Suited Seduction at Haider Ackermann's Tom Ford Debut
"I find both his womenswear and menswear equally compelling. He is an incredible colorist, his tailoring is sharp, and above all, he is modern." Tom Ford said this after hand-picking Haider Ackermann to be creative director of his eponymous brand.
And after the Tom Ford Fall/Winter 2025 collection, Ackermann’s debut showing in his new role, those words from the house’s founder ring true.
There was sharp tailoring aplenty: expertly cut suits, many of the double-breasted variety, each coming with a flourish of creativity. The most eye-catching of the lot were a tan brown blazer in a hairy fabrication and a series of looks towards the end of the show with glistening jewels woven into the fabric.
The louche and experimental nature of the tailoring was classic Haider Ackermann. And, as Tom Ford himself predicted, so were the pops of color.
Beginning the show with a predominantly black palette, and lots of leather, things warmed up in the second half of the 56-look presentation. Garments wore tones that ranged from soft pastels to vivid acid yellow and electric green, which Ackermann described as “colors of joy.”
“Tom Ford is a world of desire. It lures and seduces. To seduce means to bring someone close, drawing a gaze, enticing touch, stimulating senses, rewarding discovery with surprise and beauty,” the designer said in a statement provided after the show.
Certainly, there was a seductive quality to the clothing, a classic Tom Ford trope, but bare skin was eschewed for the implication of flesh, with close-cut dresses and trim silhouettes revealing at what lay underneat.
This is contemporary sensuality, tasteful and removed. That makes sense because, as Ford said, "above all, [Ackermann] is modern."
