Paris Fashion Week kicks off this Monday with a particularly exciting programme. This women's ready-to-wear edition for autumn-winter 2023/2024, scheduled from February 27 to March 7, is bringing together 106 houses with 66 shows and 40 presentations. The show will feature Dundas and Palm Angels for the first time and a number of prestigious returns, including Pierre Cardin, Paco Rabanne, Alexander McQueen and Nina Ricci.

Among the newcomers is Palm Angels, the Italian luxury streetwear label owned by Farfetch via New Guards Group and headed by Francesco Ragazzi. In full expansion, it has chosen to come to the City of Light to show on Sunday March 5, while Dundas will show on the following day, March 6. The English brand launched in 2017 by Norwegian designer Peter Dundas previously showed at the Haute Couture Week in July 2018 but is returning to Paris, this time as part of the ready-to-wear programme.

Schiaparelli, led by Daniel Roseberry, who mainly shows during haute couture, will also be present. The house has previously presented "prêt-à-couture" collections, as it calls them, during the women's fashion week, but this time it has opted for an exciting and media-friendly show format on Thursday March 2. Also announced is Avellano, closing Fashion Week on the evening of Tuesday March 7. Designer Arthur Avellano's latex brand is on a roll. The brand, which has until now showed during the men's week, is now positioning itself in the women's schedule, in search of greater visibility.

This Parisian Week also promises to be rich in comebacks. After a quarter of a century, Pierre Cardin is back on the Parisian calendar. The emblematic fashion house, now run by Rodrigo Basilicati-Cardin, organised at the beginning of 2022, a spectacular show at the Air and Space Museum at Le Bourget, in homage to its legendary founder, who died in 2020. It will return to the Paris calendar on March 5 for a show to be held in its historic boutique at 59 Faubourg Saint-Honoré.

Another returning historic house is Paco Rabanne, whose founder passed away on February 3. Since the pandemic, it had deserted Fashion Week for women's ready-to wear, presenting its collections instead at the Men's Week or outside the calendar. The show is schdueled for March 1.

Many labels are returning to Paris after the pandemic. This is the case for Alexander McQueen, who had disappeared to London and New York, as well as Shiatzy Chen and Uma Wang, who are returning to a physical show after opting for the digital format. For its part, Y/Project is returning to the women's programme after having switched to the men's for two years with mixed shows.

The long-awaited return of cult designer Martine Sitbon, who will unveil her new brand Rev during a presentation away from the shows, as well as that of Nina Ricci, has also been announced. Until recently, the luxury house has been without a designer and has been on the sidelines for two seasons. On March 3, it will unveil the first collection of its new creative director Harris Reed. The next day, on March 4, Ann Demeulemeester will present the creations of Ludovic de Saint Sernin, who has been in charge of style since this season.

Alongside the star houses, all of which will be present, from Chanel to Christian Dior, including Louis Vuitton, Hermès, Lanvin, Givenchy, Balmain, Saint Laurent and Balenciaga, which promises a sober and unusual fashion show, the Parisian Week will have many highlights. Like the Vivienne Westwood tribute show on March 4, or the AZ Factory show with special guests, the founders of Colville, Molly Molloy and Lucinda Chambers. Not forgetting the newcomers to be discovered in the programme of presentations. Like the Chinese label Chenpeng, the English designer Margaret Howell, the Italian Niccolò Pasqualetti and the Irish Róisín Pierce.

The only downside was the eight brands that will be missed during this Fashion Week. Starting with Thom Browne, who left for New York after taking over the presidency of the Council of American Fashion Designers, the CFDA. Other brands, such as Botter and Ludovic de Saint Sernin, left the women's programme, repositioning themselves in January in the Men's Fashion Week.

Others have opted for presentations this season, such as Rochas, Gmbh and Christian Wijnants, who has just taken over the creative direction of Maison Ullens. As for the Japanese label Beautiful People, it is no longer on the calendar. Koché, which says it is taking time to reflect is also considering a move to the men's calendar next June.