Matthieu Blazy

Matthieu Blazy
Born (1984-06-27) 27 June 1984 (age 42)
Paris, France
EducationÉcole nationale supérieure des arts visuels de La Cambre
OccupationFashion designer
Years active2007–present
EmployerChanel

Matthieu Blazy (born 1984) is a French-Belgian designer. He began his fashion career as a menswear designer for Raf Simons, later moving to Maison Martin Margiela, where he worked on the label’s avant-garde artisanal line and women’s ready-to-wear collections.

From 2021 to 2024, he was the creative director of Bottega Veneta. Blazy is the creative director of Chanel since December 2024.

Early life

Blazy was born in Paris to a French father and Belgian mother, and spent his youth between both countries. His father was an art expert and his mother a historian and researcher. He has an older brother who is an airplane pilot and a twin sister who works in Singapore.

During high school, Blazy attended Pangbourne College for a year. He graduated from La Cambre fashion school in Brussels; his graduate collection was about Claudie Haigneré. He did his internships at Balenciaga and John Galliano.

Career

Early career

Raf Simons was a member of the jury of Blazy's graduate collection, which was inspired by astronaut Claudie Haigneré, and hired him on the spot. Blazy brought bolder geometrical patterns to Simons' collections.

In 2011, Blazy became a designer at Maison Margiela, at a time when the design team was anonymous, and where he experimented with advanced collage techniques. In July 2014, Vogue's Suzy Menkes revealed Blazy after the presentation of Margiela's Artisanal collection he had designed, stating "you can't keep such a talent under wraps." He then designed the Ye encrusted mask worn by Kanye West during the 2013 Yeezus tour.

In November 2014, Blazy joined Phoebe Philo's team as senior designer of Celine working on pre-collections. In August 2016, he was appointed design director of women's ready-to-wear of Calvin Klein under Raf Simons. He left Calvin Klein in 2019.

Bottega Veneta

In 2020, Blazy became design director of ready-to-wear at Bottega Veneta. In November 2021, he was appointed creative director of Bottega Veneta. Blazy brought an inclusive management style ("egalitarian" according to Anne Collier), shrank the design team, and got the craftspeople involved in the creative process. He introduced the trompe-l'œil denim leather pants (2021), the intrecciato-woven handbags Kalimero (2022) and Andiamo (2023), and the knitted leather sock-slippers (2023). He was dubbed the "Magician of Milan" by Vanessa Friedman. In September 2023, the brand opened its flagship store in Paris on avenue Montaigne, the first designed by Blazy. As part of his duties, he designed the costumes of the Venice Dance Biennale.

In December 2024, Bottega Veneta announced Blazy's departure from the brand.

Chanel

In December 2024, Blazy was named creative director of Chanel. Following Blazy's appointment and runway debut, Chanel returned to growth in 2025, with sales accelerating to high-single-digit growth during the second half of the year. When his first collection reached stores in March 2026, demand exceeded supply, generating queues and rapid sell-outs in several cities. The resulting retail frenzy was variously dubbed “Blazymania”, “Matthieu-mania” and “Matthieu Mania” by the fashion press.

Personal life

Blazy was in a relationship with fellow fashion designer Pieter Mulier until 2023.

