Olivier Rousteing is the new creative director of Rabanne The Maison released the official press release this morning
UPDATE 14.07.2026: Following several rumours over recent months, this morning Rabanne confirmed Olivier Rousteing as the brand's new creative director, with a debut at Paris Fashion Week scheduled for March 2026. According to the official press release, "under Rousteing's creative direction, Rabanne will continue to expand its universe through new product categories, further shaping a complete ecosystem in which fashion, beauty and innovation are in constant dialogue." The article below dates from 05.06.2026.
After fourteen years designing for Balmain, Olivier Rousteing could be the next creative director of Rabanne. As Glitz reports, Rousteing began deleting all images linked to his Balmain era from his Instagram profile around the middle of last month. But the most interesting detail is that, according to the Parisian magazine, Rousteing has already started working for Rabanne, preparing his debut collection while Julien Dossena is still at the house. This transition is crucial given the moment the brand finds itself in. But in what sense?
Rabanne, Puig and the challenge of growth
The Puig group owns several major brands, including Jean-Paul Gaultier, Dries Van Noten and Mugler. The group typically makes its money from fragrances, which is why many of the historic fashion brands it owns are more focused on selling perfumes than ready-to-wear. But roughly since the acquisition of Dries Van Noten, the group has decided to strengthen this side of the business — for instance, by giving Jean-Paul Gaultier a creative director once again, Duran Lantink, who produces seasonal collections.
Rousteing's potential appointment responds precisely to this need, and his task could be exactly that of strengthening Rabanne's ready-to-wear. The brand, today best known for its bestselling fragrances — which occupy as much space on its Instagram profile as, if not more than, its fashion collections — finds itself in a delicate financial phase.
As Glitz explains, in 2024 Puig's fashion division recorded a loss of €5.21 million, a figure that has pushed the group to concentrate resources and seek new strategies to relaunch the brand. The arrival of a designer with a stronger focus on commercial luxury collections could represent the turning point Rabanne needs. For now, however, the Puig group has issued no official statements and has not responded to requests for clarification.
And what about Julien Dossena?
@andreagolpeba Rabanne Fall-Winter 26 by @juliendossena. #Rabanne #juliendossena #pfw ##rabannefw26 audio originale - DRIVEYOURKITTY
Amid all of this, we must not forget Julien Dossena. The designer has held the reins at Rabanne since 2013, steering the house for nearly as long as Rousteing led Balmain. Over this decade and more, the brand has changed considerably, certainly keeping pace with the contemporary language of fashion, but without truly breaking through in the ready-to-wear market — a segment on which Puig has never placed excessive emphasis until now.
The handover at Rabanne could therefore prove very promising, given that the brand genuinely needs a new direction and a fresh voice, as well as greater visibility. But it is also an intriguing development for Dossena's own future. Discussing the rumours, for instance, MF Fashion has suggested that Dossena could move to Alaïa, which is currently without a creative director following Pieter Mulier's move to Versace.