Luca’s Tough Love & J.Crew’s Outside Influence

For all the star power of the just-concluded Couture week, the industry is finding out that fixing brands is far harder than replacing executives.

From left: J.Crew Group C.E.O. Libby Wadle, Net-a-Porter C.E.O. Heather Kaminetsky, Kering C.E.O. Luca de Meo, make-up artist Bobbi Brown, and Spanx founder Sara Blakely. Photo-Illustration: Puck; Getty Images

Malique Morris

July 10, 2026

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Nothing during Couture week felt more consequential than Balenciaga, where Pierpaolo Piccioli debuted his straightforward elegance at one of Kering’s least-defined brands. The real star, however, was Luca de Meo. As Lauren wrote this week, the Kering C.E.O. has approached the luxury group—whose stock is down 18 percent this year—with little sentimentality. During Kering’s investor day in April, de Meo declared, “All the brands must be profitable, otherwise, I will eject them from the system.”