Show review in a sentence: Louise Trotter’s Bottega Veneta debut fused refinement with bold newness, honouring the house’s essence while hinting at an exciting future.
Designer: Louise Trotter
To have a female creative director at the helm of Bottega Veneta once again felt palpably exciting and more than that, like the absolute right move. Louise Trotter’s appointment was one of the buzziest of the season and for good reason. The British designer brings with her a string of quiet yet highly significant experiences at Calvin Klein, Joseph, Lacoste and Carven. “The language of Bottega Veneta is Intrecciato. And it is a metaphor. Collaboration and connectivity run throughout this house and its history from its beginnings to what it is now,” Trotter shared for her debut. The collection opened to the custom sound of Steve McQueen, bringing it with a thumping essence of newness and yet, a knowing and familiar calm.
The first thing I noticed was that Trotter resisted the urge to transform things into something unrecognisable. For one, the house’s much-loved ambassadors remained, from BTS’ RM to Stray Kids’ Jeongin. Masculine tailoring, nappa leather coats and structural evening gowns—all with an off-shoulder detail I absolutely loved—formed the backbone of the collection. Intrecciato accents were beautifully applied, from the collars of trench coats to the tassels at the back ties of dresses, causing the eye to travel with them. Trotter also brought a new Bottega wooden clog—there have been many a cork shoe and clog on the runway this season, marking a sharp new trend—to the forefront, carrying the brand’s finesse and seriousness but with a touch of whimsy. Still, it was the bags that stole the show and while the Knot and Cabat were reimagined, Trotter’s new offerings—the Squash, Framed Tote and Crafty Basket—promised the same allure as the house’s most coveted icons in a series of textures.
The most breathtaking pieces, though, were the tinsel-like tops and skirts, almost weightless and shimmering, rendered in permutations of blue, orange and silver. Striking and light-catching, they were the very looks that made me exhale in awe. The beauty of it all was that even in such boldness, the essence of Bottega remained—clothes equally at home on the red carpet as in the treasured closet of someone who lives with them. I cannot wait to see what future seasons will hold.
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