The problem with doing something great the first time is that it sets expectations on the ceiling. Fortunately, when you’re Louise Trotter, that’s not really an issue. The designer, who joined Bottega Veneta in December 2024 after Matthieu Blazy left his seat as creative director to take a new one at Chanel, shocked and awed the crowd at her debut runway show for the house from Vicenza, continuing the ground-breaking work she had started in her former role as creative director of Carven. Mesmerizing fringe paired with artful uses of Bottega Veneta’s signature intrecciato, crafting (emphasis on the craft part) a collection for women by a woman.
On Saturday, the designer unveiled her much-anticipated second collection for Bottega Veneta at the brand’s headquarters in the Palazzo San Fedele, showing a total of 81 looks for both men and women to a crowd that included Lauren Hutton, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Lauryn Hill, Julianne Moore, and Lux Pascal. The men’s side was noticeably more tame, with a ruffled collar and fringe (made of plexiglass) jacket being among the most obvious exceptions. For women, the collection felt far more varied, starting with quieter ensembles colored in soft neutrals that leaned heavily on Bottega Veneta’s history as a leather goods house, before developing into louder, more playful looks using the aforementioned plexiglass fringe she debuted for spring/summer 2026. This evolution accurately portrayed the duality of women, casual and laid-back one second, larger-than-life the next, captivating any room—in this case, with hot-pink outerwear and a bright-red hat (among other combinations). It also mimicked the duality of Trotter’s adopted home of Milan (she’s from London, but has lived in the city for a year after taking this job), which she described to Vogue and other media outlets backstage as “very Brutalist, with a sensuality that’s a little hidden.”
Milan’s shows have appeared to be a lot more about storytelling this season than just debuting beautiful clothing, with Prada’s show being a lesson in dressing and undressing—peeling off layers as one passes through a day and a life. Bottega Veneta’s fall/winter 2026 unveiling shares a similar sense of peeling back, showing the multifaceted nature of places and people. Comparing Look 1 to Look 80 might feel jarring at first glance, but are we to expect our wardrobe to show only one version of ourselves? The quietest or the loudest without any freedom for change? I would hope not, and her latest Bottega Veneta collection would suggest that Trotter is on my side.
Duality
From an elegant if not somewhat subdued ensemble fit for a well-dressed Milanese woman to wear throughout the first half of her day, grabbing coffee, chatting with friends, and catching up on work in the office, to a fantastical, furry look for the most special of occasion—that is the breadth of what Trotter debuted in her sophomore collection for Bottega Veneta. The Bottega Veneta woman is not just one thing. She is multifaceted, and her wardrobe should reflect that duality.
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