Glenn Martens at Maison Margiela: From Galliano to the New Era
Glenn Martens at Maison Margiela: From Galliano to the New Era
Glenn Martens is the third person to lead Maison Margiela, after Martin Margiela and John Galliano. He was appointed in January 2025, showed his first Artisanal collection in July 2025 and his first ready-to-wear collection, for Spring Summer 2026, in Paris that October. He also stays creative director of Diesel, another OTB brand. The pieces Coveti now stocks in the Maison Margiela collection come from his first seasons.
Quick answer
- Appointed: January 2025, confirmed by the owner, OTB.
- Before Margiela: Y/Project from 2013, Diesel from 2020, and a guest couture collection for Jean Paul Gaultier in 2022.
- First shows: Artisanal in July 2025; ready-to-wear for Spring Summer 2026 on 4 October 2025 at Le Centquatre in Paris.
- Direction: back to Margiela basics (suiting, denim, white shirts) with Martens’s love of twisted, treated fabric.
Who is Glenn Martens?
Martens is Belgian, like Martin Margiela, and also trained in Antwerp, at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts. He made his name at Y/Project, the Paris label he led from 2013, where he became known for clothes that could be worn several ways: jeans with extra waistbands, tops with sleeves that ran into each other. At Diesel he pushed denim treatments hard, with bleaching, spraying and laser work. Both habits are visible in his Margiela.
John Galliano, 2014 to 2024
OTB appointed John Galliano in October 2014 and he stayed ten years. He made Artisanal the centre of the house again and ended with the Artisanal 2024 show under the Pont Alexandre III in Paris, with porcelain-skin make-up and corseted, cinema-lit figures that many critics called the best show of his career. He left in December 2024. Read our profile of Martin Margiela for the founding years.
The first Martens ready-to-wear show
The Spring Summer 2026 show opened with a children’s orchestra in oversized suits, a nod to Martin Margiela’s 1989 show. Models wore metal mouthpieces built from the four-stitch logo, keeping the house idea of anonymity. The clothes were calmer than his couture debut: tailoring, denim and white shirts, mostly in neutrals. Critics read it as a reset towards the wardrobe Martin Margiela built in the 1990s.
What to buy from the Martens era
1. Virgin Wool Tuxedo Blazer in Black
A clean tuxedo jacket in virgin wool. It is the sort of piece Martens put at the centre of his first show, and it works over jeans as easily as with its trousers.
2. Cotton Shirt in White
The plain cotton shirt that keeps coming back. Look for the four white stitches at the back of the neck.
3. Bleached Spliced Jeans in Light Indigo
Bleached and spliced denim, with panels joined across the leg. This is where the Diesel influence shows most.
4. Slashed Velvet Floral Maxi Dress in Bordeaux
Made with the Fusion technique, where separate garments are joined into one. Panels of cut velvet are washed and layered so it looks found, not new.
5. Taped Slip Dress in Black
A slip dress with taped seams on the outside, a classic piece of Margiela deconstruction.
6. Bianchetto Double-Breasted Wool Blazer in Pink Beige
Hand-painted in Bianchetto, the white paint technique the founder used on furniture and clothes in his studio. Each one wears differently.
What changed, and what stayed
The four stitches, the white label and the Tabi stayed. What changed is the texture: more treated denim, more crinkled and washed satin, more garments built from two. The tailoring is sharper than in the late Galliano years and the colour is quieter, mostly black, white, ecru and washed blues. Maison Margiela sizes its ready-to-wear in Italian sizes, which run four above UK, so an IT 42 is a UK 10. Knitwear comes in letter sizes and jeans in waist sizes. The full conversion is in our Maison Margiela size guide.
Maison Margiela at a glance
| Founded | 1988, Paris, by Martin Margiela and Jenny Meirens |
| Creative director | Glenn Martens, since January 2025 (after Martin Margiela to 2009 and John Galliano, 2014 to 2024) |
| Owner | OTB, the Italian group founded by Renzo Rosso, majority owner since 2002 |
| Signatures | The four white stitches, the blank numbered label, the Tabi split toe, deconstruction, Artisanal remade garments |
| Lines | Artisanal (couture), the main collection, and MM6 Maison Margiela, launched in 1997 |
| Made in | Most ready-to-wear is made in Italy; a few pieces are made in France |
| Sizes at Coveti | Italian sizes IT 36 to 50 (UK 4 to 18), letter sizes XS to XXL for knitwear, waist sizes for jeans |
Frequently asked questions
Who is the creative director of Maison Margiela?
Glenn Martens, appointed in January 2025. He also leads Diesel, which belongs to the same owner, OTB.
When did Glenn Martens show his first Maison Margiela collection?
His first Artisanal collection showed in July 2025, and his first ready-to-wear collection, for Spring Summer 2026, showed in Paris on 4 October 2025.
Why did John Galliano leave Maison Margiela?
Galliano announced his departure in December 2024 after ten years. Neither he nor OTB gave a detailed reason.
Is Glenn Martens still at Diesel?
Yes. He has led Diesel since 2020 and kept the role when he joined Maison Margiela. Both brands belong to OTB.
Is Glenn Martens Belgian like Martin Margiela?
Yes. Both are Belgian and both trained at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp.
Read next: who is Martin Margiela, the Autumn Winter 2026 edit, Margiela techniques.
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