Little is more exciting in the fashion world than the announcement of a luxury brand's new creative director, particularly after months of endless gossip and speculation. Apart from said designer's debut collection, of course—closely followed by their first advertising campaign.
It is with these that an overarching vision for a brand finally begins to come to light, providing a better understanding of a designer's aesthetic, priorities, technical skills, and muses. With this in mind, then, it's hardly surprising that the unveiling of Sarah Burton's Givenchy Autumn/Winter 2025 campaign has garnered such industry buzz.
The Macclesfield-born former McQueen designer's first for the storied French fashion house, the campaign reveals Burton's vision for the modern Givenchy woman—while also revealing those who inspired it.
"The beauty of all women inspires me—including my team," explained the designer in a press release. "I wanted to capture the brilliant women I work with amongst the cast—real moments with everyone working together."
And so, among top models such as Kaia Gerber, Vittoria Ceretti, Adut Akech and Eva Herzigova, Burton placed a handful of her behind-the-scenes heroes front and centre of the campaign.
Stylist Camilla Nickerson, who has worked with Sarah Burton for decades, took a rare turn in front of the lens for Givenchy's newest campaign, wearing a smart black blazer from the much-anticipated Autumn/Winter 2025 collection presented during Paris Fashion Week earlier this year—and much-loved make-up artist Lucia Pieroni followed suit.
Even the shoot's photographer Collier Schorr took temporary centre-stage, posing alongside Vittoria Ceretti as she models one of Burton's most standout designs: a mini-dress covered in vintage compact mirrors.
The fact that the campaign captures Burton's muses in the midst of unposed gestures, moments of laughter and conversation lends a refreshing informality to the campaign, while simultaneously bringing the couture-like clothes to life in a way that only makes them all the more covetable.
Yes, the campaign's concept is decidedly pared-back and simple compared with the attention-grabbing, social media-focussed campaigns that tend to dominate nowadays, their sole aim being to shock and/or go viral—but that's precisely the point.
Burton's brilliance here is in offering an idea of modern femininity that has a softer kind of power, but is endlessly alluring nonetheless. For who wouldn't want to join this group of brilliant, beautiful muses, even if only by dressing the part? Luckily for those with the means to do the latter, Sarah Burton's debut Givenchy collection has just dropped, too...
