Glenn Martens Breaks Down His Avant-Garde H&M Collection

Fashion: H&M and Belgian designer Glenn Martens have officially unveiled their highly anticipated collaboration—a collection that bridges avant-garde design (a hallmark of Martens’ creative vision) with everyday accessibility. Known for redefining contemporary fashion through his work at Y/Project, Diesel, and now Maison Margiela, Martens brings his signature experimental spirit to H&M’s democratic design ethos. The result is a lineup that reimagines wardrobe archetypes—think sculptural denim, deconstructed tailoring, and trompe-l’œil details—crafted with Martens’ technical precision and playful approach to proportion.

A major focus of the collaboration is customization. Many pieces are designed to be twisted, folded, or reshaped, allowing wearers to make each item their own. Even the collection’s standout bag can be scrunched and sculpted into different silhouettes—a reflection of Martens’ fascination with transformation and movement within fashion.

The process began in H&M’s archives, where Martens explored the brand’s best-selling basics—the white T-shirt, the gray hoodie, the classic trench coat—and set out to reimagine them with new energy. Without losing the heart of what makes H&M accessible, he injected his distinctive edge through innovative cuts and material manipulation.

As H&M’s Head of Womenswear Design, Ann-Sofie Johansson, explains, “This collaboration is all about giving people access to a designer they wouldn’t normally be able to afford.” Together, she and Martens deliver a collection that proves creativity and accessibility can coexist beautifully.

The collaboration launches online & in select stores on October 30th.

Below, Martens and Johansson spoke exclusively with L’OFFICIEL about the collaboration.

Photography courtesy of H&M

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L’OFFICIEL: H&M collaborations have long served as cultural moments that merge high fashion with accessibility and affordability. Ann-Sofie, how does this partnership with Glenn reflect where H&M is heading next?

ANN-SOFIE JOHANSSON: We share a similar view on fashion—especially the idea of democratizing it. That’s something H&M has always stood for. Through collaborations like this, designers can make their work accessible to more people than they could through their own brands. It’s about remembering what it’s like to be young, to want to look good without having much money.

L’O: What surprised you most about working with Glenn and his team—either creatively or logistically?

ASJ: I think creativity played a big role in why we wanted to work together from the start. We were looking for something that felt truly unique and had a strong point of view—and that’s exactly what we found in Glenn. He’s incredibly talented, but also very pleasant and easygoing, which makes a long collaboration like this so much smoother. These projects can take years from the first meeting to completion, so it really helps when you genuinely enjoy working with the person.

L’O: Glenn, while immersing yourself in H&M’s archives, what aspects of the brand’s design legacy stood out to you the most? 

GLENN MARTENS: It was kind of funny to see that H&M’s bestsellers are exactly the same as those at high-end labels—the gray hoodie, the white T-shirt, the classic trench coat. All lifestyle brands have those staples, of course, and I’m guilty of buying them too. But after a while, I thought, ‘Okay, how can we make this a little more inspiring?’

So as the collaboration evolved, we naturally started to add some energy and personality to those archetypal pieces. Even though there are still gray sweatshirts and neutral tones, we managed to move slightly away from the very dry, minimal aesthetic. We brought in a subtle sense of Britishness—a nod to the timeless trench coat, textured fabrics, and classic tailoring—while keeping everything refined and wearable. The goal was to add character and color without overpowering the design. That balance felt really important.

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L’O: Y/Project just had their final archive sale. Are there pieces in the H&M collaboration that die-hard Y/Project fans would be excited about?

GM: We wanted to respect the people who own the original Y/Project pieces, so these new versions have been digested and reinterpreted. Even something like the invisible tank tops has different cuts and lines. I think people are going to love it. There are plenty of designs we’ve never done before, but also a few that nod to the originals. I could’ve kept the brand’s past work locked away, but I’d rather celebrate it—give it a final push filled with love, joy, and appreciation for everything it’s stood for.

L’O: In your show notes for your Margiela debut, you mentioned the collection was “a series of concepts and proposals for real life.” How can this point of view apply to both a revered couture house and a capsule for H&M?

GM: The thing is, this kind of design and development we did with H&M could never have existed in real life without H&M’s production capabilities and accessibility. The pieces we’re proposing are quite complex to produce, and normally, with smaller production runs, that would make them incredibly expensive—like the ones we do at Maison Margiela.

For me, Margiela hadn’t focused much on wardrobe essentials in recent years. When I was a Margiela customer 20 years ago, you could wear those clothes to a bar or the opera. I really wanted to bring that sense of real-life wearability back.

So this collection is very ready-to-wear in spirit. It’s about showing that Margiela can exist in real life—that creativity and concept can also be practical and approachable. Of course, luxury by nature is exclusive, but I think that’s why collaborations like this one are so special. They allow us to share that creativity with more people, to bring a little happiness and beauty to a much wider audience.

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