“Being a foreigner in Paris” is something German designer Lutz Huelle is familiar with, as was Israeli-born Alber Elbaz, who founded AZ Factory with Richemont less than two years before his passing.
For his second pre-collection for the brand, now based on serial collaborators, Huelle shared his perspective on Parisian style, bypassing clichés like berets and striped tops to focus on the everyday chic of oversize men’s shirts, blazers and the like, along with more eccentric elements like ruffles, leopard prints and searing color combinations, especially pink with red.
It added up to a zesty, yet approachable lineup of wardrobe builders with as much personality as practicality. Consider a slick, asymmetric leopard skirt done up in jersey that’s supple despite its surface of printed sequins, or a loose shirt and drawstring pants in slinky jersey in hot colors — comfy enough for the sofa, but with the right shoes and accessories, plausible for a night on the town.
Huelle captured Elbaz’s inimitable brand of offhand glamour in T-shirt dresses that fan out into jutting pouf skirts, or a polo dress in duchesse satin with a plunging placket and pert tulip sleeves.
During a preview, he pointed out the versatility of the former — prim under a bicolor cardigan — and brought over a viscose denim version of his polo dress to demonstrate the suppleness of the fabric. Lace recurs as sleeves on a weightless blazer, the placket on a roomy shirt, or intarsias on a sweatshirt.
Huelle started out with AZ Factory as a guest designer for its spring 2023 collection, and was brought back for a returning role helming pre-collections. He operates on instinct, trusting his sudden penchant for polos, and also keeps an eye on what’s selling, which is why he reprised billowing poplin shirtdresses, one of the bestsellers from his debut effort.