Can small labels thrive in Paris?

It’s become increasingly harder for smaller brands to break through the noise in the fashion capital as big brands get louder.
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Photo by Lyvans Boolaky/Getty Images; Photo: Valerio Mezzanotti / Courtesy of Kartik Research; Photo: Marcel Nestler / Courtesy of Arturo Obegero.

This is Connecting the Dots, a series in which writer José Criales-Unzueta looks at how fashion, pop culture, the internet and society are all interconnected.

The headlines from the Spring/Summer 2025 menswear edition of Paris Fashion Week spotlighted an all-star cast of designers: Rick Owens staged a 200-person martial parade for peace; Pharrell Williams took over the Unesco headquarters courtyard, Dries Van Noten hosted a cocktail hour and a party that sandwiched his knockout farewell show.