1988
An unconventional beginning
Founded in Paris, the house treated fashion as a field for experimentation. Reworked garments and visible making challenged the polished finish usually associated with luxury.
The House & Its Designers
Maison Margiela
Paris · 1988
Construction, anonymity and the familiar object reconsidered.
Martin Margiela’s house questioned how clothes were made and how a designer should be seen. Exposed construction, anonymous labels and unexpected materials became more important than a public personality.
6 photographs · Reviewed August 2026
Explore the history ↓
01 / The house
The story behind the name.
The codes
Recognition without a conventional logo
Four white stitches and the numbered label became identifiers. The Tabi’s split toe and the later 5AC bag similarly made an unusual structural detail the point of recognition.
2014–2025
New couturiers
John Galliano brought theatrical storytelling to the Artisanal collections. Glenn Martens was appointed creative director in January 2025, following Galliano’s departure.
02 / The designers
The people who shaped the house.
Selected creative chapters; dates distinguish appointments from runway debuts.
Founder
Martin Margiela
Made anonymity, reuse and construction central to the house’s identity.
2014–2024
John Galliano
Extended the house’s experimental practice through expressive couture.
Appointed 2025
Glenn Martens
Brings an interest in transformation and unconventional construction.
03 / The bags
A vocabulary in leather and form.
A selection of the house’s designs. Resale photographs illustrate individual examples; size, finish and condition vary.
01
5AC
An exposed lining and numbered label interrupt a conventional top-handle silhouette.
02
Glam Slam
Pillowy quilting creates the soft, inflated surface of this bag family.
03
Snatched
An angular, envelope-like bag with a sharply folded profile.
04
Tabi Bag
An accessory design that extends the house’s Tabi vocabulary beyond footwear.
More designs to know
- Soft 5AC
- A more supple interpretation of the 5AC’s exposed-lining construction.