TAAKK SS26

.new collection
TAAKK SS26
*The Quiet Confidence

written Malcolm Thomas

It's been five years since I attended Paris Fashion Week. In my absence, brands have come and gone, and the industry has crowned new creative directors yet TAKKK remains exactly how I remember it. Intentional. 

Intentional like the creation of a simple TAAKK Spring/Summer 2026 show tee, a gift to its guests. Made from recycled nylon resin, processed and spun from discarded fishing nets collected across Japan. The band in which the tee is wrapped and program both made of recycled materials.

TAAKK
SS26 Show during PFW

TAAKK
SS26 Show during PFW

TAAKK
SS26 Show during PFW

Already a master of textiles, Taakk has now added a deeper dive into sculptural embroidery and gradients, for which they're known, first with colors, now with materials, i.e. shifting a shirt to a suit, to their oeuvre. Yes, they're magicians, too.

Yet, despite this, Taakk remains elusively under the radar with a quiet confidence that I can only attribute to the mores of Japanese culture. Humble, polite, and inconspicuous. But Creative Director Takuya Morikawa, in my humble opinion, has lots to brag about.

TAAKK
SS26 Show during PFW

TAAKK
SS26 Show during PFW

TAAKK
SS26 Show during PFW

Titled "The Common Baseline of Art and The Ordinary," the program mentions an evolving quest for "the essence of creation." A less lofty interpretation, "Everyday wear and art. Necessity and disruption." It's easy to wax poetic about the many processes and the impressive self-awareness of this small brand, but I'll let the clothes speak for themselves. So, I encourage you to have a look around, and maybe you'll see why Taakk remains one of my favorites.

about the editor
When not reviewing shows or writing features for Le Mile Magazine, (or constantly hitting refresh on his wardrobe), Malcolm spends his time as Founder & Editorial Director of Malcolm + Friends Agency. A full-service agency powered by a global community of freelancers, consultants, and creative partners from leading brands and institutions. 

Wooyoungmi SS26

.new collection
Wooyoungmi SS26
*A Little Bit of Romance

written Malcolm Thomas

Enjoying a glass of cold champagne to the sounds of a violin rendition of Philip Glass in the beautiful stately courtyard of the Maison de la Chimie.

There is, quite frankly, no better way to end a very hot menswear season (and I'm not just talking about the shows). Mix in perfumed guests (many in Wooyoungmi themselves) with a discreet celebrity or two, and you have subtle cues that even before the runway music starts, you're in for something good.

Wooyoungmi
SS26 Show during PFW

Wooyoungmi
SS26 Show during PFW

Wooyoungmi
SS26 Show during PFW

Then the moment comes. It begins with a sultry jazz melody and as soon as the first look is shown, a pulsating backbeat. Inspired by Seoul summers, which according to the program are equally hot, and the joys of dressing, the offerings this season are meant to be filled with "levity" and "elegance", of course. 

The collection—light on pants but heavy on sex appeal took to task many renditions of the men's Edwardian bathing suit. A once modest early 20th century essential subverted for the 21st century man. Another notch to add to the bedpost of menswear’s liberation.

Wooyoungmi
SS26 Show during PFW

Wooyoungmi
SS26 Show during PFW

Wooyoungmi
SS26 Show during PFW

Most importantly, this is a man who has places to go and beaches to see. Lounging on a private beach in Monte Carlo by day and enjoying an old-fashioned or two in a members-only lounge, by night, perhaps. Think jumpers, vests, and knitted tops paired with oversized intarsia raffia bags and backpacks paired with silk viscose tailcoat button-ups. Did I mention he's also a multitasker?

Rooted in staples: smart tailoring, fine fabrics, and elevated colorways—Wooyoungmi is not here to tell you what to wear but to suggest it. Wooyoungmi is not here to tell you who you are but to remind you. 

Who said romance was dead?

about the editor
When not reviewing shows or writing features for Le Mile Magazine, (or constantly hitting refresh on his wardrobe), Malcolm spends his time as Founder & Editorial Director of Malcolm + Friends Agency. A full-service agency powered by a global community of freelancers, consultants, and creative partners from leading brands and institutions. 

Walter Van Beirendonck SS26

.new collection
Walter Van Beirendonck SS26
*Reaches For The Stars

written Malcolm Thomas

“If you are sad and wondering: Where Have All the Flowers Gone?” to quote the show notes, they were probably body-deep, pushing their way into the Walter Van Beirendonck show (wallflowers, no).

Loud, experimental, and playful as ever, yes. Proudly displaying their Walter Van Beirendonck wears and hoping, albeit praying, for a chance to get inside the Odeon Theater. The kind of frenzy that can only be conjured by a designer who really resonates with his audience. An audience whose whimsy for fantasy is even more needed today.

Walter Van Beirendonck
SS26 Show during PFW

Walter Van Beirendonck
SS26 Show during PFW

Walter Van Beirendonck
SS26 Show during PFW

A fantasy hopping and skipping its way down memory lane. Here, you’ll find childhood photographs in black and white from the designer’s personal archive printed across suits, trousers, and the like. Anoraks with plush trim (a bit more fantastical in Wednesday’s 100-degree weather). Delicate florals on skeleton suits, a nod to the stylish lives of 18th-century’s most well-heeled children. Also on the menu: polka dot leggings, combs, hot rollers, shoehorns, and more, as cultural icons. Reminiscent of playing dress up in your parents’ things. Speaking of dress-up, when the if-you-know-you-know crowd is spotted wearing shoehorn earrings and hot roller bracelets, don’t say you haven’t been forewarned. More honorable mentions: Stephen Jones bowler hats pierced by paper flowers and those Vidal Sassoon-Esque Beatles bobs—remind us we are all flower children.  

Walter Van Beirendonck
SS26 Show during PFW

Walter Van Beirendonck
SS26 Show during PFW

Walter Van Beirendonck
SS26 Show during PFW

So, “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?” the designer wrote. “Look back. Look below. Look forward.” They are boys as girls as girls are boys, and we are all human. Cut from the same technicolor rainbow, bubblegum, cotton candy cloth. “From the sunny fields, they wink at us,” Beirendonck continues. “Softly swaying, with Starry Eyes,” he concludes. Hopefully, to a world that will love them as much as Walter Van Beirendonck does.

about the editor
When not reviewing shows or writing features for Le Mile Magazine, (or constantly hitting refresh on his wardrobe), Malcolm spends his time as Founder & Editorial Director of Malcolm + Friends Agency. A full-service agency powered by a global community of freelancers, consultants, and creative partners from leading brands and institutions.