
After showing in Los Angeles late last year, Creative Director Demna brought Balenciaga to Shanghai to showcase a different (and lofty!) direction, with super elongated silhouettes inspired by the skyscrapers of the Chinese metropolis — key to the look are XXXL platform sneakers (16cm tall) and boots (18cm tall) that are stacked high, not unlike the urban vertical layers of the city. The collection began with black formal suiting, in Demna's signature oversized tailoring, with blazers featuring imposing shoulders and extra long sleeves, paired with soft, loose trousers. Long and enveloping trench coats, and overcoats with slits from which one can glimpse the statement platform shoes swiftly followed. Yeoh's fellow house ambassador, Thai actor PP Krit, made a surprise appearance on the catwalk, towering in look three of the collection.
After a relatively subtle start, the designer's more head-turning looks in the collection emerged relentlessly: Several models carried grey Balenciaga shoeboxes, which had been transformed into boxy leather clutches, and wore those aforementioned platform sneakers or boots. Other highlights included sandals with built-in socks, heavily worked and treated sweatshirts, and bags with the appearance of an elongated garment. The much-talked-about collaboration with Under Armour was also revealed, along with a Balenciaga x Alipay (China's largest digital payment system) T-shirt.
In the next half of the show, Balenciaga put its couture codes and silhouettes on proud display with experimental takes via unexpected materials and finishes, as well as semi-couture details — cue the gold coloured gown inspired by gift wrapping; a light blue vinyl dress (nevermind the rain, this was perfectly weather resistant on the runway) true to Balenciaga's iconic cocoon silhouette and with standout bow details; the black velvet dress entirely covered in Balenciaga fashion jewellery from previous seasons; and another black gown, this time ingeniously crafted from the humble garment bag. The final look, a pink "feather" dress with its delicate, fluid movement, floated down the moistened runway like a bouyant lotus bloom.
