Top image: Photography by Clark Franklyn, fashion by Laëtitia Mannessier. Shirt, sweater, trousers, cape, bow tie and sneakers all by Valentino FW17.

In today’s fast-paced fashion climate, keeping abreast of designer changes can be a tireless task. FW17 alone saw four major menswear debuts – Haider Ackermann for Berluti, Raf Simons for Calvin Klein 205W39NYC, Pierpaolo Piccioli for Valentino and Alessandro Sartori for Ermenegildo Zegna Couture – with each designer presenting a collection in tune with both their own and their new house’s design codes.

Incase you missed any of it, here’s our HERO 18 quick-fire cheat sheet to the movers and shakers of FW17. Take note.

HAIDER ACKERMANN’S FIRST COLLECTION for BERLUTI

Master of rock ‘n’ roll languor Haider Ackermann kept his talents close to his chest, until now. The Colombian designer had previously only been associated with his own eponymous line, which he founded in 2003, but FW17 saw him debut a new vision for French menswear brand Berluti. Ackermann is known for his love of movement, harnessing drape and fabric to create louche lines with a bohemian flavour. Mixed with the eclectic classicism of Berluti, this means elegant tailoring and lush fabrics rich with a newly artistic attitude.

RAF SIMONS’ FIRST COLLECTION for CALVIN KLEIN 205W39NYC

Raf Simons has an unparalleled ability to stylise the zeitgeist. Working magic with a reference, he filters art, music and culture through his technical DIY lens. Now, that gaze is turned to Calvin Klein, where he took the lead as chief creative officer in 2016, presenting his first collection for FW17 under the new name CALVIN KLEIN 205W39NYC. It’s an intriguing pairing: Calvin Klein, the all-American king of wholesome, minimalistic sex appeal, and Raf, whose unparalleled grasp of youth- and subculture will inject a dose of adrenaline into the household name.

PIERPAOLO PICCIOLI’S FIRST SOLO COLLECTION for VALENTINO

Pierpaolo Piccioli helmed Valentino as one half of a duo for eight years, but now he’s set sail solo. FW17 marked the Italian designer’s first menswear offering for the house since the departure of long-time creative partner Maria Grazia Chiuri, and so it was an emotionally charged moment. This is a house known for its overt loveliness, and under Piccioli’s familiar eye the menswear becomes even more so – tender disruptions of tailoring and sportswear, elevating the unexpected. Envisioned by a designer who dreamed of being a movie director as a child, the clothes channel a cinematic intensity.

ALESSANDRO SARTORI’S FIRST COLLECTION for ERMENEGILDO ZEGNA COUTURE

Full circle journeys are so satisfying. Take Alessandro Sartori, who was designer at Z Zegna for eight years before joining Berluti, eventually leaving to return to the fold – specifically, to head up Ermenegildo Zegna in the newly created role of artistic director. Sartori has an innate understanding of the level of craft that’s synonymous with the Zegna brand (it’s only natural, when you grew up hanging out in your mum’s atelier). And his first official collection in the new capacity flexed this: think effortless tailoring with an artisanal bent.