Margiela breaks fashion auction records in France The buzz around the SS90 collection exceeds expectations

On January 27, Kerry Taylor Auctions and Maurice Auction made history with a fashion auction of ephemeral objects created by Martin Margiela from a single owner. With 100% of lots sold (a so-called “White Glove” sale) and a total of 1,889,000 euros, the auction Martin Margiela, The Early Years: 1988-1994 became the most successful fashion auction ever held in France. As the walls of the auction room, located in an abandoned building on Boulevard Voltaire in the 11th arrondissement of Paris, were about to explode with a horde of bidders eager to take their loot home, the sales followed one another in quick succession, sweeping everything in their wake.

A collection that propelled Martin Margiela to the forefront of the international scene and became a visual manifesto for the rest of his career, encapsulating the designer’s sartorial concepts of transformation, scale, repurposing vintage patterns, and exposing production methods. While the previous auction record for a single Margiela ensemble stood (according to Kerry Taylor Auctions) at €32,500, it was completely shattered by Martin Margiela, The Early Years: 1988-1994, which nearly multiplied that record 60 times over. The interest generated by this auction clearly shows that such pivotal moments still resonate today with museums, archives, passionate collectors, and the general public. Although Martin Margiela's rarely revealed face was not seen in the crowd, who knows—he may have come to bid farewell to his creations. One thing is certain: his collector pieces were honored and appreciated for their true value.