We Speak Fashion

Martine Rose Takes the Creative Helm at Balenciaga in a Historic First for the House

Published

4 days ago

November 11, 2026

A Balenciaga boutique. Photo by Bita RmJohnson Liuosa, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Balenciaga has turned to one of London fashion’s most original voices to lead its next era. Kering has appointed British designer Martine Rose as creative director of the Paris house, and the move carries real history with it, because Rose becomes the first woman to lead Balenciaga creatively in its 109 year history.

Kering confirmed the appointment on Friday, November 6, 2026, one day after the group announced the departure of Pierpaolo Piccioli. Piccioli held the role for roughly 16 months and designed four collections for the house, including his haute couture debut in July 2026. Rose will take up the position on November 16, 2026, and she will be based in Paris.

In the role, Rose will oversee all men’s and women’s collections for the house. Her first collection for Balenciaga is expected to be shown during Paris Fashion Week in March 2027, where the industry will get its first full look at her vision for the brand.

“It is a true privilege to be appointed creative director of Balenciaga, a house with an extraordinary heritage and a boldly creative spirit,” the designer said in a statement announcing the appointment.

Rose built her name through her own London label, where her work draws on subcultural references and everyday British dressing, reworked with sharp tailoring and an offbeat sense of proportion. She also has history with the house itself. She previously worked alongside Demna, who led Balenciaga from 2015 to 2025, on the launch of his first menswear collection there.

The appointment also makes Rose a rare Black woman at the head of a major luxury house, and it lands at a moment when the biggest seats in fashion keep changing hands. For Balenciaga, the bet is clear. After a short and closely watched tenure from Piccioli, the house is handing its future to a designer whose own label became a cult favorite by treating street culture and formal clothing as one and the same language. All eyes now move to Paris in March.

Cartier Opens Its Largest Western Japan Flagship in Osaka Shinsaibashi

Published

4 days ago

November 11, 2026

We Speak Media

A Cartier boutique in Aoyama, Tokyo. Photo by Guilhem Vellut, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Cartier has planted its biggest flag yet in western Japan. The maison opened the Cartier Shinsaibashi Boutique in Osaka on Friday, November 6, 2026, a three level flagship inside Quartz Shinsaibashi that now stands as its largest store in the region.

The boutique carries Cartier’s full range of categories, including high jewelry. The ground floor permanently displays high jewelry alongside iconic jewelry, leather goods and accessories, with a private salon space for clients. The second floor offers watches, diamond creations, bridal and fragrance, plus an after sales service counter. On the third floor sits the Residence, a private space for the maison’s most valued guests. It is only the second Residence in Japan, following the Cartier Ginza 4 chome Boutique in Tokyo.

Design is where French and Japanese craft meet head on. Architect Yuko Nagayama designed the facade and the third floor Residence, while Barcelona based g4 group handled the interiors of the first and second floors. Nagayama drew on Osaka’s history as a city of water, building the facade from the flowing lines of the traditional tatewaku pattern under a delicate mesh that recalls guilloché, one of the maison’s own traditional techniques. Inside, a straw marquetry art wall by Lison de Caunes depicts the panther, the house emblem, and a second art wall in Nishijin ori weaving pays tribute to the animals and plants behind Cartier creations.

The opening began a day early. On November 5, the boutique hosted a high jewelry model show, with actors Yui Sakuma and Ayumu Nakajima modeling pieces inside the store. “The moment I put it on, I could feel the value that only high jewelry has, on my skin,” Sakuma said of the experience.

The boutique, at 3 12 14 Minamisenba in Chuo Ward, Osaka, opens daily from 11:30 AM to 7:30 PM.