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With the appointment of Matthieu Blazy at Chanel, Virginie Viard leaving Chanel after three decades and Louise Trotter as Blazy’s successor at Bottega Veneta, there are plenty of hits to secure from their last collections. If you’re a fan of Trotter, you should definitely invest in some key pieces from her Carven collection. After her nine-year tenure at English fashion label Joseph, Trotter really carved her niche on designs based on a fuss-free uniform for working women influenced by menswear. Some winners from Carven include the signature funnel dresses and tops, the curved shoulder and nipped waist tunic dresses, tailored trousers (her Joseph trousers have reached cult status) and padded nappa leather flats.

Working alongside Karl Lagerfeld since 1987 starting out an intern for haute-couture embroidery at Chanel, Virginie Viard was handpicked by the late Kaiser to be his successor before his passing in 2019. During Viard’s tenure at Chanel, she was respectful to all of Chanel’s design codes, from pearls to beads but particularly the bows. She was experimental with the way she worked with this signature house detail and it was manifested not just on accessories, jewellery but on clothes as well as swimsuits. If I were to buy a Viard keepsake from Chanel, it’d definitely be something with bows.

Matthieu Blazy cut his teeth at Maison Margiela, Celine and Calvin Klein before joining Bottega Veneta in 2020. Blazy’s efforts at Bottega Veneta is remarkable, from his hyper focus on cratftsmanship to re-energising both the ready-to- wear and accessories universe at Bottega Veneta in a very short period of time. He is also credited with updating Bottega Veneta’s signature intrecciato woven patterns such as its best-selling Andiamo bag and the unique Sardine bag that comes with a handle shaped like a Brancusi fish. If you would like to own the best of Blazy, these two are pretty good choices.

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