John Galliano Takes Zara Into Haute Couture Territory

John Galliano’s first collection for Zara starts with something most fashion collaborations do not: existing clothes. Rather than designing the collection entirely from scratch, Galliano took garments from Zara’s previous collections and reworked them through cutting, resizing, reconstruction and digital manipulation.

Titled Re{form} Zara Authored by the Couturier John Galliano, the collection launches on October 1, 2026, as the first instalment of a two-year creative partnership between Galliano and Zara. The agreement covers four collections.

The first release spans outerwear, dresses, T-shirts, suiting, knitwear, lingerie and accessories. In the US, it will be available online, with prices starting at $29.90.

How John Galliano’s Zara Collaboration Began

Photo: Steven Meisel

Galliano first met Marta Ortega Pérez, the non-executive chair of Inditex, in 2022 through the MOP Foundation in A Coruña, Spain.

In autumn 2022, Galliano and his longtime partner, Alexis Roche, travelled to A Coruña for an exhibition of Steven Meisel’s work at the foundation. Meisel has been closely associated with Galliano’s career, including his 1994 American Vogue portfolio.

During the visit, Ortega Pérez asked Galliano whether he would consider a collaboration with Zara. His initial response was no. At the time, he was still creative director of Maison Margiela, a role he had held since 2014.

After leaving Margiela in 2024, Galliano and Ortega Pérez remained in contact. During a later lunch, he introduced the idea that became Re{form}, and Ortega Pérez agreed to move forward with it.

The project began in January 2026 in an atelier somewhere around Paris. Galliano was drawn to Zara’s technical capabilities, particularly its fabric sourcing and manufacturing infrastructure.

Galliano Reworks Zara’s Existing Garments

Photo: Steven Meisel

Galliano describes the garments he worked with as Zara’s “archives”, although they were essentially existing pieces that became his working prototypes.

The starting points included a long wool-mix coat, a slip dress and a cotton shirt. Galliano and his team cut, pressed, turned and reconstructed the garments, asking how each could be altered and represented differently.

A wool-mix coat is cut at the front, with its pockets pushed further towards the back, while its lapels are extended and its tails lengthened down the leg.

A lace-trimmed slip dress is moved upwards on the body until it becomes an elaborate jabot around the neck.

A Zara shirt enlarged to triple or quadruple XL proportions becomes a jacket after being printed with a trompe l’oeil leather pattern. Elsewhere, pockets are twisted and repositioned to alter the way the garments sit on the body.

Other transformations include a coat reworked into a net dress with faux-fur trims, a shirt enlarged three times its original size to resemble a leather coat, two pairs of trousers cut and repurposed into sans-culotte pants and a lace shift dress transformed into a ruffled collar.

The process incorporates physical and digital “hacking”, shrinking, magnifying, swatching and splicing.

The Historical References Behind Re{form}

The collection draws heavily on Les Incroyables and Les Merveilleuses, the dandies and women associated with post-Revolutionary France.

The reference is familiar territory for Galliano. His 1984 Central Saint Martins graduation collection was titled Les Incroyables and was inspired by the same historical figures.

In Re{form}, the influence appears through overcoats, breeches and frock coats, while the collection places the references in contemporary settings and combinations.

Other pieces include bias-cut gowns, technical tailoring and transparent layers of tulle, alongside beribboned bonnets, cravats and bicorne hats.

The headwear also references Abel Gance’s 1927 film Napoléon, one of Galliano’s favourite films.

A Couture Approach Without Being Haute Couture

Photo: Steven Meisel

Re{form} is not a traditional haute couture collection. Its connection to couture comes through the construction, manipulation and treatment of the garments.

Galliano describes the result in terms of achieving “almost haute couture posturings”, using Zara’s existing pieces as the foundation.

The collection also brings together elements associated with Galliano’s wider design vocabulary, including bias-cut silhouettes, historical dress references, exaggerated proportions and reconstructed garments.

The price point remains that of a Zara collaboration rather than a couture collection. US prices start at $29.90, while the collection’s UK starting price is £17.99.

For context, a Galliano couture piece created for Dior sold for €663,000 in January 2026, setting a record for a couture garment.

Steven Meisel Photographs the Campaign

Photo: Steven Meisel

Steven Meisel photographed the campaign for Re{form}, continuing his longstanding creative relationship with Galliano.

Their history includes the 1994 American Vogue portfolio that helped Galliano secure the financial backing to stage his all-black autumn/winter show that same year.

For the Zara project, Meisel photographed the collection’s reconstructed garments and the historical references running through the designs.

Galliano’s Return to Fashion

The Zara partnership follows Galliano’s departure from Maison Margiela in 2024.

In 2011, he was dismissed from Dior following antisemitic and racist remarks made at a Paris café. He subsequently entered rehabilitation for drug and alcohol addiction.

He later worked on Oscar de la Renta’s Fall 2013 collection before joining Maison Margiela as creative director in 2014. He remained at the house for a decade before leaving in December 2024.

Zara announced its two-year creative partnership with Galliano in March 2026. The collaboration marked his return to a major design project after his departure from Margiela.

Galliano has described his career in three acts: the first three decades, from Central Saint Martins through his Dior years; his decade at Maison Margiela; and Re{form}, which he considers the beginning of his third act.

What Comes Next

The October collection is the first of four releases planned during Galliano’s two-year partnership with Zara.

The project establishes a specific design process: existing Zara garments become prototypes that can be cut, enlarged, reduced, repositioned and reconstructed rather than simply reproduced.