I Need a Hero: How Statement Items Ruled the Spring 2027 Collections

What do Prada’s 63 skirts, Chanel’s 83 pairs of shoes, and Celine’s bug-eyed sunglasses and oversized belts have in common? They’re all hero items fresh from the spring 2027 runways. These are not the Gucci double G belts or Balenciaga logo T-shirts of a pre-pandemic logomania scene, nor are they purely part of a Man Repeller-era eccentric revival. These hero items’ particular funk is part of a new system of signaling in a more fashion-savvy digital age, one where a pair of pump’s contrasting teal toe cap says it all.

Much has been said about the end of quiet luxury—the vibrant menswear collections over the summer finally squashed that conversation entirely, actually. Meanwhile, in the background, favorable sentiments about statement pieces have been stewing. A good argument could be made that the hero item’s return really kicked off with Dario Vitale’s lone, glorious collection for Versace where rumpled, sensual savants ran supreme. “Bold, graphic and colorful, [Vitale’s] pencil skirts and shoes were on every industry insider in September,” Chloe King, of Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue, told Vogue.

“Right now, there’s a fatigue around perfection and predictability, and a desire for individuality,” says Tory Burch. “Our customer is gravitating towards pieces with personality, wit, distinctive color, and detail: embroidered cardigans, oversized sunglasses, tromp l’oeil Pierced hardware, and handwoven shoes and totes.” The pierced shoes, which originally launched with the spring 2023 collection, are still one of the brand’s biggest, and most recognizable, hits.

Dries Van Noten’s Julian Klausner is embracing his customers’ enthusiasm for singularity, as well. On an episode of The Run-Through With Vogue, taped two days after his retro glam show, he said, “what I love is that people are really picking up on specific pieces. I feel like this time around, more than the image or the general looks or show, it’s really people picking up on a bag, on a shoe, on a jacket, on a T-shirt.”

If a designer’s gut-check isn’t enough, larger data points back this up, too. According to Google trends, searches for statement belts, like the ones seen at Celine, Valentino, and Chopova Lowena this season (as well as at brands including Chloe and Polo Ralph Lauren a season earlier), were up 350%, while statement necklaces of the “everything and the kitchen sink” variety, as we called them in the fall 2026 accessories trend report, were up 250%.

Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons made a convincing argument for the power of the statement skirt formula, casting off pants entirely. The RealReal and eBay are already experiencing an uptick in vintage Prada skirt queries for those who wish to recreate the runway magic.

The specificity of a statement shoe, like Prada’s perforated pumps or the Jil Sander’s curved heels, is more difficult to come by on the secondhand market, of course. That means that accessories are coming to the forefront. “I can’t remember a season in many, many years where the focus of footwear has been so incredibly strong,” luxury consultant Robert Burke told Vogue Business. “It was a deliberate move to put an emphasis on creative footwear, which can change an outfit.” For proof consider Chanel where Matthieu Blazy sent 83 unique pairs of shoes down the runway, one for every look.

Another factor contributing to the hero item phenomenon is the cult of the celebrity designer. Customers went crazy—both in Paris and in New York—for the first drops of Blazy’s Chanel. “Even if the item maybe isn’t terribly novel, if they’re capturing a fresh feeling, which is what Matthieu is doing, there is this rationale to invest because it’s capturing the moment,” said style Substacker Jalil Johnson. “It’s almost like buying a piece of history.”

Take Michael Rider, who has struck lightning at Celine. Scroll on TikTok, and you’ll see fans recreating the cummerbunds from the recent men’s runway. Try to snag a pair of the fall drop’s ultra-low kitten heels or a certain color of the smiley luggage pouches before they’re all snapped up? Good luck. “The Parisian sales girls were like, ‘That’s a hot item, hide it,’” Johnson recounted.

Salesperson advice aside, as demonstrated by our street style trends, people are really are wearing their Celine trophies out and about. “What I loved about the spring 2027 season was the proposition that hero items need not be saved for a special occasion, nor worn sparingly,” said King.