Balenciaga Storms Los Angeles

The French fashion house took to Hancock Park’s suburban streets to debut its pre-fall 2024 collection before celebrating on the Sunset Strip

Words by ELIZABETH VARNELL

Demna’s latest American dream for Balenciaga, the French fashion house he helms, began with recorded sounds of cars honking and buzzing drones paired with the idyllic environs of a palm-lined suburban street in Los Angeles’ Hancock Park on Saturday, December 2. Under blasting afternoon sun and clear blue skies, the mononymic artistic director sent out a pre-fall 2024 collection interpreting the codes of a city he has admired since his youth in Soviet Georgia. He set South Windsor Boulevard, a street with the unique distinction of perfectly framing the Hollywood sign, with corporate black chairs filled with friends and collaborators, including new brand ambassador Nicole Kidman in a black tweed coat, Kim Kardashian in black lace tights alongside Kendall Jenner in a black tank gown, and Brooklyn Beckham in the line’s architectural trainers with his wife, Nicola Peltz, in a black minidress.

Also on hand for the show were Tracee Ellis Ross, Eva Longoria, Hari Nef, Salma Hayek, Vittoria Ceretti, Lauren Wasser, Lil Wayne, Alton Mason, Samara Weaving, Elsa Hosk, Ashley Graham, Carolyn Murphy, Paloma Elsesser, Keith Powers, Teyana Taylor, Ana Luisa Corrigan, Kemio, Tyler James Williams, Tokischa, Stella Maxwell, Ari Lennox, Moses Sumney, and Nia Long. Demna began with activewear, much as locals start the day at the gym. Shorts, sweatshirts, bra tops, and leggings were introduced before jersey designs and cropped hooded jackets emerged, followed by oversize grunge-adjacent designs including cut-up asymmetric trousers, outdoor hotel slippers, and leather bags converted into genius nylon shopper totes. Next, square-shouldered daywear and tweed sets led to angular evening pieces like coat dresses and a white satin gown with a face-shielding collar. Croc-embossed Rodeo bags debuted, as did batwing eyewear and the exaggerated 10XL sneaker plus made-in-the U.S. diamond-encrusted high jewelry, a collaboration with Jacob & Co. Model Brigitte Nielsen returned to modeling for the show wearing over-the-knee boots, and rapper Cardi B made her runway debut in a cobalt-colored coat.

Voice-overs on a soundtrack scored by Demna’s husband and collaborator BFRND included spot-on fictional ads that rounded up all the wellness tropes, offering the chance to “rebalance” oneself at Medi Station by “breathing away all frustrations”; “dust yourself off” and put on running shoes for a beach half-marathon; “ignite a brighter future” with solar panels; and take “enticing trips” with “Random Paradise.” There were even ads for creators tired of lugging heavy camera gear. And present was Erewhon, the only-in-L.A. line of grocery stores initially founded by the Japanese couple Michio and Aveline Kushi that’s credited with helping introduce macrobiotics to Americans. Demna’s models carried Balenciaga-branded Erewhon shopping bags heralding a collaboration that includes hoodies, T-shirts, aprons, reusable nylon totes, and caps.

Alongside the show, the house unveiled an Instagram reel of its latest green-hued Le Cagole Tote XL fed into a blender and resulting in a glass of juice. Naturally, an exclusive co-branded opaque black drink made from apple, lemon, ginger, cinnamon, maple, and detoxifying charcoal is currently on sale at the grocer’s 10 locations through early December. Like the limited-edition mixture, the show itself blended together a host of disparate ideas, including aughts Us Weekly coverage of celeb coffee runs, velour tracksuits, Uggs, yoga mats, post-gym images of Diana, Princess of Wales, and L.A.’s red carpet culture — plus the house’s codes dating back to its founder Cristóbal, all interpreted through Demna’s singular eye. Drink up.

After the sun went down and evening cocktails made the rounds at the Sunset Tower after-party, Cardi B hosted the house’s late-night celebration down the street at the Whisky a Go Go. She donned a figure-hugging black gown by the designer that revealed slashes of skin amid a series of gathered knots through her torso and around each sleeve. The Bronx native captioned a post summing up the day with the words “dare to be different.”