5 Brands Like Balenciaga

Following on from their recent collaboration with adidas Originals we take a look at some alternatives to the Paris based luxury brand with 5 brands like Balenciaga.

Let’s face it if you’re into your luxury streetwear brands chances are you’re a big fan of what Balenciaga are doing at the moment. As far as on trend designer brands’ go at the moment, Balenciaga are arguably at the very top of their game. With recent collaborations with adidas, the Paris based luxury label have also tapped into the hyped sneaker world courtesy of their chunky Triple S silhouette & almost sock like Speed trainer. Dubbed by Christian Dior as the “The master of us all”, Balenciaga was founded all the way back in 1919 by the fashion designer Cristóbal Balenciaga. Now based out of the French capital, Balenciaga has previously worked with the likes of Alexander Wang as their creative director to more recently announcing Justin Bieber as the face of the brand in 2021. The latest Balenciaga x adidas collaboration or “Balenci-adidas” as it also been dubbed will no doubt be the main talking point of the luxury fashion world for some time, however we wanted to turn the attention away from Demna Gvasalia (Balenciaga’s current creative director) & Wall Street trading floor catwalks for a brief moment. In this latest feature we take a look at some alternatives to the Spanish born luxury powerhouse with 5 brands like Balenciaga.

Givenchy

The French luxury brand Givenchy started back in 1952 when Cristóbal Balenciaga and Hubert de Givenchy both presented their collections at a New York charity gala. More recently the 1017 ALYX 9SM creative director & founder, Matthew M. Williams, now heads up the brand for both menswear & womenswear, a nod to the brands’ changing times as the lines between traditional luxury fashion houses and contemporary streetwear continues to blur. A nod to the artistic inspirations of the past & the present, Givenchy’s signature G emblem has become a respected logo of luxury & quality. Some of the latest releases from the French luxury brand includes jacquard sneakers, basketball print hoodies & an exclusive ‘made in Portugal’ collaboration with the NYC artist, Josh Smith.

Louis Vuitton

If there was one luxury fashion brand that crossed over into the streetwear world first it was arguably Louis Vuitton when they teamed up with Supreme back in 2017. The collaboration introduced the designer label to a new “hype” driven consumer as oppose to the traditional luxury fashion fans. Selling out literally within minutes the collaboration marked the next chapter for LV bringing in OFF-WHITE’s Virgil Abloh as artistic director of menswear in 2018. Abloh took over the reigns from Dior’s Kim Jones putting his own unique spin on LV’s iconic monogram logo. Sadly Abloh passed away in 2021 but LV’s dominance in the luxury streetwear world still reigns supreme. Alongside their luxury luggage collections, LV’s latest collection has everything from bandana print boardshorts, reversible monogram track tops & a collection of luxury sneakers.

Maison Margiela

Another French luxury fashion house that is a great alternative to Balenciaga is Maison Margiela. Founded in 1988 by the Belgian designer, Martin Margiela, the Parisian based brand has really made its name in the world of luxury sneakers. Now under the direction of the British fashion designer, John Galliano who has previously worked in creative roles with the likes of Christian Dior & Givenchy, Maison Margiela recently collaborated with Reebok on a range of premium footwear & classic silhouettes such as the InstaPump Fury & the Classic Leather. Now offering full ranges of apparel & accessories highlights of their latest collection includes check Harrington jackets, their iconic ‘Replica’ sneakers, quilted gilets & floral print knitwear.

Burberry

Whether the British designer brand has liked it or not, Burberry’s street connection to British subculture started decades before the Manchester United superstar, Marcus Rashford, became the face of the brand. The Casuals of the 1980s loved a bit of Burberry from macs to scarves. The mid 90s Birtpop scene saw the likes of Liam Gallagher wearing the classic Nova Check shirt in the video for Wonderwall. During the early to mid noughties the original ‘Nova Check’ brand experienced a huge revival thanks to The Streets, Nick Love’s ‘The Football Factory’ & The Libertines frontman, Peter Doherty. Due to a rise in cheap counterfeits the Burberry check cap got branded as “chav” something which the die hard Burberry fans hated. The brand still maintained its luxury appeal putting its focus away from the classic Nova check. However in more recent years the classic check has seen a huge resurgence thanks to the rise of luxury streetwear with Burberry also tapping into the trend. The latest arrivals from Burberry includes classic check bucket hats, mule sneakers & reversible down vests.

Gucci

Finally, no mention of luxury fashion brands that are like Balenciaga would be complete without mentioning the Florence based Italian powerhouse, Gucci. Worn by everyone from mafia dons to Berlin based rappers (Capital Bra literally named a song after the brand), Gucci was founded by Guccio Gucci back in 1921. The signature ‘GG’ logo is the brands’ exclusive print which can be seen across everything from headwear to luxury sneakers. More recently the brand also moved into the luxury streetwear spectrum under the direction of the Italian born fashion designer, Alessandro Michele. Highlights of their latest collections include GG waist bags, tech pants, track jackets & block logo print sweatshirts. Did we also mention they just did a collaboration with adidas?

Shop the latest releases now from the Louis Vuitton, Givenchy, Maison Margiela, Burberry & Gucci now via the links above.