This was the first Joseph runway show in almost a decade—the last one took place in September 2017 under the stewardship of Louise Trotter, who is now at Bottega Veneta. The company that Joseph Ettedgui built from a hairdressers in London into a fully-fledged ready-to-wear brand throughout the 1970s and ’80s has had a tough time since then.
But it’s been quietly rebuilding. To recalibrate the loss-making business, CEO Barbara Campos, who was hired in 2018, shut down its menswear arm and pulled out of the US market. In 2022 she managed to report profit for the first time in her tenure, and in 2024 she hired Mario Arena as Joseph’s creative director.
Arena, who has worked for JW Anderson, Christopher Kane and Nanushka among others, looked at the art of sculpture for the first collection he’d present on the runway for Joseph. “I found inspiration in the skill of sculpture by creating softness and lightness in mediums that are flat, and re-envisioned them into effortless pieces with structural shapes, deep folds, and movement,” he said.
While there were a few structural pieces—a belted cape dress and a cashmere two-piece sewn with 3D printed metal quills that clanked—most of the silhouettes were indeed fluid and light. There were wide-leg trouser suits in satin twill that swooshed; below-the-ankle maxi skirts in denim; gray silk and gold lamé paired with simple tight-fitting knits and python prints on alpaca shawls; and a selection of footwear. The best bits were the cashmere and culottes trouser suits, which made sense when styled with woven leather knee-high boots or short heeled python pumps. The see-through tops were less necessary.
