Balenciaga

Balenciaga SA ( bə-LEN-see-AH-gə; Spanish: [balenˈθjaɣa]; Basque: [balents̻i.aɣa]) is a Spanish luxury fashion house headquartered in Paris. It designs, manufactures and markets ready-to-wear footwear, handbags, and accessories, and licenses its name and branding to the European cosmetics company L'Oréal for its namesake fragrances. The brand was originally founded in San Sebastián in 1919 by the Spanish couturier Cristóbal Balenciaga before its establishment in Paris in 1937 as a result of the Spanish Civil War. Closed in 1968 by its founder who deceased three years later, Balenciaga was ultimately revitalized by the French fragrance group Jacques Bogart after the latter acquired the brand in 1986. Since 2001, it is owned by the French luxury goods company Kering, controlled by the Pinault family. Gianfranco Gianangeli has been CEO of Balenciaga since November 2024. Italian designer Pierpaolo Piccioli became Creative Director of Balenciaga in July 2025.