Sarah Burton’s third collection for Givenchy, presented at Paris Fashion Week, puts women and their relationship with clothing firmly in focus. For spring/summer 2027, she imagines a wardrobe for lives that rarely stand still. Precise in its construction, simple in purpose, and ready to adapt as moods and activities change.
Burton described her vision as “a wardrobe to bring precision and simplicity to dressing as we speed through the multiple perspectives and perpetual motion of all our lives.” There’s a sense of disorder behind the collection, but also a desire to cut through it. Clothes should move with the body, not hold it back. A simple idea, perhaps, but one that shapes the show.
Forget the tight, body-conscious silhouettes that have long defined one version of feminine dressing. Burton goes for volume, sculptural shapes and deconstructed tailoring. High-leg leather skirts, supersized peplums with sheer frills, kimono-style robes thrown over slips. The proportions are bold, occasionally theatrical, yet still intended to be worn.
The tailoring borrows from menswear, then shifts the rules. Sleeves overlap, shoulders relax, panels fall out of place and asymmetry interrupts familiar lines. There’s structure here, but little stiffness. The clothes are designed to move.
Burton’s starting point is a world that feels precarious, full of noise and competing demands. Her answer lies in the cut: engineered shapes and considered construction, with the physical experience of wearing a garment taking precedence over visual spectacle. How does it feel? How does it move? Can a woman make it her own?
The casting supports that idea. Models of different ages and body types bring a range of attitudes to the runway, while the clothes move easily between polished daytime tailoring and more sculptural, embellished evening looks. The wardrobe doesn’t insist on a single version of femininity.
Red, yellow, green, cobalt blue and baby pink cut through a palette grounded in black, white and neutrals. The brighter shades bring energy and a welcome sense of play. They don’t drown out the tailoring; they give it another dimension.
The material choices are just as varied. Burton works with supple leather, fine jersey, lightweight pleated fabrics, brass and metal wires, embroidery and hand-finished details. Leather is a particular strength. Treated almost like cloth, it moves and drapes in unexpected ways, appearing in everything from armour-like trench coats to soft, draped dresses.
Construction does much of the work. Sliced sleeves, trouser creases that swing outward and draped panels alter the way garments sit on the body. Suspended elements add lightness. Leather folds and collapses rather than holding a rigid shape, while fringe, pom-pom-inspired embellishments and flowing pleats give both daywear and evening looks a sense of rhythm.
