Pierpaolo Piccioli
Creative director of Balenciaga
Pierpaolo Piccioli is an Italian designer who has been creative director of Balenciaga, part of Kering, since July 2025. He spent 25 years at Valentino, leading it as co-creative director from 2008 and as sole creative director from 2016 until 2024, and is regarded as one of the leading couturiers of his generation.
| Role | Creative director of Balenciaga |
|---|---|
| Since | July 2025 |
| Previous role | Creative director of Valentino (2008 to 2024) |
| Nationality | Italian |
| Born | 1967 |
| Known for | Couture, colour, Pink PP collection |
Who is Pierpaolo Piccioli?
Pierpaolo Piccioli is an Italian fashion designer born in 1967 and educated at Sapienza University of Rome. Since July 2025 he has been creative director of Balenciaga, the Paris house owned by Kering. Kering announced the appointment in May 2025, when his predecessor Demna moved to lead design at Gucci, the group's largest brand.
Career
Piccioli began his career at Fendi, where he worked for around a decade alongside Maria Grazia Chiuri on accessories. In 1999 Valentino Garavani recruited both designers to develop accessories at Valentino. After the founder retired, Piccioli and Chiuri were named co-creative directors in 2008, a partnership that ran until 2016, when Chiuri left for Dior and Piccioli became sole creative director.
Over the following eight years he built a reputation for colour, couture craftsmanship and red carpet dressing. His Pink PP collection of 2022, built around a single saturated shade of pink, became one of the most widely discussed fashion marketing moments of that year. He received the Designer of the Year title at The Fashion Awards in 2018. Valentino and Piccioli announced their parting in March 2024, after 25 years together.
- 1999 to 2008: accessories at Valentino, with Maria Grazia Chiuri
- 2008 to 2016: co-creative director of Valentino
- 2016 to 2024: sole creative director of Valentino
- Since July 2025: creative director of Balenciaga
Influence on the fashion business
At Valentino, Piccioli and Chiuri helped turn an accessories business into a commercial engine. The studded Rockstud line became one of the house's best known product families. His later couture work showed that a single, strongly authored colour story could carry a whole brand campaign across social media and stores.
His move to Balenciaga is significant for Kering's portfolio strategy. It replaced a decade of Demna's streetwear led, provocative aesthetic with a designer associated with couture, elegance and emotional storytelling, at a time when Kering was resetting creative leadership across several of its houses.
Why it matters
Piccioli's career illustrates how creative directors in luxury increasingly move between groups and houses rather than staying for a lifetime, and how a new designer is often used to reposition a brand's price architecture and customer base. For wholesale and retail partners, the Balenciaga transition is a case study in managing assortment, storytelling and client expectations when a house changes its creative language after a long and distinctive tenure.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Pierpaolo Piccioli?
Pierpaolo Piccioli is an Italian fashion designer and, since July 2025, creative director of Balenciaga. He previously spent 25 years at Valentino, where he was creative director from 2008 to 2024.
Why did Pierpaolo Piccioli join Balenciaga?
Kering appointed Piccioli in May 2025 after Demna, Balenciaga's creative director since 2015, was moved to lead design at Gucci. Piccioli had left Valentino in 2024 and took up the Balenciaga role in July 2025.