Louise Trotter Has Been Soft-Launching Her Bottega Veneta Era at Cannes

This September is shaping up to be a juggernaut. The spring 2026 season will be filled with a daisy chain of almost too many designer debuts to count, including Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez at Loewe, Demna at Gucci, Pierpaolo Piccioli at Balenciaga, Matthieu Blazy at Chanel, and Louise Trotter at Bottega Veneta. Keeping track of them all is enough to make any head spin, and it’s probably why brands are starting to quietly roll out off-runway teasers.

And why not? A red carpet debut is the fashion equivalent of a soft launch, offering a brief glimpse of what’s to come while garnering good impressions in advance of September’s runway madness. Last week, Demna’s hidden touch may have infiltrated the Gucci cruise show, and now, Trotter has debuted an array of custom looks at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. Trotter is best known for her previous position as the creative director of Carven—which she assumed after departing Lacoste, where she delicately reinvigorated the brand with sloping silhouettes and easygoing yet editorial pieces. In January, the English designer succeeded Mathieu Blazy at Bottega Veneta, becoming the first female creative director in the brand’s history.

Trotter debuted at Cannes by dressing Julianne Moore, a longtime friend of the house, for The Phoenician Scheme premiere. The look was practical and pared-back in that classic Bottega way—but with a twist. On the red carpet, the one-shouldered dress turned to reveal a flowing leather tassel, anchored by a knot at the collarbone. The subtle strap was reminiscent of the handle on the brand’s Kalimero bag, now a relic of the Blazy days, but a signature detail of what Bottega Veneta has become.

Trotter dressed Moore again for Kering’s Women in Motion event, this time in a tuxedo, accessorized with the actual bag Lauren Hutton carried in the 1980 movie American Gigolo (the intrecciato leather clutch has since been re-released in honor of the film, and is now called the Lauren 1980). Unlike many of the bold-shouldered suits or skinny jeans coming down the runway, Moore’s tuxedo was a Goldilocks of sorts. Not too structured and not too slim, the cut was just right. A future aesthetic hint, perhaps?

Those weren’t the only Bottega cameos at Cannes. Also for the Women in Motion event, Vicky Krieps stepped out in an apron-like leather dress, this time with a tassel draped over the front. The Phantom Thread actress also appeared in two additional custom Bottega looks. The first, for Alpha’s red carpet, was a strapless ensemble that emphasized subtlety, like many of the other low-key gowns seen at the festival this week. Later, Krieps made waves at the Love Me Tender photo call in a backless leather intrecciato top paired with a refined wide-legged white trouser, likely signaling that the textile experimentation will remain front and center in Trotter’s designs.

When approaching a debut, designers don’t necessarily have to come out swinging. However, making a mark before the runway show bows certainly doesn’t hurt. Before Sarah Burton’s official debut for Givenchy, she made a splash at this year’s Oscars dressing Elle Fanning in a white gown inspired by Hubert de Givenchy’s first collection in 1952. Furthermore, both Alessandro Michele and Julian Klausner released lookbooks preceding their first shows for Valentino and Dries Van Noten, respectively. For Trotter, her rollout has been filled with soft lines and subtle evocations of house codes, leaving a touch of anticipation for what’s to come.