References

  1. ↑ "Matthieu Blazy | BoF 500 | The People Shaping the Global Fashion Industry". The Business of Fashion. 2024-12-12. Retrieved 2025-05-01.
  2. 1 2 Testa, Jessica (15 November 2021). "Bottega Veneta Has a New Designer". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  3. 1 2 Guilbault, Laure (2024-12-12). "Bottega Veneta taps Louise Trotter as creative director". Vogue Business. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
  4. ↑ "Chanel's Matthieu Blazy: "I Was Never Not Interested in Fashion"". AnOther. February 26, 2026.
  5. 1 2 Todd, Laura May (2023-09-18). "A Designer Inspired by Dutch Still Lifes and Gay Pulp Fiction". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Vanessa Friedman (20 September 2023), The Magician of Milan New York Times.
  7. 1 2 Muret, Dominique (2014-11-24). "Matthieu Blazy heading to Céline?". FashionNetwork.com. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  8. ↑ Bobb, Brooke. "Radical Modernity". Harper's Bazaar. London. p. 129.
  9. 1 2 Heller, Nathan (2022-09-19). "Bottega Veneta's creative director Matthieu Blazy on the brand's heritage and the way forward". Vogue India. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  10. ↑ "Bottega Veneta: Everything Old Is New Again". The Business of Fashion. 2022-02-25. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
  11. ↑ Menkes, Suzy (2014-07-09). "At Margiela, A Star Is Born". British Vogue. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
  12. ↑ Hyland, Véronique (2014-07-10). "The Most Famous Designer You've Never Heard Of". The Cut. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
  13. ↑ "Ye's Maison Margiela 'Yeezus' Tour Mask Is On Sale for $50,000 USD". Hypebeast. 2023-04-14. Retrieved 2024-03-31.
  14. ↑ Hyland, Véronique (2014-11-20). "Report: Matthieu Blazy Has Joined Céline". The Cut. Retrieved 2024-03-04.
  15. ↑ Schneier, Matthew (2017-02-09). "Can Raf Simons Reinvent Calvin Klein?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  16. ↑ "Calvin Klein Set to Hire a New Creative Lead". The Business of Fashion. 2019-01-10. Retrieved 2024-03-31.
  17. 1 2 Friedman, Vanessa (20 September 2023). "The Magician of Milan". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 23 February 2024. Retrieved 2024-02-23.
  18. ↑ Cerini, Marianna (28 February 2022). "Bottega Veneta unveils first collection by new creative director Matthieu Blazy". CNN. Archived from the original on 23 February 2024. Retrieved 2024-02-23.
  19. ↑ Brain, Eric (12 November 2022). "Bottega Veneta's $10,500 USD Double Kalimero Is a Bag of Two Halves". Hypebeast. Archived from the original on 23 February 2024. Retrieved 2024-02-23.
  20. ↑ Brain, Eric (16 February 2023). "Matthieu Blazy's Bottega Veneta Debuts New Everyday Classic, the Andiamo Bag". Hypebeast. Archived from the original on 23 February 2024. Retrieved 2024-02-23.
  21. ↑ Brain, Eric (28 February 2023). "Take a Closer Look at Bottega Veneta's Winter 2023 Collection". Hypebeast. Archived from the original on 23 February 2024. Retrieved 2024-02-23.
  22. ↑ zeitoun, lea (27 September 2023). "industrial glass blocks engulf bottega veneta's avenue montaigne flagship store in paris". designboom | architecture & design magazine. Archived from the original on 23 February 2024. Retrieved 2024-02-23.
  23. ↑ Eleuterio, Juliette (2023-07-31). "Matthieu Blazy designs Bottega Veneta's costumes for Biennale Danza". Culted. Retrieved 2024-03-04.
  24. ↑ Diderich, Joelle, and Miles Socha (December 12, 2024). BREAKING: Chanel Picks Matthieu Blazy as New Creative Director. The star designer, who heated up Bottega Veneta to the boiling point, is moving to Rue Cambon. WWD.
  25. 1 2 Reid, Helen (19 May 2026). "Chanel returns to growth as Blazy's designs win over new shoppers". Reuters. Retrieved 24 August 2026 – via MarketScreener.
  26. 1 2 "Chanel Returns to Growth as Blazymania Kicks In". The Business of Fashion. 19 May 2026. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  27. 1 2 Hildreth, Alexandra (13 March 2026). "In New York, Customers Are Going Coco for Matthieu Blazy's Chanel". Vogue. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  28. 1 2 Lieber, Chavie (28 March 2026). "Inside 'Matthieu Mania'" (PDF). The Wall Street Journal. p. D6. Retrieved 24 August 2026.