MBFWMadrid takes over the Palacio de Cibeles on the opening day of its 40th-anniversary celebrations

MBFWMadrid kicked off its 40th-anniversary edition with a symbolic move from IFEMA to the Palacio de Cibeles. Spain’s premier fashion event chose the Crystal Gallery — where sunlight filters through dramatic glasswork — to open a milestone edition that felt both celebratory and forward-looking.

Much of that shift (aligned with the new leadership at the helm of MBFWMadrid, with Asier Labarga as director and Valentina Suárez-Zuloaga as creative director) was, clearly, the decision to occupy an emblematic building in the center of Madrid, bringing its proposition and program to the heart of the capital. Equally decisive was the choice of a guest designer to open this edition: the Colombian Silvia Tcherassi, who presented a collection defined by airy silhouettes, bold, vibrant colors, fluid draping, and long-fringed bags as signature accessories.

Tcherassi swapped New York for Madrid this season, choosing the Spanish capital to debut her Spring 2026 collection. “For me, showing in Madrid is deeply meaningful because I committed to this city ten years ago; it was my first store in Europe, even before Italy,” explained the designer after the show. “We are a global brand for a global woman. An international brand with production in Colombia and based in the United States. We’ve just opened a new store in Palm Beach, and we already have 15 boutiques worldwide. We plan to continue expanding. Not only in fashion and lifestyle, which we have already done, but in many other ways,” said the designer.

Pedro del Hierro’s “The Great Metropolis”

Following Silvia Tcherassi (and with a nod to Palomo, who presented his new collection at the Palace Hotel, his first to include womenswear), Pedro del Hierro staged a show in the heart of Madrid with a proposal titled “La gran metrópoli” (“The Great Metropolis”). It proved, indeed, a tailor-made setting.

A broad sweep of menswear and womenswear set the tone, underpinned by a varied soundtrack (from Rosalía to Concha Velasco) that sought to evoke a city that, on the cusp of summer, feels especially inviting: brimming with plans and a vibrant cultural and leisure life. Perhaps an allegory of today’s Madrid?

Linen, silk, organza, knitwear worn next to the skin, and metallic touches were among the constants in the show, which stood out for its color choices — from orange to fuchsia, via lilac — in menswear. “In colors, we have a solid base that can never be missing from our collections: ecru, white, khaki or black. And we season it with touches of color, as well as incorporating the tones of summer sunsets: ranges of yellows and oranges that merge with reds of varying intensity until reaching lilacs and purples,” explained Álex Miralles backstage, menswear creative director at Pedro del Hierro and Cortefiel and, together with Nacho Aguayo, creative director of womenswear, co-author of the collection.

Special celebrations require special guests. And that seemed to be the thinking of the MBFWMadrid organizers when they invited Adolfo Domínguez to their opening day.

“The Palacio de Cibeles is spectacular and elevates fashion to a very aspirational place,” said Tiziana Domínguez, design director at Adolfo Domínguez. “We wanted to honor this 40th anniversary. We are Galician and Spanish and this is our runway. And we turn 50 next year; it seemed to us an appropriate symmetry of ages and a good occasion to collaborate,” added the executive. It had been almost a decade and a half since Adolfo Domínguez last showed on the MBFWMadrid calendar; since then, it has favored shows in key markets for its expansion, such as Mexico and Dubai.

In its return to the Madrid runway this September, the brand presented, in line with its DNA, a conceptual collection across both menswear and womenswear that included trousers and skirts with double waistbands, deconstructed shirts, delicate embroidery, intentionally unfinished elements, and a carefully considered color palette: earth tones and neutrals coexist in perfect harmony with salmon, aquamarine, and butter yellow.

“This collection is called ‘Zenit,’ because it refers to the ascent to the top of our personal development. To get there, we see two ways. The first is to shed ballast, which manifests itself in tailoring, such as shirts, pencil skirts, and trousers, whose halves fall away in unexpected draping and a kind of technical experimentation. And the other way to reach ‘Zenit,’ for us, is through accumulation: the accumulation of these small efforts, of diligence, of knowledge. That’s what allows you to elevate yourself. And we transfer all this to clothing through the technique of embroidery: the fabrics are worked stitch by stitch, and the threads never end, falling like fringes. This comes from the idea of the accumulation necessary to reach the zenith,” explained Domínguez.

Simorra closed the opening day of shows and, on the cusp of autumn, envisaged a Spring 2026 in pastel shades, deep greens, nudes and, again, salmon. It also envisioned a spring collection featuring volume, transparency, cut-outs, and asymmetric necklines.

Its collection for the upcoming warm season is titled “Fractal,” and is laden with symbolism. “Fractals are geometric repetitions found in nature, which are not seen but exist and give it order and structure. It is like the formula that describes the beauty of nature. We have captured this in our fabrics because we are a family-owned company with textile origins and we are dedicated to that: telling stories through fabrics,” explained Eva Dimas, CEO of Simorra, after the show.

The brand, which maintains a strong retail presence in Spain and is actively expanding into Mexico and France, views its participation in MBFWMadrid as a strategic move to elevate its desirability. “Today, building a brand means cultivating aspiration — aiming higher,” explained the label. “Physical stores allow us to stay close to the customer, but desire must be created. The catwalk helps us project that aspiration, giving the brand greater visibility and emotional impact.”

From Thursday to Sunday, MBFWMadrid will return to IFEMA, but with its first foray into the city center, it lays the foundations for a new catwalk model, also marked by the introduction of presentations (beyond the catwalk shows) and parallel activities, such as roundtables.