New Chapter at Balmain: Antonin Tron Succeeds Olivier Rousteing

Balmain opens a new chapter. The French maison has appointed Antonin Tron as its new creative director, extending the relay cycle in major fashion houses to 2026. The designer will debut his first collection for the brand in March 2026, coinciding with the fall-winter season.

According to WWD, Tron, founder of the Atlein brand and trained at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, will join the Parisian maison exclusively. His arrival marks the beginning of a new phase for the firm controlled by Mayhoola, the Qatari holding company that also owns Valentino, Pal Zileri and Beymen.

During his career, the designer has been recognized for an approach to fashion based on movement, the body and the architecture of the silhouette. After his time at Louis Vuitton, Givenchy, Balenciaga and Saint Laurent, Tron founded in 2016 his own brand, Atlein, with which he won the Andam award in 2018 and managed to position himself in stores such as Galeries Lafayette, The Webster or Bergdorf Goodman.

His appointment comes just weeks after the departure of Olivier Rousteing, who ended a fourteen-year stint at the helm of Balmain’s creative direction. Under his leadership, the brand established itself as one of the most influential names in French fashion, driving its international expansion and strengthening its accessories business, which today accounts for nearly 30% of sales.

Balmain has found in Atlein its new creative director

During Mayhoola’s tenure, Balmain’s turnover has doubled to around €300 million, consolidating its presence in the global luxury segment. Tron’s appointment also coincides with a phase of internal restructuring led by Matteo Sgarbossa, CEO of the maison since 2024, which has driven a review of the operating model and customer relations.

With this change, Balmain seeks to renew its creative proposal without breaking with its heritage. The new creative director embodies a vision of fashion focused on craftsmanship, technical precision and restrained sensuality, traits that connect with the founding values of Pierre Balmain, who in 1945 defined couture as an “architecture of movement”.

Tron, 41, represents a generation of designers who combine artistic sensibility and technical knowledge. His work, characterized by fluid draping and sculptural structure, has been read as a synthesis between Parisian sensuality and Belgian design discipline. In 2024, she collaborated with Kylie Jenner’s Khy brand on a collection that reaffirmed her mastery of the female body and form.

Tron’s appointment comes against a backdrop of a generalized renewal of creative directions in international fashion. In recent months, brands such as Chanel, Dior, Gucci, Balenciaga, Givenchy, Loewe and Marni have announced new creative directors, in a move that redefines the power map of European luxury.