In the middle of the courtyard in front of Paris’ Centre Pompidou, Louis Vuitton constructed a set for its Spring/Summer 2026 menswear runway show. On ground level, the set’s flooring looked like a simple interpretation of Louis Vuitton’s iconic Monogram motif, its precise squares alternated with numbered sequences. It’s only when captured from above that the set could be truly appreciated, that we were actually standing on a life-sized Snakes and Ladders board.
Naturally, we conjectured that perhaps creative director Pharrell Williams themed the Spring/Summer 2026 menswear collection around the idea of play. Or, much like the nature of the game, that he was about to take a leap of faith into the unknown. As it turns out, neither was that far off from Williams’ intentions.
The collection started with a reworked double-breasted suit constructed to maximise movement. Crafted from lightweight mohair, the suit blazer was cut roomy, while the trousers were designed with a folded front, adding a slight flow to the silhouette. The looks that followed adopted a similar, seemingly lightweight ease. Outerwear and trousers with a kind of soft structure billowed ever so slightly as the models walked. There was hardly a single black hue in the entire collection as it was replaced by indigo hues—the colours gradated from indigo to greys, browns to dusty reds.
After a while, it became crystal clear. The soundtrack shifted from the live gospel vocals of Voices of Fire to the unmistakably distinctive thumping beats mastered by Indian composer AR Rahman. Williams’ seasonal journey around the globe for cultural inspiration had found him in India. The sun-drenched colour palette, as well as mismatched patterns of stripes and checks, referenced Indian sartorialism, itself inspired by the country’s vast landscapes and textile dyeing techniques. And the set design? Perhaps unbeknownst to many, the board game that we grew up playing originated in ancient India as Moksha Patam. Williams enlisted the assistance of architect Bijoy Jain of Studio Mumbai to create a fitting backdrop for a collection that pays homage to Indian sartorialism.
The folded drapes and overall effortless styling highlight the tailoring silhouette of the collection—soft and with a lived-in elegance emblematic of the modern Indian dandy. Refined versions of mountaineering gear, the likes of shell jackets, fleece-like blousons and hiking boots, are incorporated into the collection as reverent nods to India’s mountaineering culture. They are hardly ever styled together though. Williams separated the pieces, opting instead to use them to ground the collection’s tailoring.
Purposely aged details amplify the collection’s lived-in aesthetic. Brown denim washes replace classic indigo blue denim, where the colour is added through weaving rather than dyeing. This allows the white threads of the denim to reveal themselves over time as a form of textile ageing. On the Speedy P9 bags, the leather exterior is painted with stripes to achieve a similar worn-out effect.
The Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2026 menswear collection is then topped with the revival of a prior collaboration. An animal-centric motif created by the House specifically for Wes Anderson’s 2007 film The Darjeeling Limited (with India too as its backdrop) is utilised as part of a collection for the first time. The motif makes its presence known on a range of ready-to-wear pieces, trunks, and bags, including those that were used in the film.
If it hasn’t already been said, Williams is more than a creative director. He orchestrates a consciousness of fashion by highlighting cultural nuances in the context of a luxury fashion house and bringing to the fore their intricacies in respectful ways. We’re simply spectators of his personal game of Snakes and Ladders, wondering where he’ll land next.
The Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2026 menswear collection is now available in boutiques and online.
